Beef producers can only prosper if they can cut costs while improving their herd performance. Prices for their meat vary greatly, and greater efficiency in production means survival in bad markets. Beef cattle genetics, which study heredity and trait transfer from parent to off-spring, can help when producers combine them with practical measures.
Heredity is the passing along of genes from both parents. By breeding for desirable characteristics, ranchers can move positively towards their goals. Sometimes, however, breeding for maximum trait optimization can be detrimental. Line-breeding or in-breeding means mating two animals from similar gene pools. This practice can produce animals that gain weight faster or have superior 'carcass quality', but it can decrease over-all health and vitality in the herd.
Embryo transplanting is when a prime cow is mated to a superior bull and her fertilized eggs harvested. Surrogate mother cows carry her off-spring and nurture the calves, each of which carries her excellent bloodline. Embryo transplants are of benefit to those who are raising breeding stock, but meat-producing ranchers have found that less high-tech measures may achieve higher profits.
The smart producer will take advantage of modern advances in genetic science and combine them with personal experience and proven industry-wide methods. For instance, the traditional culling of unproductive cows from the herd still increases profits. Checking genetic records before choosing a bull means that high performing cows can be paired with bulls that pass their good traits along and overcome any weaknesses in the cows. This practice is key to gradual herd improvement.
A basic knowledge of heredity explains what ranchers already know, that breeding animals with similar genetic backgrounds (within the breed and with some common ancestors) can reduce health and vitality. Out-breeding, which means choosing animals within the breed but of different strains, works better in terms of conception, ability to carry and nurture a calf, and length of productive life.
What works even better is cross-breeding, when each parent is from a different breed. The good traits of both will be intensified by hybridization. Ranchers call it 'hybrid vigor' and value cross-breds for their excellent across-the-board performance.
Artificial insemination, using frozen semen, makes the best bulls available to ranchers everywhere. There are bulls with great performance records for meat production, and others whose strength is producing cows who conceive easily, carry calves successfully, and nurture them well. Things like birth weight, growth rate, and early maturity are all found in genetic records kept by breed associations.
Good herd management and continued prosperity calls for combining traditional methods with the knowledge gained from genetic research. Understanding how careful choice of breeding partners can produce superior animals with the characteristics needed for success can make all the time and effort worth it. There are many fine purebred and cross-bred strains to choose from in the cattle business of today.
Heredity is the passing along of genes from both parents. By breeding for desirable characteristics, ranchers can move positively towards their goals. Sometimes, however, breeding for maximum trait optimization can be detrimental. Line-breeding or in-breeding means mating two animals from similar gene pools. This practice can produce animals that gain weight faster or have superior 'carcass quality', but it can decrease over-all health and vitality in the herd.
Embryo transplanting is when a prime cow is mated to a superior bull and her fertilized eggs harvested. Surrogate mother cows carry her off-spring and nurture the calves, each of which carries her excellent bloodline. Embryo transplants are of benefit to those who are raising breeding stock, but meat-producing ranchers have found that less high-tech measures may achieve higher profits.
The smart producer will take advantage of modern advances in genetic science and combine them with personal experience and proven industry-wide methods. For instance, the traditional culling of unproductive cows from the herd still increases profits. Checking genetic records before choosing a bull means that high performing cows can be paired with bulls that pass their good traits along and overcome any weaknesses in the cows. This practice is key to gradual herd improvement.
A basic knowledge of heredity explains what ranchers already know, that breeding animals with similar genetic backgrounds (within the breed and with some common ancestors) can reduce health and vitality. Out-breeding, which means choosing animals within the breed but of different strains, works better in terms of conception, ability to carry and nurture a calf, and length of productive life.
What works even better is cross-breeding, when each parent is from a different breed. The good traits of both will be intensified by hybridization. Ranchers call it 'hybrid vigor' and value cross-breds for their excellent across-the-board performance.
Artificial insemination, using frozen semen, makes the best bulls available to ranchers everywhere. There are bulls with great performance records for meat production, and others whose strength is producing cows who conceive easily, carry calves successfully, and nurture them well. Things like birth weight, growth rate, and early maturity are all found in genetic records kept by breed associations.
Good herd management and continued prosperity calls for combining traditional methods with the knowledge gained from genetic research. Understanding how careful choice of breeding partners can produce superior animals with the characteristics needed for success can make all the time and effort worth it. There are many fine purebred and cross-bred strains to choose from in the cattle business of today.
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