A Deeper Dive
Here are four "Angus At Work" episodes focused on what holds our industry together: females.
April 2, 2025
While bulls weigh heavily on the genetic makeup of our herds, the heavy lifters when it comes to growing — from both a quality and quantity standpoint — are the females we choose as the cow power behind our operations.
Our theme for this edition of the Angus Beef Bulletin focuses on females and how to set them up for long-term success. Here are a handful of Angus At Work episodes that cover topics worth considering at home.
How can we as producers select for more efficient females and build a more self-sufficient herd? Research is helping shed some light on feed efficiency and how cattlemen can put pressure on their herd to perform.
On this episode, you will hear more from host Miranda Reiman and our guest David Lalman, a professor and extension beef cattle specialist at Oklahoma State University, regarding research being conducted to help build a better cow.
Replacement heifers are an incredibly important, yet expensive part of our operations. Wouldn’t it be great if we could program fertility in our replacement heifers? Shelby Rosasco from the University of Wyoming tells our team that nutritional management of weaned heifers can help program puberty attainment, fertility and the ovarian reserve.
“Our primordial follicles, that’s the pool of follicles that’s formed during gestation. Then, that’s what that heifer has to use over her lifetime. So, we want a nice big pool of follicles for her to use because it’s really indicative of what her reproductive longevity might be in the herd.” — Shelby Rosasco
Heifers are a big investment, so you want to set them up for success. With such a low cow herd number, heifer development is going to be a big player for your herd profitability. Host Miranda Reiman chatted with Joe Gillespie about sound heifer development to keep the best genetics in your herd for a long time.
“When you think about that, and you think about the value that may be created by that demand of having a tighter supply, there could be a tremendous amount of value in keeping that replacement heifer, developing her, and getting her into my herd and growing my herd back to whatever size it should be … ” — Joe Gillespie
Determining whether to keep or market potential replacement females can be one of the most difficult decisions a commercial producer has to make. But even when taking into account the performance of a heifer’s mother, there can still be room for error when tasked with determining future productivity.
Editor Shauna Hermel and our guests Jared Decker and Jamie Courter of the University of Missouri discuss the features of GeneMax® Advantage™ and how testing can help identify females with varying levels of genetic merit for feed cost, temperament and end-product traits.
“… traditional selection of replacements was, ‘Oh, I’m going to pick the heifers that I think were born out of the bulls that I like or out of the bulls that I AI to,’ or things like that. But … what I hope we help people understand, is that just because the bull is a good bull, doesn’t mean that every progeny out of him will be just as good.” — Jamie Courter
Listen in for answers straight from the experts
The Angus At Work podcast news and information on health, nutrition, genetics, marketing and management. Get your information straight from the source as we talk to technical experts, American Angus Association staff and fellow cattlemen about topics pertinent to your bottom line.
Recent episodes include:
- The Estate Planning Stuff You Need with Shannon Ferrell
- Beef Policy and the New Administration with Ethan Lane
- A Sale Barn Perspective with the Beaver Stockyards Team
- Final Market Update for 2024 with Troy Marshall
- Comparing EPDs Across Breeds featuring Esther Tarpoff
- Bull Buying Thoughts from Your Angus Regional Managers
- Targeting Disease with Medgene Labs featuring Bob Gentry
- Changing the Pickup Purchasing Landscape with Pat Driscoll
Topics: Feedstuffs , Management , Nutrition , Pasture and Forage , Genetics , Sustainability , Female Foundations
Publication: Angus Beef Bulletin
Issue: April 2025
Related Content
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Current Angus Beef Bulletin
The April issue has a “Focus On Females,” including a special advertising section devoted to herds intent on providing the female foundation.
