Bull Tests

Bull Tests! Are they a proving ground or an experiment? Well, probably a little of both. Regardless of how hot the ration is this particular bull, this breed will gain a fixed amount in a given, period of time. The progeny of this bull should perform with similar results.

On the other hand how destructive or detrimental is the test to the potential breeding quality of the individual bulls? Are they too fat, not used to foraging for themselves, need some special considerations?

Steer tests will give you information about how a steer will do in a test, but you'll never know how the progeny of the steer fed out.

So it's a trade out. Is the information worth any possible handicaps. You make up your mind as it fits your situation. The people who have been studying the results over a long period of time, feel the results are justified. The immediate results can move you forward much faster in selecting genetics. The rations used in most tests are not as hot as a normal feedlot ration. They have more roughage and are set up for growth.

The following 56 day results are from the 47th Annual Beef Bull perfomance Test at Oklahoma Panhandle State University. A comparison of the final results to see how the 56 day report compares with final results will be made in a future issue.

The top 20 Junior age bulls are shown with the top 10 senior age bulls and the top 10 pens.