FAT – Good, Bad or Ugly?

Hot tips for Buying Bulls by PJ Budler.

World leading livestock thinker and philosopher, Johann Zietsman eloquently stated: “Fat is an essential component of sustainable profitability. You can either breed fat into cattle or feed fat into cattle. If you breed cattle to feed them, you’ll have to feed cattle to breed them.”

High inherent body condition, or easy fleshing ability is a cornerstone of fertility. Hormonally balanced animals with high inherent body condition are fertile. These two traits are both highly heritable which, logically, makes fertility highly heritable too, if measured correctly.

Excessive feeding of sale or show cattle will reverse hormonal balance and cause sub-fertility.

There are several positive traits which correlate with high inherent body condition.

• These cattle are earlier maturing.
• The bulls are fertile at a younger age.
• The females reach estrous at a younger age.
• They are genetically more fertile.
• They are non-selective grazers.
• They have more even dispositions (better natured cattle).
• When the steak hits the plate, it’s a better eating experience.

In short, earlier maturing, easier fleshing cattle are more profitable for primary producers in the cow/calf sector. Leaner, later maturing cattle are more profitable for meat packers and processors.

PJ Budler was raised in South Africa on a 5th generation cattle operation. He now lives in the US & manages TransOva Genetics. Check out PJ Budler on Facebook for more interesting info.

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