CALF_News_December_2021_January_2022

36 CALF News • December 2021 | January 2022 • www.calfnews.net When he’s discussing ranch manage- ment, Stan Bevers usually gets to the point. And if you’re not prepared for the worst, those tight margins may strangle any chance for a profit. Bevers, former Texas A&MUniversity ag economist and now a King Ranch Institute for Ranch Management analyst, said producers have access to tools to manage their produc- tion and offset poor performance. He was part of the late-summer Cattlemen’s College during the Cattle Industry Convention in Nashville. His reference to “crisis” can include every- thing from drought to a poor-quality calf crop. Sessions by the University of Missouri’s Jared Decker, who promoted using the best genome technologies to identify the best replacement heifers and bulls, and Virginia Tech University’s Vitor Mercadante, who discussed the need to improve reproductive efficiency, addressed the breeding end of “crisis” management. Breed DNA Testing Breed associations offer com- mercial and seedstock producers access to data from advanced sire and dam DNA testing. Decker, a reproduction specialist, put replacement selection bluntly. “Until a heifer is pregnant within a desired breeding season [usually in the first one to 21 days], she is a candidate, not a replacement,” he said. “So it’s important to test many more heifers than you plan to keep.” If testing a registered animal, Decker advises producers use the breed associa- tion’s genomic prediction to produce genetically enhanced expected progeny differences (GE-EPDs). “If testing commercial straightbred cattle, use a breed-specific test if it’s available,” he said. “A breed-specific test is going to outperform multiple-breed tests.” Decker emphasized that bulls need to have GE-EPDs. “DNA testing reduces the chance of making that unlucky deci- sion [when buying breeding stock],” he said. “Breed associations are concerned with how the testing information gets adapted by the industry.” ID Better Females Early Mercadante, Virginia Tech animal sci- ence professor, agrees that early breeding is important for a heifer or cow that gen- erates income. He cites several require- ments for best-performing females:  A heifer must calve by 24 months of age.  A cow must calve every 365 days.  She must calve without assistance.  She must be genetically capable to perform.  She must provide sufficient resources for the calf to reach its genetic potential.  She must maintain her body condition score for management conditions. Temperament impacts fertility, Mer- cadante said, pointing out that calmer females breed at a higher rate than excit- able females. He encouraged producers to use proven DNA testing as well as Plan for What You Can and Can't Control With Good Genetics, Price and Even Weather Risk Management Stan Bevers, King Ranch Institute, says producers should manage for all types of ranch crisis situations. By Larry Stalcup Contributing Editor “There is not accountability until a crisis occurs.” LEFT: Look at breed association testing data to find bulls with proven GE-EPDs.