Economic and Marketing Information                                                                                                                                                                                          FOR INDIANA  FARMERS
Prepared by the Agricultural Staff of Purdue University, Lafayette, Indiana      
July 30,   1960
do You Heed a Beef Bull on Your far ml
by M. R. JANSSEN, Farm Economic Research  Division, ARS, USDA
and GENE McMURTRY, Agricultural Economics
THE DAIRY BULL has disap-
peared from many dairy farms
iring the last 20 years,  giving
ay to artificial insemination.    In
mtrast, few Indiana beef herds
se artificial insemination.
What are some of the reasons
>r this situation? First, close ob-
jrvation and timely breeding are
ecessary for successful breeding
iy artificial insemination. This is
dore difficult with beef animals
hat are not confined for milking
is are dairy cows.    Second, the
iairy herd is often small, and this
means a high bull cost per cow.
Also, dairy bulls have caused so
many accidents that many farmers
consider artificial insemination on
a safety basis only. Last, the problem of handling beef animals with
artificial insemination is more difficult on most farms than is that of
breeding dairy cows. Yet the potential benefits of using artificial
insemination with a beef herd may
even exceed those found with the
dairy herd.
Cost of Keeping a  Beef Bull
Over a period of three years, it
cost a group of farmers in Southern Indiana $94.20 per year to
keep a beef bull. This includes all
costs for feed, labor, pasture, housing, bedding, and veterinary expenses. It does not include costs
of stronger fences, repairs to
fences and buildings damaged by
bulls, or risk of personal injury
by the bull. It includes the differ
ence between the market value
of the mature bull and the initial
cost of the animal.
Use of artificial insemination
will permit the producer to keep
at least one cow in place of each
bull. Owners not only have the
reduced cost of keeping the bull,
but may have the returns of additional cows. The returns will vary
with the percentage of the calf
crop, the weaning weight of the
calf, and the selling price of the
calf. Farmers have averaged 435
pounds of calf per cow for three
years. Since all cows are counted
whether or not they raise a calf,
weaning weights are adjusted for
percentage of the calf crop. If
weaned calves sell for 22 cents per
pound, the net returns will be
$16 per cow. The additional return
per cow in the herd will depend
on the herd size.
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The cost per cow of keeping a
bull is large for small herds but
decreases until an additional bull
must be kept (Table 1). In the
same way, the returns of keeping
an additional cow in the herd, in
place of keeping a bull, decrease
as the number of cows in the herd
increase.
Table   1. Costs of Keeping a Bull
Within Various Herds, 1956-59.
Costs per cow
Returns of an
Number
Keeping
additional
Total
of cows
bull
cow *
costs
10
$9.42
$1.60
$11.02
20
4.71
.80
5.51
30
3.14
.53
3.67
40
4.71
.80
5.51
50
3.77
.64
4.41
* The average net return of keeping a cow
in  place  of a   bull  is  $16.00.
Costs of artificial insemination
vary somewhat, but $8 per service
is the most frequent charge. Usually there is no further charge
for repeat service. On this basis
alone, a herd of fewer than 14
cows could be served more cheaply with artificial insemination than
by keeping a bull.
Benefits of Superior Bulls
The main benefit of artificial insemination with a dairy herd is
the higher milk production of the
daughter. With a beef herd, the
first benefit of a superior bull is
realized when the calf is weaned.
Beef bulls selected for artificial in-