Cowman Sense: The Holt Creek Jerseys Blog
HISTORICAL: Polled A2A2 Jersey Semen: Holt Creek Kavan-P (Unavailable)
KAVAN SEMEN IS SOLD OUT AND IS NO LONGER AVAILABLE. THIS INFORMATION IS FOR HISTORICAL PURPOSES ONLY. 129 JE141 KAVAN-P NAME: HOLT CREEK KAVAN {3}-P REGISTRATION: JEUSA000173795321 BORN: 5/9/2017 SIRE: Branched Oak Sunpower Alvin-PP DAM: Holt Creek Karaoke Ballad {2}...
A2A2 Polled Jersey Bulls: Rating with our 10-Star System
Since we started breeding Jersey cattle 30 years ago, several genetic traits have emerged as desirable for the type of grass-fed dairy we operate. Since we sell raw milk as well as cream, butter and cheese, the components of the milk are important to the value,...
Working Cows Podcast: Ben Gotschall of Holt Creek Jerseys
Recently, Holt Creek Jerseys owner Ben Gotschall appeared on an episode of the Working Cows podcast: For those of you that have never heard of the Working Cows podcast*, it is a great resource for grazers and ranch business owners. A variety of topics and speakers...
BREEDING FOR A2 BETA CASEIN MILK MAY ADD VALUE TO YOUR HERD
NOTE: This article originally appeared in the July 2012 issue of the Stockman Grass Farmer. At that time, Holt Creek Jerseys had been breeding for A2 Beta Casein milk for several years, and we were actively marketing A2A2 bulls and semen. Also at that time, A2 Beta...
Most Customers want A2A2 Grass-Fed Bulls from High Butterfat Cows with Longevity
Holt Creek Jerseys selects A2A2, Grass-fed bulls from maternal cows that can calve unassisted, on pasture and raise a strong, healthy calf and breed back for many years. Our goal is to offer bulls that provide the total package of desired traits to help take your herd’s performance to the next level and increase your profit per acre.
Linebreeding: We’re Not Afraid!
You will notice that the same animals appear more than once on the pedigrees of many of our bulls. You may have been told that this is “inbreeding,” a practice to be avoided. However, we have been linebreeding Jersey genetics at Holt Creek Jerseys for many years,...
Nature vs. Nurture: Using Nurse Cows to Raise Calves
In other posts, I've discussed the hereditary nature of grazing ability and the importance of selecting for animals that possess desirable foraging characteristics for use as breeding stock. We also promote raising bull calves on nurse cows as a way to increase...
New Zealand A2A2 Jersey genetics?
One of the most common questions we get about our bulls is: “Do you have New Zealand A2A2 Jersey genetics?” The answer is Yes, and No. Most accurately, our adapted genetics could be described as “Native-ized American” adapted genetics. In the late 1990’s we began...
WHAT IS GRAZING ABILITY?
WHAT IS GRAZING ABILITY? What is “grazing ability,” and how can our cows obtain it? More importantly--is it hereditary? In Andre Voisin's book Grass Productivity, which Allan Savory calls "the best basic pasture management book available" Voisin discusses grazing...
OUR GRASS-FED DAIRY
We believe that the organic, grass-fed, A2 Jersey milk and dairy products from our polled, grass-fed A2 Jersey cows is one of the best-tasting and most nutritious foods available to the public today. We want to provide our customers with the highest-value eating...