”It’s important not to let unconscious bias take over the decision-making and use the objective measurements available.”
Bulls, she says, make up at least 80 per cent of the genetic gain of a cow herd, so the impact of bull-buying decisions can be enduring.
Before buying a bull, Boyd encourages commercial bull breeders to undertake an honest appraisal of the performance of their breeding cow herd.
”Consider factors such as pregnancy scanning percentages, calving patterns, cull rates, weaning weights, growth rates and carcass quality.”
She says determining what trait or group of traits the commercial breeder wants to maintain or improve is a critical first step, as it is only then that they can identify breeders with similar objectives. Once a stud breeder has been found, she encourages farmers to ask for genetic trend graphs.
”These graphs should show an upward trend for the traits that have been identified as being important to the individual farmer. If not, then they should look for another breeder.”
Boyd says Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs) are an incredibly valuable tool as they allow buyers to compare bulls with the average of their breed.
EBV graphs make the selection even easier, as buyers should be considering bulls with bars toward the right-hand side of the graph for most traits.
Percentile band tables also allow buyers to rank bulls against others of the same breed.
Indexes are an indicator of overall profitability and weigh up the genetic merit across all traits for a particular production system. It is a single figure represented as a dollar value.
She says while indexes are a useful tool if a farmer wants to make progress on a particular trait, they then need to dig down into the detail and look at the EBVs that make up the index.
”Ideally, buyers should take the time to study the sale catalogues before they go to the sale. Highlight the bulls that are strongest in the traits they are looking for and go straight to those bulls to assess structure.”
She says it is easy to be distracted by good-looking bulls, but those animals may not have the genetics that would add value to a particular farm system. No matter how good a bull’s numbers are, structural soundness is critical, as the bull needs to be functional to pass on his genetics.
Boyd acknowledges it is easy to get confused with all the genetic information being presented in sale catalogues and she strongly recommends commercial buyers attend one of the Better Beef Breeding Workshops B+LNZ is rolling out across the country this month.
”These workshops will help farmers set their objectives, select a bull breeder, understand and make use of the genetic information in sale catalogues and carry out a Beef Class Structural Assessment. It also covers undertaking an annual evaluation to ensure bulls are sound for breeding.”
If farmers can’t attend these workshops, Boyd says there are several Better Beef Breeding resources on the B+LNZ website, including an online learning module, the Better Beef Breeding Book and the Beef Class Structural Assessment video.
”No one can afford to waste money on bulls that won’t add value to the farm business, so it does pay to use the resources, tools and information available and be well informed before turning up to sale day,” she says.
”Visit beeflambnz.com/events to find a Better Beef Breeding Workshop in your area, or search “better beef breeding” on the website to view the resources mentioned in this article.
Supplied by Beef + Lamb New Zealand Genetics
