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Hereford and Red Angus Heifers Recruited for Genomics Research

The University of Missouri is recruiting 2,500 Hereford heifers and 2,500 Red Angus heifers to participate in a heifer puberty and fertility genomic research project. Heifers should be registered Hereford, registered Red Angus, or commercial Hereford or Red Angus. Hereford x Red Angus crossbred heifers targeted for the Premium Red Baldy Program would also be a good fit for the research project. Producers must be willing to work with a trained veterinarian to collect the following data: ReproductiveTract Scores collected at a pre-breeding exam 30 to 45 days prior to the start of the breeding season. PelvicMeasurements (height and width) collected at the same pre-breeding exam 30 to 45 days prior to the start of the breeding season. Pregnancy Determination Using Ultrasound reporting fetal age in days. Ultrasound will need to occur no later than 90 days after the start of the breeding season. In addition, heifers must have known birth dates and have weights recorded eithe
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2017 Cattle Raisers Convention How to Create Highly-Valued Feeder Calves

Tom Brinks
CEO Red Angus Association of America

What does it take to create Valuable Feeder Cattle?

1. Starts with the right mindset.
We can have cattle that excel for both maternal and carcass traits.

2. Understand the key value attributes for cattle going through the supply chain, then breed and manage your cattle accordingly.

Cattle that stay healthy, grow and grade are winners!

If it takes more than two sentences to describe the breed make-up of your cattle, it shows that you don't have a plan for your cattle. If you don't have a plan for your cattle, you can expect to receive discounts on your cattle. If you can briefly describe your cattle, e.g. 100% Char-Angus, 100% Red Angus on Santa Gertrudis, 100% SimAngus, etc.

3. Plug in to a value-added marketing program.
You need to use some sort of value added program. These programs verify

  • Health
  • Genetics
  • Natural
  • Nutrition
  • Source


What makes your calf crop unique? What is noteworthy about your calves? Providing these to prospective buyers shows that your are serious about your cattle.

You need to be intentional about marketing your cattle.

We are very discriminating buyers when we are purchasing a bull. Unfortunately, we all too often sell our calf crops as a commodity. We need to rethink this attitude and practice.

When we create valuable cattle, we need to put a label on it so that buyers know they are valuable.

What will it take to EARN a premium from feedyards?

  • Need to document genetic superiority
  • Solid health program with vaccine history on calves
  • High growth and marbling genetics are required
  • Historical feedlot and carcass data can help
  • Load lot groups will always receive more. Are there options to partner with a neighbor? 


High genomic steers outperformed low genomic score steers for every trait, and the high genomic scoring steers were $50 more profitable.

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Hereford and Red Angus Heifers Recruited for Genomics Research

The University of Missouri is recruiting 2,500 Hereford heifers and 2,500 Red Angus heifers to participate in a heifer puberty and fertility genomic research project. Heifers should be registered Hereford, registered Red Angus, or commercial Hereford or Red Angus. Hereford x Red Angus crossbred heifers targeted for the Premium Red Baldy Program would also be a good fit for the research project. Producers must be willing to work with a trained veterinarian to collect the following data: ReproductiveTract Scores collected at a pre-breeding exam 30 to 45 days prior to the start of the breeding season. PelvicMeasurements (height and width) collected at the same pre-breeding exam 30 to 45 days prior to the start of the breeding season. Pregnancy Determination Using Ultrasound reporting fetal age in days. Ultrasound will need to occur no later than 90 days after the start of the breeding season. In addition, heifers must have known birth dates and have weights recorded eithe
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