Signs of Poor Breeding and Health Issues in Angus Cattle

Blog | July 13th, 2018

Whether you are purchasing new Angus seed stock or caring for the Angus that you already own, you need to be able to identify signs of poor breeding and health issues in each animal to produce satisfactory results through your cattle farming efforts. By doing so, you will avoid major hurdles that can crop up to make reaching your goal of success more difficult, if not impossible. We share with you some signs of both of these problems in the following facts to further your knowledge about them.

Signs of Poor Breeding

• Aggression can be a sign of poor breeding if you do not consider this trait during the breeding process. Kicking and other violent actions by the cows or bulls signify that this behaviour is an issue.

• Low fertility can be passed on from one generation to the next if you do not perform research into the background of your animals that you purchase for seed stock. Also, you can avoid this by not breeding the cattle that have low fertility. Sell these for meat instead.

• Malformation of the body may be a sign of a problem with prior generations. While this may or may not be cause for alarm, you need to be aware of it all the same.

• Weak immune systems are yet another sign of poor breeding but also can be a sign of poor care practices.

Symptoms of Health Issues and Their Related Disorders

• Cattle limping can point to hoof issues ranging from swelling in the hoof area to the hooves cracking. Hoof issues require immediate attention.

• Cattle staggering can point to grass tetany, which is caused from an acute magnesium deficiency. It can be brought by inadequate nutrients from foraging in pastures rich in nitrogen but low in magnesium. This calls for immediate medical care to increase the chances of the cattle surviving.

• Circular skin lesions can be a sign of ringworm or other fungal infections.

• Eye discharge can signify conjunctivitis or better known as pink eye, or an eye injury.

• Mucous discharge, coughing or wheezing points to respiratory issues and infections.

• Respiratory distress can be a sign of bovine respiratory disease complex that also has the nickname of ‘shipping fever’ since it often strikes during transport. This issue is a form of pneumonia and is highly treatable.

For further signs of poor breeding and health issues in Angus cattle, consult with Southfork Angus. We are experts at raising superior Angus seed stock. Purchasing our animals to build or increase your herd with will increase your chances of success with your Angus cattle venture.

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