Glossary for Sale Animal Data
CED BW WW MILK YW CW Marb RE Fat Scrotal Doc $W $F $G $B
+5 +1.8 +49 +23 +86 +30 +.49 +.45 +.011 +.81 +12 +36.35 +35.09 +29.87 +84.61
In our effort to help you select the bulls that will best help you reach your goals, we have identified the categories of:
CALVING EASE
PERFORMANCE
REPLACEMENT FEMALES
CARCASS TRAITS
We have developed a scoring system to help you identify the attributes of each individual bull that we are selling.
Our
scoring system is designed on a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being undesirable and 10 being most desirable in that
particular trait.
This scoring system is unique to our program, and is one more step to assuring that your purchase at
Stucky Ranch will move your herd in the direction you want it to go. Only because of our extensive knowledge of our
cowherd, and ongoing data collection, are we able to accurately identify each individual bull’s breeding potential. This
comes from over 30 years of extensive AI and Embryo Transfer to breed “like to like” and continue to keep a constant
focus on the “type and kind” of seedstock we are desiring to produce.
CALVING EASE
Bulls with a score of 8-9 will be suitable for use on yearling heifers.
These bulls will have “Recommended for
heifers” below the trait box. Considerations for the score include: Calving Ease Direct EPD, pedigree and EPD profile
of sire & dam, DNA profile scores for calving ease and birth weight, and the birth weight/calving ease history of the cow
family. This classification system is to help designate the bulls with the best potential for use on heifers and achieve
a high percentage of unassisted births.
Bulls with a score of 7 or lower are fine to use on cows, but not initially
recommended for use on heifers.
We avoid the use of animals with birth weight EPDs greater than 4 so as to keep
the consistency and eliminate the occasional extreme heavy birth weight calf. Herd management of the females in the
weeks prior to calving also play a significant role in the calving ability of the female.
PERFORMANCE
Bulls with a score of 9 are our top performance bulls in weight and EPD.
These bulls are from our cow families
that have demonstrated more genetic growth in their calves compared to their contemporaries, and sired by proven top
performance sires. Added pounds to sell at weaning, yearling, or harvest time are quantified by the cowman philosophy
of
“It’s not how big they get, it’s how quick they get big enough!”
. We are not in a race to raise the biggest, heavi-
est cattle we can genetically produce. Remember our goal of
time-tested balanced trait genetics
! Stucky Ranch
seedstock will gain rapidly and peak at yearling time to then maintain for a moderate mature size.
REPLACEMENT FEMALES
Bulls with scores of 8-9 will sire the trouble free, top maternal females that the Angus breed was made famous
with.
These bulls descend from the cows we feel have superior fleshing ability on forages, have excellent fertility re-
cords, satisfy my strict demands on structural soundness and udder quality, and exhibit a model ANGUS cow look. The
sires of these bulls are very trait balanced and descend from a genetic background that has proven to sire females with
exceptional maternal values. The individual bulls must have a minimum yearling adjusted scrotal measurement of 34
cm to score 9 or higher. This is further assurance of excellent fertility in the bull’s daughters. Selection for replacement
heifers, or bulls that sire great replacement females, has definitely proven to be an art and not a science. The old stan-
dard of cull the top and bottom third and keep what’s left, is still probably better than any computer sort can achieve.
CARCASS TRAITS
Bulls with a score of 9 have a $Grid Value Index in the top 20% of the entire National Cattle Evaluation database
for non-parent Angus bulls. Bulls with a score of 8 have a $Grid Value Index in the top 45% for non-parent An-
gus bulls.
Even if you do not have carcass data results on your calves, these bulls with scores of 8-9 will move your
herd forward toward higher percent choice carcasses and Certified Angus Beef, with good yield grades. If you have
carcass data on your calves and see specific areas of need, we can help recommend individual bulls, based on our vast
ultrasound scan database we have been building since 1996. Bulls identified with the CAB “Targeting the Brand” logo
will consistently help achieve a higher percentage of Certified Angus Beef carcasses.
E
P
D
Average EPD’s for all Non-Parent Angus Bulls
(Spring 2015 National Cattle Evaluation)
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