[showcase id=”njha” img_ids=”19854,19851,19850,19869,19870″]

It’s fall in Missouri which means it’s time to pregnancy check cows. One of our National Reference Sire Program (NRSP) herds, Mershon Cattle, pregnancy checked 335 commercial cows last Thursday, all of which are bred to Hereford bulls and enrolled in the NRSP.

The cows were bred by artificial insemination to the bulls qualifying for the program and selected by Mershon Cattle. This year, they selected 43767040 — L III TFL C609 Impact 1714, 43829326 — NJW Long Haul 36E ET, 43683946 — EFBEEF X651 Tested D876 and 43786190 — HH Advance 7088E. 43558667 — EFBEEF BR Validated B413 will be used as a reference sire.

Mershon Cattle is a commercial cattle operation with a retained ownership-to-harvest program located in Buckner and Appleton, Mo. Mershon Farms and Mershon Cattle are award-winning operations and believe in the importance of breed improvement and active involvement in agriculture. This is one of the reasons they made the decision to participate in the program.

The NRSP is a program that allows Hereford breeders to test young sires in real-world commercial settings. Because of the Association’s partnerships with various test herds like Mershon Cattle, breeders can make better-informed decisions relative to traits of interest.

“NRSP test herds continue to contribute to pushing Hereford genetics forward,” said Shane Bedwell, director of breed improvement and chief operating officer for the AHA. “We are excited about Mershon Cattle being on board with the program and are looking forward to getting the first set of data on these bulls in the spring.”

To share this story, click the links below!