Let's talk about testicles

[legendrockranch]

Gerald Fry has some good articles on his website about this: www.bovineengineering.com/NL_fertile_bull.html


Here are some other articles of his: www.bovineengineering.com/archeived_newsletters.html

Barb

[triplec]

Cut 95% of the bulls leaving only the best 5%. The rest get skinned, sliced, rolled in Andy's Fish Breading and fried. Enjoy with a cold beer.

[copperhead]

I agree 100% that very few bull need to be bred. I have cows that I would never keep their bull calves because of their udder and teat placement. I get a sperm count on bulls I am going to use, but I don't do all the testing that commercial breeders do.
P.J.

[legendrockranch]

Here's a brief discussion we had about teats on a bull back in 2011.

dextercattle.proboards.com/thread/1440

Barb

[cddexter]

well, modesty ALMOST prevents me from pointing out the balls on Calum (see General, page 2, Our New Bull, my post of his rear view). Good angle of dangle (slightly backwards), good evenness, good epididymous, excellent suspensory ligament, great size, etc.

cheers, c.

[legendrockranch]

Apr 17, 2015 20:12:10 GMT -5 AEA said:

I have no shame. I'm still laughing about this, but here you go, a registered yearling bull and whatever he is carrying around with him.

Oh my! Are their two testicles in there? Is this a bull you own?

Barb

[copperhead]

Ellen, that's a pure lesson in what not to buy in a bull. Shame on the seller...........

[kansasdexters]

Here is why bulls like Ellen's One Ball Wonder should not be used for breeding registered cattle that will be used as future breeding stock:

Deformities of the genitals in a bull calf may be due to genetic or chromosome abnormalities, hormonal imbalances, nutritional deficiency or disease during critical phases of gestation, or unknown factors.

The goal in selecting animals for breeding stock in a herd is to choose the healthiest, most vigorous, and best adapted animals. Hormonal health is critical in bulls and cows for fertility and reproductive success. Using bulls, that do not have excellent hormonal health and proper genital development (and overall development) is contraindicated. These bulls have lower fertility and their use may lead to reproductive failures and/or to the production of undesirable individuals in the herd. This will reduce the value of the herd and may eventually result in an unsustainable herd and financial failure for the owner.


Patti

[cddexter]

Hi Ellen: from the evaluation courses I've taken, I started out thinking it was maybe it was just the photo angle, and the scrotum was twisted, which is not good either, but on further thought, I've seen monorchid scrotums betore and mostly they have a lopsided look, with sort of wrinkled appearance where the missing testicle would be. This scrotum defies definition for me: tight, almost shiny, one single sac, no suspensory ligament (unless it's along the side?, no epididymous visible at all, and the what appears to be a single testicle is huge in comparison to what I would expdect for his age. I'd say if his daughters inherit his tackle (and current wisdom says that's how it works) then I'd predict daughters are likely to have only three quarters at best.

Do you know his pedigree? If it doesn't indicate any known problems maybe this is one of the gestational issues. In any case, I'd eat this one: imo a genuine breeder wouldn't want to pass this on to others, regardless of cause.

thoughts from the tide pools of vancouver island. cheers, c.

[zephyrhillsusan]

This is educational in many ways.