Cow size, reproductive performance and calf performance to weaning were evaluated for Simmental-Hereford cows (25 to 38% Hereford) mated to Hereford bulls, Simmental-Hereford cows (50% Hereford) mated to Hereford bulls, Simmental-Hereford cows (62-7!5% Hereford) mated to Simmental bulls, Angus-Hereford cows (25.38% Hereford) mated to Hereford bulls, Angus-Hereford cows (50% Hereford) mated to Hereford bulls and Angus-Hereford cows (62-75% Hereford) mated to Angus bulls. Simmental cross cows were heavier and taller and produced heavier calves at b i r t h and weaning than Angus cross cows. Pregnancy rate, calf preweaning survival rate and calf birth date did not vary significantly among breed groups. Preweaning growth was greater for calves from cows of high percentage Simmental cows mated to Hereford bulls than for calves from low percentage Simmental cows mated to Simmental bulls, indicating a strong maternal effect for Simmental on calf growth

Dinkel, C.A.

Marshall, D.M.

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South Dakota State UniversityOpen PRAIRIE: Open Public Research Access InstitutionalRepository and Information ExchangeSouth Dakota Beef Report, 1987 Animal Science Reports1987Evaluation of Varying Levels of Hereford,Simmental and Angus Breeding CowsD.M. MarshallSouth Dakota State UniversityC.A. DinkelSouth Dakota State UniversityFollow this and additional works at: http://openprairie.sdstate.edu/sd_beefreport_1987Part of the Animal Sciences CommonsThis Report is brought to you for free and open access by the Animal Science Reports at Open PRAIRIE: Open Public Research Access InstitutionalRepository and Information Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in South Dakota Beef Report, 1987 by an authorized administrator of OpenPRAIRIE: Open Public Research Access Institutional Repository and Information Exchange. For more information, please contactmichael.biondo@sdstate.edu.Recommended CitationMarshall, D.M. and Dinkel, C.A., "Evaluation of Varying Levels of Hereford, Simmental and Angus Breeding Cows" (1987). SouthDakota Beef Report, 1987. Paper 16.http://openprairie.sdstate.edu/sd_beefreport_1987/16EVALUATION OF VARYING LEVELS OF HEREFORD, SIPMENTAL AND ANGUS BREEDING FOR U L F  PRODUCTIOW THROUGH WEANING 1 2 D. M. Marshall and C. A. Dinkel Department o f  Animal and Range Sciences BEEF REPORT UTTLE 87- 15 Sumnary Cow size, reproductive performance and c a l f  performance t o  weaning were evaluated f o r  Simnental-Hereford cous (25 t o  38% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford bu l l s ,  Simnental-Hereford cows (50% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford bul ls ,  Simnental-Hereford cows (62-7!5% Hereford) mated t o  Simnental bul ls ,  Angus-Hereford cous (25.38% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford bu l l s ,  Angus-Hereford cous (50% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford b u l l s  and Angus-Hereford cous (62-75% Hereford) mated t o  Angus bul ls .  Simnental cross cous were heavier and t a l l e r  and produced heavier calves a t  b i r t h  and weaning than Angus cross cous. Pregnancy rate, c a l f  preueaning surv iva l  ra te  and c a l f  b i r t h  date d i d  not vary s i g n i f i c a n t l y  among breed groups. Preweaning grouth was greater for  calves from cows of high percentage Simnental cows mated t o  Hereford b u l l s  than f o r  calves from low percentage Simnental cows mated t o  Simnental bul ls ,  i nd ica t ing  a strong maternal e f f ec t  f o r  Simnental on c a l f  growth. (Key Words: Beef Cows, Breed Types, Performance.) In t roduct ion Select ion o f  breeds o r  breed crosses i s  an important decision f o r  cost e f f i c i e n t  beef production. Since ca l f  weaning weight i s  pos i t i ve l y  corre lated with cow size, level  of m i l k  production and e f f i c i ency  o f  cow-calf feed u t i l i z a t i o n ,  many cow-calf producers have sought t o  increase ca l f  weaning ueights through use o f  larger and/or higher mi lk ing breed types. However, higher producing cow types requi re more feed per cow than lower producing cous t o  a t t a i n  adequate reproductive performance. To maximize economic ef f ic iency,  i t ' s  important t o  i d e n t i f y  cow types tha t  perform well  under given management and environmental circumstances. The present study i s  a por t ion  of a comprehensive research pro ject  designed t o  invest igate genetic aspects of e f f i c i ency  of beef production. The object ive o f  t h i s  study was t o  characterize and evaluate performance o f  cou types varying i n  mature s ize  and level  of m i l k  production under western South Dakota range condit ions. Materials and Methods This analysis included data from Simnental-Hereford cross and Angus-Hereford cross cous ranging from 3 t o  13 years of age. For the most part,  two-breed cross daughters of one breed o f  s i r e  uere mated t o  the other s i r e  breed. Replacement daughters uere retained from the two-breed ro ta t iona l  crossbreeding systems which had been i n  progress f o r  several years, resu l t ing  i n  various proport ions o f  Hereford breeding and heterosis levels  i n  the crossbred cous. Data from crossbred cows were sorted so tha t  cous w i t h i n  a group were o f  s im i l a r  breed compositions. Overal l ,  data from 507 matings from 1983-1985 were sorted i n t o  6 breed groups: (1) Simnental-Hereford cows (25 t o  38% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford bu l l s ,  (2) Simnental-Hereford cows (50% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford bu l l s ,  (3) Simnental-Hereford cows (62-75% Hereford) mated t o  Simnental bul ls ,  ( 4 )  Angus-Hereford cows (25-38% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford bu l l s ,  (5) Angus-Hereford cous (50% Hereford) mated t o  Hereford b u l l s  and (6) Angus-Hereford cous (62-75% Hereford) mated t o  Angus bu l l s .  l ~ s s i s t a n t  Professor. 'Professor Emer i tus. Cows were maintained a t  the Antelope Range Livestock Stat ion near Buffalo, South Dakota, on na t i ve  pastures, inc lud ing western wheatgrass, buffalograss, p r a i r i e  pinegrass and sage. Cows received winter supplementation as a group t o  maintain cond i t i on  assumed t o  be adequate f o r  reproduction. Breed groups were t reated as uni formly as possible. Cows were c u l l e d  f o r  f a i l u r e  t o  conceive, poor heal th  o r  a t  random t o  provide room f o r  replacements. Calves were born i n  the spr ing and male calves were castrated a t  b i r t h .  Calves were weaned i n  the f a l l  when the e n t i r e  group averaged approximately 7 months o f  age. Means were computed by breed group f o r  various cow and c a l f  t r a i t s .  S t a t i s t i c a l  comparisons are presented i n  tables f o r  comparison of the 50% Angus-50% Hereford crossbred dam group t o  each of the other f i v e  breed groups. I n  addi t ion,  the average o f  the three Simnental groups was compared t o  the average of the three Angus groups. Breed group means were adjusted f o r  d i f ferences i n  cow age and year e f f e c t s  and f o r  sex o f  c a l f ,  c a l f  weaning age and s i r e  when appropriate. Results and Discussion --Means f o r  cow s i z e  and cond i t i on  t r a i t s  are presented i n  tab le  1. Cow weights averaged 1116 and 1026 l b  i n  the sp r ing  and 1221 and 1151 l b  i n  the f a l l  f o r  Simnental cross and Angus cross cows, respect ive ly .  U i t h i n  the Simnental crosses, cows o f  high percentage Simnental were general ly heavier and t a l l e r  than those of Low percentage Simnental. High and low percentage Angus cross cows were s i m i l a r  i n  cow weight t o  50% Angus cows. However, low percentage Angus cows were s l i g h t l y  t a l l e r  than 50% Angus cows. Avg Sx SE of vs Trait Cow breedC SSH S H SHH AAH AH AHH mean Ax b No. records 6 8 12 110 5 2 3 7 121 Spring cow wt, lb 1143* 1112* 1094* 1033 1017 1028 18.7 ** Fall cow wt, lb 1235* 1208 1221* 1160 1126 1168 20.4 ** Spring cow height, in 53.4* 51.3* 51.2* 49.1 48.6 49.7* . 31 *+ Fall cow height, in 53.6* 51.4* 51.5* 49.4 48.7 50.1* .34 ** Spring wtheight, lb/in 21.4 21.7 21.3 21.0 20.9 20.6 .30 ** Fall wt/height, lb/in 23.0 23.5 23.7 23.4 23.0 23.3. .32 NS a Presence of * indicates the mean for that breed group differs (P<.05) from the mean for the 50% Angus-50% Hereford dam breed group. Compares the average of the three Simrnental cross groups with the average of the three Angus cross groups. ** denotes significance at .O1 probability level, NS denotes nonsignificance (P>.05). C SSH = Simmental-Hereford cross (25-38% HH), SH = Simmental-Hereford cross (50%HH), SHH = Simmental-Hereford cross (62-75% HH), AAH = Angus-Hereford cross (25-38% HH), AH = Angus-Hereford cross (50% HH) and AHH = Angus-Hereford cross (62-75% HH). Cow weight/height ra t ios ,  i nd ica t ing  condi t ion o r  fleshiness, were greater i n  f a l l  than i n  spring, r e f l e c t i n g  seasonal d i f ferences i n  n u t r i e n t  a v a i l a b i l i t y  and/or requirements. Dif ferences among breed groups were general ly small, although Simnental cross cows had s t a t i s t i c a l l y  higher r a t i o s  than Angus cross cows i n  spring. Simnental cross cows appeared t o  maintain condi t ion over the winter q u i t e  wel l  compared t o  the smaller Angus cross cows. Means f o r  reproduct ive t r a i t s  are presented i n  tab le  2. Percentage o f  cows conceiving and percentage of calves born su rv iv ing  t o  weaning averaged 90.4 and 96.1, respect ively, averaged over a l l  breed groups. Date of c a l f  b i r t h  averaged 83.7 days (March 25) overa l l .  Var ia t ion  among breed groups was not s u f f i c i e n t l y  great t o  warrant s p e c i f i c  comparisons o f  breed group means f o r  these t r a i t s .  TABLE 2. LEAST SQUARES MEANS~ FOR REPRODUCTIVE TRAITS AND CALF SURVIVAL Calf breed proup Avg Sx Sire breed Her Her S im Her Her Ang SE of vsb Trait Cow breedC SSH S H SHH AAH AH AHH mean Ax No. matings d 84 21 131 60 6 2 149 No. calves born 74 13 114 5 4 3 8 130 Pregnancy rate, 8 90.8 86.4 91.7 96.2 87.3 89.7 3.88 Percent calves weaned of those born 97.5 89.7 97.0 100.0 95.7 96.9 4.31 Gestation length, days 288.1* 286.6 289.4* 284.6 284.3 285.3 1.30 ** Julian date of birth, days 84.8 82.7 87.0 79.5 82.9 85.2 9.17 a Presence of * indicates the mean for that breed group differs (P<.05) from the mean for the 50% Angus-50% Hereford dam breed group. Compares the average of the three Simmental cross groups with the average of the three Angus cross groups. ** denotes significance at .O1 probability levgl . SSH - Simmental-Hereford cross (25-38% HH), SH - Simmental-Hereford cross (50% HH), SHH = Simmental-Hereford cross (62-75% HH), AAH - Angus-Hereford cross (25-38% HH), AH - Angus-Hereford cross (50% HH) and AHH - Angus-Hereford cross (62a75% HH). Includes cows culled after pregnancy checking in the fall. e 1 - January 1, 80 - March 21, etc. Gestation length averaged 3.3 days Longer f o r  Simnental crosses than f o r  Angus crosses. U i t h i n  the S i n e n t a l  cross groups, gestat ion was s l i g h t l y  longer fo r  cows of low percentage Simnental. Keep i n  mind tha t  cows of Low percentage Simnental were mated t o  Simnental k r l l s ,  whereas cows of high and medim percentage Simnental were mated t o  Hereford bul ls .  B i r t h  and preweaning t r a i t s  are presented i n  table 3. B i r t h  weights averaged 91.3 and 86.1 l b  f o r  calves from Simnental cross and Angus cross cows, respectively. Calves from low percentage Angus cows were heavier at  b i r t h  than calves from 50% Angus cows. Ueight gain from b i r t h  t o  weaning averaged 2.13 and 1.95 lb/day fo r  calves from S i n e n t a l  cross and Angus cross cous, respectively. U i t h i n  the Sinmental crosses, calves from cows of high percentage Simnental gained faster  than calves from cows of Low percentage Simnental. These calves from cous of Lou percentage S imenta l  were s i r ed  by S i n e n t a l  b u l l s  and thus were of high percentage S inen ta l .  Maternal effects, p r ima r i l y  r e f l ec t i ng  mi l k  production, of the Simnental breed were apparently more important than the d i r ec t  genetic e f f e c t  on c a l f  growth through weaning compared t o  the Hereford breed. Breed group rankings f o r  ca l f  weaning weight ref lected dif ferences i n  b i r t h  weight and preweaning d a i l y  gain. Calf breed arouv Avg Sx Sire breed Her Her S im Her Her Ang S E o f v s  Trait Cow breedC SSH S H SHH AAH AH AHH mean Ax b No. calves born 7 4 13 114 5 4 3 8 130 Calf birth wt, lb 90.7* 89.7* 93.6* 85.4 83.3 89.7% 1.92 ** Avg daily gain, lb/day 2.23* 2.09* 2.07* 1.99 1.93 1.94 .042 ** Calf weaning wt, lb 551.8* 521.9* 524.7* 498.0 482.8 491.5 8.86 ** a Presence of * indicates that the mean for that breed group significantly dif ers (P<.05) from the mean for the 50% Angus-50% Hereford dam breed group. 6 Sx vs Ax compares the average of the three Simmental cross groups with the average of the three Angus cross groups. ** denotes significance at .O1 probability level. C SSH - Simmental-Hereford cross (25-38% HH), SH - Simmental-Hereford cross (50% HH), SHH - Simmental-Hereford cross (62-75% HH), AAH - Angus-Hereford cross (25-38% HH), AH - Angus-Hereford cross (50% HH) and AHH - Angus-Hereford cross (62 - 75% HH) . I n  conclusion, overa l l  performance of  bath S imn ta l -He re fo rd  and Angus-Hereford crossbred cous under range condit ions was acceptable. Although S i m n t a l - c r o s s  cous produced heavier calves a t  weaning than Angus crosses, d r y l o t  studies ind icate that  such a d i f ference i n  c a l f  neight would L ike ly  be o f f se t  by higher feed costs per cow-calf p a i r  f o r  Simnental crosses. Addit ional work i n  d r y l o t  needs t o  be conducted t o  evaluate whether or  not e f f i c iency  of  feed u t i l i z a t i o n  varies wi th varying levels  o f  Simnental breeding. 

Evaluation of Varying Levels of Hereford, Simmental and Angus Breeding Cows

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Evaluation of Varying Levels of Hereford, Simmental and Angus Breeding Cows

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