Brangus fertility and flexibility major factors in our operation.
All our females are joined as yearlings so they calve as two-year-old’s. We use a strict 12 week joining period regardless of the season. All females face a yearly pregtest. Preg test results across the entire female herd generally average 90 percent with some of the mature cow herds consistently testing above 95 percent.
All empty females (including heifers) and any females that present dry or without a calf at branding are culled. Joining commences in early October and goes through to the end of December so that calves start to fall in July through to October. This early join is to ensure that cows calve in winter and the resultant weaner comes off before the first frost. We want the female/breeder to have as much condition on her as possible before the colder months. The lead of the calves are weaned at eight months of age and are educated with bikes, horses, dogs and are worked through the yards and tailed extensively.
All young cull females are sold to feed lotters with the older cast for age and cull breeders sent direct to processors. Cows are culled from the herd at 11 to 12 years of age and bulls are disposed of at six to seven years of age. Females are selected on a strict set of selection criteria for temperament, fertility, structural soundness and constitution. The same applies to selecting sires. We aim to have cattle that are not only functional, reliable and skeletally sound but must have a good temperament. Bulls must also have a good underline and sheath. Bull temperament, good confirmation, structure, underline and scrotum are so important.
Steers are turned off at 18 to 20 months of age, at 450 to 520kg full live-weight to feedlots.
We have a small group of 120 registered females and also a nucleus of ‘bull multiplying /breeding females’ with the progeny of these used within the commercial breeding herd.
