Breeding Maine heifers for club calves

[DL]

I've never had a problem with Witch Dr. on heifers, he use to be my bull of choice on heifers.  Now I'm sold on Major's Money Man and Gigolo Joe.  They come out tiny, get up and go, and start growing before you know it  PLUS...you'll have a live heifer (if all goes well) at the end.

All i can tell you is that i calved alot of witch dr. out of first calf simi angus heifers and they were 85 to90 lbs on the heifers and bull calfs were 90 plus.  The weight wasnt so bad but they were thick and thus had to assist them.    And i used to help calf out about 30 to 50 heifers a year for a guy.  And it wasnt a feed issue either. 

If the heifer has any birth weight or clubby bloodlines behind her i would use a proven calving ease angus bull.  Then second year go with a calving ease maine  bull.    You never know how much room the heifer will have or how much  birthweight she throws until she has a few calves then you can adjust what you breed her to based on her past performance.  Cost to much to develop a heifer only to ruin her after one or two calves.  And trust me i have seen some very expensive and great looking heifers never breed back after her first calf. 

I have never had a problem with Witch Doctor or WD 40 and will on occasion use them on heifers BUT prefer to use high accuracy low BW, high CE Red Angus on Maine heifers - I prefer red and these half blood heifers make really great cows and the steers grow great with moderate frame. I agree 100% DTW regarding breeding the 2 year olds to calving ease Maines (or something else) - learned that the hard way too - as I have said before nothing better than a really great dead clubby calf and a crippled heifer

 

[Joe Boy]

I do not think there will be a problem with Smokin Joe.  I talked to a fellow who bred several heifers to him and did not have one problem.  I bred some heifers to him in December.  I used his dad and grandsire and never had one problem.  I heard stories but never saw a problem.  I have used calving ease bulls that I got 120 lb calves from but they came easy.  I have 78 lb calves that were a hard pull.  It all depends on the size of the bone.

DL is correct, get a live calf and cow.

Dr. Who might be a good choice.  Triple X or Gucci might work.

 

[Dyer Show cattle]

Stay away from anything that is questionable and that has not been proven. Grizzly sold as calving ease and he has not been consitantly proven yet, also i have not seen a truely great clubby calf out of him anyways. I bred 15 heifers to Grizzly for someone and only 1 born unassisted. One thing you have to look at is most heifers are not going to raise a club calf to its full potential anyways. Example even a great milking heifer does not usually raise as good as a 3 year old cow will most of the time when bred the same way. Ali is another example of sold calving ease, not proven and not consitant. I know you can find 100 guys that will say they have never had a problem with Ali. In one year I had 1 out of 6 born unassisted and the most trouble I have ever had calving heifers when bred to ALI. You dig around and you'll find many more that have had tons of troubles. I used to use Angus bulls on heifers and never pulled a calf in 5 years, switched 1 year to Ali and had nothing but problems, then went back to angus and pulled 1 calf. Switched to Hooks shear force 38K last year and have not pulled a calf yet. I know you may be in a hurry to breed clubby genetics but do you really want to risk those genetics beeing dead in a year because of bad management or can you wait 2 more years and then get 7-15 more years AI high quality calves out of those same heifers when they are 3year olds. They only cows that get bred at my farm are hand picked cows coming with their 3rd calf. All heifers and 2 year olds get bred angus or simm PROVEN CONSISTANT calving ease EPDs either AI or my bull that is a calving ease simm. Also another thing as far as marketing calves. Almost everyone that is looking for 2 or more calves that comes to my place, always wants 1 crossbred and then the 2nd calf something that can be registered so they dont show in the same class. If you have your good 3 year olds producing the high end crosses. Then you have heifers, 2nd calvers bred to a purebred bull that the calves can be registered or in a percentage class you have possibilities to sell 2 calves at once instead of maybe just one.