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Bull Rations

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AngusCowBoy

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What would you recomend for a ration for angus bulls that wean off at 700 pounds and I want them to weigh 1250 to 1450 as yearlings?
 
Contact your local LOOMIX dealer and have him run a 4Per4mance program on them. It's free and will give you several least cost options, and, heck, it might even help the dealer earn a set of steak knives or a jar of Baldridge's Secret Seasoning mix!
 
You are looking for ADG from at least 4.4 to 6.0 on Angus bull calves. This will require the use of a standard feedlot ration with a 80% concentrate ration and you will end up with some Angus bulls that are fat enough to grade prime and they may even hit your low end yearling weight of 1250 LBS. The high end of your range is not very realistic.
I would not want to buy these bulls no matter how they gain. Bulls put on full feed for 125 days as yearlings have problems like poor semen counts (fatty scrotum) and bad feet. They also lose condition once used for breeding.
Feeding your bulls a growing ration despite the lower performance will pay dividends to your customers and to you in satisfied customers.
 
the reason for the low performance is probably because there out of first calf heifers
 
If the low(er) weaning weights are due to the calves being out of heifers then why push them hard and burn them out? The weaning, ADG, and yearling ratios along with the EPDs will tell the performance capabilities of these bull calves more than being finished and ready to eat.
 
700 pound calves out of first calf heifers and no creep is great performance-sounds like you've got some decent calves there don't castrate them with a feed bucket.
 
I guess I have a little extra pasture, do you think I should run them over and sell them as 2 year olds.
 
Northern Rancher said:
700 pound calves out of first calf heifers and no creep is great performance-sounds like you've got some decent calves there don't castrate them with a feed bucket.
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again, this is gettin spooky, but :agree: with NR :wink:
 
I'd quit useing Schaffs weaning weight as a measureing stick.They only need to gain 3 to 400#s to be decent breeding size as yearlings.
 
I'd quit useing Schaffs weaning weight as a measureing stick.They only need to gain 3 to 400#s to be decent breeding size as yearlings.
Click to expand...

I agree completely. I want my bulls to weigh 1150 on sale day. That makes them 13 months.
As for a ration, make them eat 10 pounds of hay from day one. That shouldn't be a problem with 700# calves, as they should eat around 21 pounds right away. From 20 pounds of ration to 30 pounds of ration, mix 50% hay, 20%corn, 20%oats and 10% DDG. When 30 pounds isn't enough, add hay to make them full.
If you start with good animals, that ration will grow them to their potential without wrecking them.
 
I custom feed bull calves. My ingredients are corn, corn silage, oats hay, and a 50% liquid protein supplement. I feed a 43 megacal high roughage mixed ration that allows them to gain about 2 to 2 1/2 pounds per day. This puts them at 1050 to 1150 by the middle of April at 13 months of age. Any more weight than that would be mostly fat, something you don't want or need on breeding bulls.
 
There are some BIG cows out there and while I totally agree [and have seen research to support it] that feeding a hot ration for a high rate of gain is detrimental there still are some that don't feel good about turning out a bull that is 400-500 pounds smaller than their cows. :)

The other alternative is to make them older at the same rate of gain. Big reason we started fall calving so that customers had 1400-1500 pound long yearlings.
 
We had a Toy Poodle breed a Border Collie one time. Those pups were different.
 

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