Millah Murrah to tighten joining period, anticipates impressive conception rates

Millah Murrah Angus will reduce its joining periods to less than a month, anticipating conception rates of more than 90 per cent by the second year.

International and Aussie Angus breeders were given an insight into the elite Bathurst-based herd of Ross and Dimity Thompson and family as part of the World Angus Forum AngusTrek on Thursday, May 1.

Nothing was hidden from the eyes of the 250-odd visitors, with 100 per cent of the Autumn stud females on display, set to be AI'd the day after the visit.

The stud currently calves twice a year with between 450 and 550 calves recorded annually.

This year, the Thompsons will move their herd to 3.5-week joinings.

Females will be given two rounds of artificial breeding only with any empty females given a one season grace period.

The idea was sparked by a discussion with American-born, WA-based vet Enoch Bergmann and will mean late calving animals won't exist within 12 months.

It will also have an immense impact on calf crop consistency and labour requirements.

Ross Thompson said the change was driven a lot by lifestyle.

"The reality is that there's no such thing as running a stud herd like a commercial herd because you're constantly moving cows in and out of donor programs and you're tampering with their breeding cycles all the time," he said.

"Also, the lifestyle element is that if you're doing two, seven or eight week joinings, and then have a corresponding calving, there are not many calves born in the second half of that period, but you still need to be there to weigh and process them."

Mr Thompson said it was important to note that it was currently untested, but the current seasonal conditions supported the move.

"It is far from a brilliant season here; there is not a lot of green feed, but the cattle are in very good joining condition," he said.

"So to get it under way I think drier season conditions are ideal."

During the visit, Mr Thompson also recognised Trent Walker and his family, with whom the Thompsons partnered during the drought of 2018 in a joint breeding venture in South Australia.

For Ross and Dimity Thompson, there was a huge amount of planning that went into hosting the day.

On reflection, Mr Thompson said it was one of the highlights of their time in the industry.

"Hosting so many people from such a vast array of countries was an incredible experience," he said.

"During the visit and other forum activities, I've spoken to people from 21 different nations.

"The enthusiasm for the Australian Angus industry from international visitors is palpable.

"It's a proud event, beautifully coordinated by Angus Australia and I expect it will go down as one of the great forums in the history of the breed."