Barzona Bulletin Spring 2025

www.Barzona.org

Spring 2025

Barzona Bulletin

Adaptable • Sustainable • Profitable

A Publication of the Barzona Breeders Association of America

Economically Relevant Traits in Beef Bull Selection

By Matt Spangler, Professor and Beef Genetics Extension Specialist, University of Nebraska-Lincoln S ire selection should focus on that which is economical. This requires a true accounting of the traits that generate revenue or incur a cost not ignore them. The key questions that every rancher needs to answer are: 1. What are my breeding/marketing goals? 2. Which traits directly impact the profit ability of my enterprise?

that are economically relevant to their enterprise. We call these traits economi cally relevant traits (ERT). Fundamentally, economically relevant traits (ERT) are directly associated with a revenue stream or a cost. All traits that are not ERTs are indicator traits, or a trait that is genetically correlated to an ERTs but not an ERT itself. Table 1 provides a list of currently available EPDs indicating which are ERT and their corresponding indicator traits. In the list of traits, many weight traits (e.g. weaning, yearling, carcass) are listed as ERTs. This is dependent on the individual enterprise’s marketing end point. For instance, if a commercial pro ducer markets calves at weaning, then weaning weight (sale weight) is the ERT. If, however, a producer retains ownership through the feedlot phase and sells on a grid, then carcass weight is the ERT. The crux is that from an industry perspective, carcass weight is always the ERT, but individual producer goals might dictate alternate marketing endpoints and traits of emphasis. Tenderness is another example of a trait that is clearly an ERT from the perspective of the entire beef industry complex but is one that does not provide a clear economic incentive to the individual producer. Classic examples of indicator traits include ultrasonic carcass measure ments, birth weight and scrotal circum

within a specific beef cattle enterprise. Once the profit drivers have been iden tified, sire selection should focus on the suite of traits that impact profitability. Sire selection does not need to be overwhelming or complex. Centuries of work by geneticists and statisticians have allowed for the development of tools that help producers make decisions relative to the next bull you purchase; do

3. Are there environmental constraints that dictate the level of performance that is acceptable for a given trait in my enterprise? Once these three questions are answered, sire selection becomes much simpler. The answers to these questions inherently lead a producer to the traits

Economically Relevant Trait

Indicator Trait(s)

Weaning weight direct

Birth weight

Yearling weight

Yearling height, weaning weight direct

Maternal weaning weight (Milk) Calving ease maternal Mature weight

Mature height, yearling weight

Heifer pregnancy Carcass weight

Scrotal circumference (Bos indicus breeds)

Yearling weight

Percent retail cuts, Yield grade

Fat thickness (12th rib and rump), Ribeye area

Marbling

Intramuscular fat percentage

Tenderness Dry matter intake

Yearling weight, residual feed intake

Stayability

Heifer pregnancy

Maintenance energy

Mature weight, maternal weaning weight (Milk)

Table 1. Listing of currently available EPDs that represent economically relevant traits and their corresponding indicator traits.

Continued on page 3 ›

Ad Index Bard Cattle Co............................................4 Carmichael Barzonas..................................4 F & F Cattle Company.................................2 Golden Hz Farms........................................3 Hampton Cattle Company..........................2 Raymond Boykin Jr......................................4 ADVERTISING RATES The Barzona Bulletin is published four times per year by the BBAA and is mailed to more than 800 Barzona enthusiasts. Full-Page Ad...........................$350 per issue Half-Page Ad..........................$200 per issue Third-Page Ad........................ $165 per issue Quarter-Page Ad.....................$135 per issue Eighth-Page Ad........................$75 per issue Final notes, remember our dates for the Barzona Breeders Association of America (BBAA) Annual Meeting are set, and ho tel information will be coming. Any rule or bylaw changes need to be sent to the secretary on the forms that were sent in the membership packets. All proposed changes will be mailed to each member 30 days ahead of the BBAA Annual Meeting with proxy forms if you cannot attend. We hope to continue seeing increased participation at our Annual Meeting. Happy calving! Adaptable. Sustainable. Profitable. BB The hardest thing to remember is, you can’t save them all. Breach calves are often hard to spot because a water bag may not always present and tip you that the cow is in labor. Legs that are back require careful fishing with your hands covering the toes, and a head back is even more difficult in my experi ence. Some days, saving just one of the two is a success. My wife is also adamant if there is a cow that has a calf “dead on arrival,” she milks out the colostrum and freezes it for later use. Seems like we have a calf every year that needs it, and she rarely misses an opportunity to freeze some. Calves need 2 quarts of colostrum within the first two hours after birth, because its entire immune system is in that milk, plus glucose and other goodies to give it a head start. Pinched nerves in a cow are also tough to handle. Sometimes it only takes some meds and 12 hours of recovery; some take days and lift assis tance to get back up. While we hope to never assist a cow, Mother Nature is not a kind beast and we stewards must be diligent in protecting our herds and investments. Have a good relationship with your vet, have the tools you can use nearby and never be afraid to learn new things.

President’s Message

Raising Quality Barzona Cattle for 46 Years. Bulls & Females Available 2-Year-Old Bulls Available Now F & F Cattle Company because of the typical short time frame to save a calf. Among the chains, breakaway (quick release) halter and calf puller, we also have a “crash kit” with specific shots to give a calf or cow for specific issues. Last winter, we also built a special portable chute that goes on a loader with sides that swing away for pull ing in a pasture. We’ve used it once, and it was rather handy. By Matthew Heinz, Golden Hz Farms, BBAA President S pring has sprung in the Midwest and, with that, come the many joys and hardships of calving, planting and out-guessing the weather. No matter how good your breeding program is, malpresentations can happen at any time. It never hurts to have your things in order for that im minent emergency. A cow should have a calf within two hours of obvious labor, so if you notice it’s been an hour with no prog ress, it’s time to get her in. Your preparation may be simple with catch pens, maybe a chute and you just call your vet. Perhaps it’s best to load the cow and take her to the clinic. At our farm, we handle most of these issues ourselves

Mike & Pat Fitzgerald 130 Fitzgerald Lane, Mosquero, NM 87733 (575) 673-2346 ffcattleco@plateautel.net

Hampton Cattle Company Breeding Purebred Barzona since 1973 Fertile Range Cattle Steve Hampton P.O. Box 134 • Kirkland, AZ 86332 (928) 442-3438

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From Our Association Secretary

Economically Relevant Traits in Beef Bull Selection Continued from page 1

Golden Hz Farms Barzona: The breed for busy people These cows take care of themselves! It is critical that commercial producers identify their breed ing goals and thus the traits that are economically relevant to them. Selection pressure should be applied to the traits that directly impact profitability, and in the absence of EPDs for these traits, the corresponding indicator trait EPD should be used. Economic selection indices can aid in the selection of sires that excel for firm level profitability under a given produc tion scenario. BB ference. Ultrasonic carcass measurements are a non-destruc tive measure of traits such as intramuscular fat percentage (IMF). Producers do not receive premiums for IMF levels, rather premiums (and discounts) are applied to USDA Quality Grades. Assuming that carcass maturity values are the same, actual carcass marbling is the driver of the Quality Grade. Although IMF is genetically correlated to carcass marbling, it is not the ERT. Birth weight is another great example of an indicator trait. Selection to decrease birth weight in an attempt to reduce the prevalence of dystocia is practiced by numerous commer cial bull buyers. However birth weight does not have a direct revenue source or cost associated with it. The trait that does have a cost associated with it is calving ease (or difficulty). Calving ease is related to the level of assistance needed during calving. Although the two are related, the genetic correla tion between calving ease and birth weight is only between -0.6 and -0.8, suggesting birth weight only explains 36 to 64 percent of the genetic differences between animals for calving difficulty. A commonly misunderstood indicator trait is scrotal circumference. Bulls with larger scrotal circumference mea surements tend to have daughters that reach puberty earlier. However, the relationship between scrotal circumference and heifer pregnancy in Bos taurus cattle is near zero, but slight ly positive (0.20) in Bos indicus breeds. Genomic predictors (Molecular Breeding Values (MBV) or Molecular Value Predic tions (MVP)) can also be thought of as indicator traits. As the genetic correlation between the MBV (or MVP) increases, the more valuable it is as an indicator. However, as these genomic predictions do not have an accuracy of 1, they do not account for all of the genetic differences between animals. Some traits that currently have EPDs are convenience traits (e.g. teat size, udder suspension, docility). Certainly these traits are genetically correlated to ERT, but stronger genetic as sociations often exist between ERT and other indicator traits. For example, cattle that are more docile tend to have higher marbling scores and are more feed efficient, but more direct indicator traits exist to improve feed efficiency and Quality Grade. Teat size and udder suspension can be related to mater nal weaning weight and the probability of culling.

T his newsletter is coming a bit delayed. I am sure you all can sympathize on how busy spring is. That being said, I have members looking for both purebred bulls and females, and even semen for AI use! If you have any available, the office can help you get those animals registered and transferred to new owners. Please remember, we like to see transfers done within 30 days of the animals changing possession. If you have calves that need to be entered before cows are transferred, please get that done ASAP. When the new owner is ready to transfer, those animals will be moved, ready or not. I hope all of you received your membership packets and have returned them. Any new rule changes that you might want to submit need to be in to the office 90 days prior to the annual meeting. The Barzona Breeders Association of America Annual Meeting is Sept. 12-14, 2025, in Ames, Iowa! We will be touring part of the Iowa State University beef facility and getting a pre sentation about carcass grading and quality as well as normal business. Last, remember our new website is www.barzona.org . Mem bers can advertise on the website and be sure to catch up on registrations from the 2024 calving season! BB By Alecia Heinz, Golden Hz Farms, BBAA Secretary Save the Date For the Barzona Breeders Association of America

Annual Meeting Sept. 12-14, 2025 Ames, Iowa

Breeding Stock Available

Matt & Alecia Heinz 2432 250th St Greenfield, IA 50849 smartace007@yahoo.com (641) 745-9170

Alvin & Karen Havens 2429 Orange Ave. Greenfield, IA 50849

www.barzonas.com

BARZONA.ORG • SPRING 2025 | 3

Barzona Breeders Association of America P.O. Box 154 Greenfield, IA 50849

PRESORT MKT. US POSTAGE PAID GUNNISON, CO PERMIT #154

If you’d prefer to receive the Barzona Bulletin by email,

please contact Alecia Heinz at

(641) 745-9170 or barzonabreeders@ gmail.com

FOUNDATION HERD BREEDING STOCK Since 1974

Selling bulls private treaty. Yearling bulls available now.

REGISTERED, PUREBRED BARZONA Breeder since 1986

Semen available on a number of older bulls. Females available periodically private treaty. Foster, OK 73434 (217) 649-5616 Bard Cattle Co. Nancy Bard Nunn 18800 E. County Road 1603

Raymond Boykin, Jr. (334) 430-0563 • etheldozierboykin@yahoo.com 8727 Lydia Lane • Montgomery, AL 36117

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