Sorting Gate
Understanding and utilizing the diversity of the breed.
August 13, 2024
In the 2023 Industry Insights survey, 81.6% of cow-calf respondents reported Angus was part of the primary genetic makeup of their cow herd. And 70% mentioned Angus was their top bull breed of choice.
While the No. 1 reason for bull breed choice was still calving ease (see Fig. 1), the diversity of the Angus breed continues to make it one of the top, most versatile breeds of choice because it also checks the box for those other traits of importance.
Angus cattle have always had many characteristics that have made them a top choice for progressive Angus cattlemen. While the breed’s dependable calving ease is one that maintains the top spot, Angus cattle also provide ample value from maternal traits to carcass merit.
Historically, maternal and terminal traits have been advantages sought by using across-breed complementarity — finding one breed to bring the maternal package and complementing that maternal package with a highly terminal breed.
Today, one can find Angus bulls that can meet a producer’s growing list of demands regardless of the need.
Diversity reigns
The diversity of the Angus breed has made it the easy choice for commercial cattlemen. It stems from and builds upon the commitment Angus seedstock producers have to work together to build a strong performance database that is routinely deployed to drive genetic progress. Couple that with the use of genomic tools like GeneMax® AdvantageTM for commercial heifer replacement selection and marketing tools like the AngusLinkSM Genetic Merit ScorecardSM. Angus offers a game plan to make genetic decisions and to get paid for those decisions, as well.
Power tools
Today, when producers shop for their next herd sire, they utilize tools predicted from the largest single-beef-breed database in the world. This database is used to formulate selection tools dealing with production, maternal, management and carcass characteristics.
Altogether, commercial producers have access to 22 industry-leading expected progeny difference (EPD) values and seven different profitability indexes ($Values) to help target decisions being made on the beef operation. Whether you are looking to increase fertility in your herd, maximize feed efficiency or target CAB Prime, commercial producers have access to all of it with the use of Angus genetics.
Fig. 1: Reasons for bull breed choices
Fig. 2: Top 200 bulls ranking in top 10% of current sires for maternal weaned calf value ($M) by beef value ($B)
In the top 200 sires for registered progeny alone, seedstock producers are taking advantage of the genetic diversity of the breed. Fig. 2 shows the top 200 bulls ranking in the top 10% of current sires for maternal weaned calf value ($M), the Association’s most maternally focused index available, compared to where those same sires rank for beef value ($B), the Association’s terminal index.
The diversity that exists is of great benefit for breeders working in different environments with different feed resources. You can find high maternal sires that can continue to put out a high level of growth and carcass traits, while others add profitability to the cow-calf operation due to their maternal efficiency of low mature cow size and breed-average growth.
Editor’s note: “Sorting Gate” is a regular Angus Beef Bulletin column featuring herd improvement topics for commercial producers using Angus genetics. Kelli Retallick-Riley is president of AGI. For additional information on performance programs available through the American Angus Association and AGI, visit www.angus.org and select AGI and/or AHIR® under the “Programs” tab.
Targeting the commercial cow herd
To make the most out of the genetic prediction tools available and select the right Angus bulls, it is important to put a plan in place to get started. In other words, you first need to put together a breeding objective.
A breeding objective needs to fit the goals of the operation. For most operations the goal normally lands on generating more profit. Even though goals across operations are similar, how we get there can be quite different.
When creating your breeding objective, think about how you will market your product. Are you selling weaned calves, yearlings or retaining ownership? Maybe you have a replacement heifer market?
Knowing where you want to go and how you are going to get there is crucial when creating your genetic game plan.
Once the goal is set, it is helpful to benchmark where your herd is today. Using GeneMax® Advantage™, which is the only tool that directly ties into the same database your registered Angus bulls are part of, can help you do just that. It allows you to get an idea of where your herd’s strengths and weaknesses are. It helps producers understand what could be missed by the naked eye when making heifer selection decisions. GeneMax Advantage delivers a genetic toolkit for your commercial Angus.
Once the herd is benchmarked, producers can use these advanced tools to select their future herd sires and continue driving genetic change in alignment with their specific goals.
Developing a comprehensive plan and diligently working toward that plan is crucial for success in managing genetics. Fortunately, the Angus breed offers a diverse genetic makeup and a robust toolkit, making it possible for producers to make informed decisions regardless of their individual plans. With the versatility and reliability of Angus genetics, producers can confidently shape the future of their herds, ensuring continual improvement and adaptation to market demands.
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