Structural Assessment Day

A bull is simply a genetics delivery system for your herd. They need two equally important things - genetics that will improve profitability in your herd and deliver genetic gain, and the ability to get as many cows pregnant for as many years as possible to pass on those genetics.

A large part of the second requirement - getting as many cows pregnant for as many years as possible - is being structurally sound enough to do their job for as long as possible. Conformation has a big part to play in avoiding bull breakdowns and increasing longevity.

We take structure very seriously at Coota Park, and we engage Dick Whale as an independent assessor to score all of our stud herd on structure. All of our heifers are assessed with their first calf at foot before being accepted into the stud herd. All of our bulls are assessed first as yearlings, and then our sale draft are assessed against the whole suite of traits prior to the sale, with full results available in our catalogue for clients to see.

Dick Whale’s assessment looks at front feet, back feet, rear leg angle, feet and pastern angle, stature, capacity, body length, muscle, doability and sheath. Each trait is scored, and each has an ideal value, with scores further away from the ideal indicating the severity of any issues. Dick then gives each bull an overall score, taking into account each of the individual traits, that reflects the quality of the bull in regards to his structure.

A full explanation of each trait, the ideal score and what issues are indicated by scores further from the ideal is available in our catalogue, available here.