At Yarrawonga Waco the cattle are raised on natural pasture, without supplementation, through varying seasonal conditions. Good constitutions are developed through this system of grazing, and only easy doing livestock are retained in the herd. Breeders are only given a supplement in drought conditions. Weight gain ability is a key economic factor. Only bulls of high weight gain are used in the herd to ensure this benefit is passed onto their progeny.
The combination of high weight gain bulls and females that have developed a good constitution adds up to survival when the going gets tough and good weight gain in a favourable season or in feedlots. The success of this policy is verified in feedlot trials and competitions where both heifers and steers exhibited by Yarrawonga Waco have led the field for weight gain and feed conversion.
Longevity in both bulls and females is another benefit this management system delivers. Visual appraisal is the 'number one' selection tool, backed up by performance data. The criteria for selection are size, body capacity, structural soundness, desirable muscle pattern and disposition.
Fertility is another very important factor and is monitored closely. Bulls are semen tested before joining. Heifers are joined at 15 mths and all females are preg tested annually. Selecting Partners - every endeavour is made to join females with bulls that are genetically compatible. To find the best partners, each cow is mothered up with her approximately six-week-old calf and both are analysed. If the calf is a 'boomer', the cow is returned to the same sire.
If there is room for improvement, the cow is joined to a different sire whom, genetically and performance wise, should make the necessary improvement.
The full record of the cow, her performance data and the quality of her past progeny, are all taken into account. It takes time to join in excess of 1000 head. After decades of ironing the bugs out of the system through this selection method, the genetic strength of the herd has increased considerably.
Today we are confident that our heifer and bull replacements, going into stud or commercial herds will reproduce the quality expected of them.
Commercial cattle are bred and fattened on the properties Muldoon, north of Mungallala and Stockade, south west of Tambo. This keeps the Bassingthwaightes fully aware of the present commercial market demands and therefore the necessary seed stock needed.
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