The ‘Gurtshane‘ Limousin herd is run by Sean & John Ryan, Gurtshane, Newport, Co. Tipperary. The herd was founded when 8 heifers were purchased from the ‘Cookstown’ and ‘Turraree’ pedigree limousin herds. The Gurtshane herd operates a 100% AI policy.
Maternal Breeding: The herd has females with Maternal index ratings as high as €186, putting them at the top end of the ‘5 Star’ category.
Top Maternal Cows: One of the top cows in the herd is ‘Turraree Cathy’ (Sired by ‘MBU’). She has a maternal index of €102 (reliability: 35%). She was born on the 18th of October 2007. Her excellent fertility is shown by her last 2 calvings (26th Nov 2011 & 7th Nov 2012), both by AI. She has an average calving interval of 377 days.
Key traits of interest: Calving Ease, Docility & Fertility are the main traits of interest. When selling bulls off farm, these are the key traits that purchasers will want the bull to deliver on.
Recent Sires used: Vision, Sympa, Palmares & Lino.
Breeder’s comment: “The pedigree cattle here are run alongside the commercial suckler herd. They don’t get any special treatment and are reared very naturally. All of our young pedigree bulls are sold off farm so having bulls fit and ready to work is very important. Pedigree females don’t show the same level of activity when they are bulling as the commercials would so having good fertility in your pedigree females is crucial, especially when you are trying to catch them for AI.
