Jeff Mafi
Association Perspective
Taking care of your bulls.
We have experienced record-setting Angus bull sales throughout the country starting back in the fall and continuing strong through late this spring. In fact, registered-Angus bulls have averaged $6,747, up 36% from a year ago. I think it would be safe to say commercial cow-calf owners and operators have never invested as much money before in bulls until this year.
With that said, I think it is a nice reminder for all to take good care of your bulls. Operations that don’t manage bulls properly are often those with more open cows. It pays to fine-tune bull management as much as possible to give them optimum conditions for health and fertility. Bulls should be neither underfed nor overfed; they need optimum body condition, between a body condition score (BCS) 5 and 6, before the next breeding season.
Protect your investment by feeding your bull well. You should feed 5 to 10 pounds (lb.) of grain, or 1 to 2 lb. of protein supplement and free-choice hay to allow your bull(s) to adequately develop. Supplemental feeding during breeding season is recommended, if possible. After the breeding season, continue to feed liberally so the bull will grow well. There is a natural limit to what can be expected of him. Observe the following guidelines in determining how heavily to use your bull based on his age at the start of the breeding season.
| Bull’s age in months |
No. of Females
|
| 12-15 | 10 to 12 |
| 15-18 | 12 to 18 |
| 18-24 | 18 to 25 |
| 24 and older | 25 to 35 |
A mineral program should be part of year-round management, not just used seasonally. Bulls should be on a similar mineral supplementation program as the cows. While most producers have good vaccination and parasite-control programs for the cows, the bulls are sometimes ignored. In most cases, it is easiest to keep the bulls and cows on the same health program for vaccine and dewormer.
Minimizing the risk of injuries to bulls from fighting means social order must be managed. So, when bulls are removed from the cows and put into their fall/winter pastures, make sure the groups are eased back together and allowed to get their differences settled and social order to be re-established. It’s always good for bulls to have lots of space, and a good rule of thumb is to sort bulls into groups of similar age and size. This practice also allows for more efficient feeding protocols for bulls that are younger and still growing to be developed vs. older bulls that can be managed more like the cows.
Editor’s Note: Jeff Mafi is regional manager for Kansas and Oklahoma. Click here to find the regional manager for your state.
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