Although suckler farmers will be preoccupied with spring calving as March gets under way, believe it or not, the breeding season is just over two months away for these herds.

Therefore, it is time to start prepping the stock bull to serve cows. In most cases, these tasks will be small, but nonetheless are important.

Outlined are five tips to get the bull ready for breeding.

1. Building body condition

Most bulls will lose flesh once breeding starts, so building up body reserves in advance is recommended.

However, you don’t want a bull to be overfat. Target a body condition score (BCS) of 3.5 to 4 when turned out to cows.

Where the bull has been wintered on a silage diet, offer 2kg to 3kg/day of concentrate to start building condition.

Every one point change in body condition is basically a 10% gain in liveweight. So for an 800kg bull, this would be an 80kg gain in liveweight.

If the bull is gaining 1kg/day, it will take 80 days to move from BCS3 to BCS 4. Keep this in mind and do not leave it too late to start increasing condition.

Where new stock bulls have come on farm this spring, gradually wean off high levels of meal and get animals accustomed to higher forage intakes.

2. Foot trimming

Bring the bull out of the shed and check his feet. If hooves are overgrown, now is the time for trimming. This gives time for feet to harden up again prior to breeding.

Trimming too close to breeding can leave the bull with tender feet, hindering mobility and possibly causing the animal to become sub-fertile.

If the stock bull has been bedded on straw over winter, make sure the animal has access to concrete, or a clean, hard standing area, for a few hours daily to harden feet again.

3. Check testicles and penis

Secure the bull in a headlocking gate, then check the testicles and penis for abnormal lumps, swelling, hardness and warts.

Both testicles should be symmetrical and have a firm feel, similar to a flexed bicep. Testicles should hang freely.

Tight, wedged shape testicles are less able to regulate semen temperature, so the bull’s fertility can be affected.

Measure the circumference of the testicles. A stock bull over 24 months old should have testicles with a minimum circumference of 34cm.

4. Exercise

Exercise will improve a stock bulls’ mobility. As cows calve and gradually go to grass, can animals be rearranged to free up more pen space for the bull to exercise?

If it is safe to do so, allow the bull out to the handling pen for a few hours every day in the week or fortnight before breeding. Check bodyweight is being carried on all four legs evenly.

5. Breeding vaccines

Ensure all routine health treatments are up to date. This includes any breeding vaccines. Where a new stock bull has come on farm, again, include the animal in any vaccination programme.