[crimson]

1 year 1 month angus heifer, im not sure when exactly to inseminate it. Should i bull it when it comes inside to the sheds in september? It is a fairly tallish heifer with a thin behind, which bull should i put to it? Looking through the Ai catalogue im leaning towards an easy calving angus bull. How does it exactly work, a tall slim heifer suits a shorter stocky bull? or a taller bulky bull? I will be there to assist with calving by the way, although easy calving is preferred due to my inexperience.

[SallyintNorth]

People seem to put dairy cattle in calf to calve for the first time at 2 years old, but with beef cattle, especially the native breeds, it's more normal to give them another 6 to 9 months.  For some native breeds you wouldn't want them to calve until they're 3.

So if it were me I would be planning to inseminate her on turnout next year, when she's just short of 2 years old, for a calf at around 30-33 months. 

As they sometimes don't hold the first time, and sometimes don't hold if they are inseminated at the same time as a major change in routine, maybe have her served a month before turnout, so you've time to catch her again if she doesn't hold the first time, and her routine isn't changed immediately after insemination.

As to choosing a bull; for the first time you want short gestation, easy calving, calves that jump up and suckle quickly - and frankly not worry too much about getting the perfect calf.  Plenty of time to get better calves later, when she knows her job and all the passages are loosened up!

[twizzel]

We have just turned out 5 Lim x heifers with the our Lim bull- they are 16 months old, very well grown though so will calve as just turned 2 year olds. We calved 9 heifers this February 24-28 months of age (a couple to AI  angus sires, the rest to the Lim bull) and only 1 needed major assistance the others were fairly textbook calvings.