stayability | Ag Proud

Efficiency matters, both in your feedlot and for your cow herd

While cow-calf herds may depend on different traits to be efficient than feedlot cattle do, selection for both sectors doesn’t have to be mutually exclusive.

September 16, 2024

Kenny Wells

Efficiency is efficiency, right? Turns out, it’s probably not that simple. Efficiency in a feedlot and at the cow-calf level are two very different things.

How trace mineral status affects reproductive efficiency in bulls

When working to maximize fertility in cattle, cows are often the focus. However, bull fertility is a crucial consideration for any beef operation.

August 1, 2024

Laurentia van Rensburg

When working to maximize fertility in cattle, cows are often the focus. However, bull fertility is a crucial consideration for any beef operation.

The ongoing debate over EPD vs. phenotype

The value of genotypic and phenotypic data can only be measured when viewed through the proper lens. Breeding bulls and replacement heifers should not be judged the same way market calves are.

December 1, 2023

Randie Culbertson

Using an EPD versus an animal’s phenotype is an ongoing debate among cattlemen. The question really boils down to whether the animal’s actual performance or the performance of its offspring is your primary interest.

Selecting for reproductive efficiency in beef herds

Keeping your cows on a 12-month calving interval is not an easy task, but understanding what their bodies are going through will help achieve that goal.

July 3, 2023

Dan Busch

The reproductive efficiency of cow-calf operations is one of the most important factors affecting the potential profitability of herds. The ideal cow calves early in the calving season every year, breeds back early in the breeding season and weans off a heavy calf year after year.