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In this beef breeding Focus, we take a look at various aspects of beef breeding with a particular focus on AI and the advantages that it brings to a suckler farm.
While many will point to the extra work required to carry out AI in a herd, Ciarán Lenehan visits a farmer who is successfully using AI in his herd.
New technologies are emerging all the time that are making AI an option on more and more suckler farms. Pat Donnellan outlines the Top 35 AI terminal bulls on the active bull list and also the top 35 AI replacement bulls on the active bull list. This list has the latest calving difficulty, calving records and price and is a useful table to use ahead of this year’s breeding season. These tables should be used as a tool for the selection of this year’s sires.
Suckler farmers shouldn’t lose the skill of selecting good cattle and should always match sires to cows that will complement the positive and negative points of a cow. To put breeding in a nutshell, it’s trying to achieve that the next generation is better than the parents, both physically and genetically.
Ciarán Lenehan talks to some of the main AI providers and finds out who the star performers are in terms of cow makers and €1,000 weanlings. The Deverell family runs a very successful pedigree herd just outside Tullamore in Co Offaly. I visited them a few weeks ago and discussed their breeding operation and what the future holds for traditional breeds in Ireland.
Finally, we take a look at safe handling of animals on livestock farms. Every year we come across serious accidents while handling cattle and we profile a few areas that may help reduce issues.
New active bull lists published
Beef breeding success: four generations of tradition in Offaly
Beef breeding: getting to grips with AI
Beef AI sires: top cow-makers and weanling producers
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