The 2026 spring-calving breeding season is closing fast and we all anticipate a good closing quarter.
While AI is a useful method for breeding females, many of us depend on stock bulls as the main breeder, or to catch repeats.
Depending on one stock bull can be a high-risk game if he goes wrong. Every year we come across some disasters where farmers end up with no cows in-calf.
There are many reasons why a bull may not perform and include immaturity, overuse, too many females, injury or disease.
In many cases the problem will be apparent at the time, but the impact on fertility can last many months where semen is damaged in production.
There are also no hard and fast rules, a case of pneumonia or lameness in one bull can have little or no apparent impact and in another can absolutely destroy his fertility.
Bulls should be checked before the start of the breeding season to give confidence in their breeding performance.
A semen sample can be collected and analysed under a microscope at the same time as assessing overall bull health.
This is not a guarantee of future performance, but a good indicator.
The right bull needs to be selected for the right job.
A young bull is only fit for a small number of heifers or cows – if you have 50 big suckler cows you will need a big, mature bull with a large pair of testicles.
If in doubt, get the bull tested or double up by using AI too. Also worth remembering – never trust a bull, even quiet bulls can turn wicked without warning.
Donal Lynch MVB XLVets, Slieve Bloom Veterinary
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