We follow a single breeding season in the summer months. Since 2005 we have artificially inseminated chosen females in our synchronized breeding program.

Over the last 5 years we have accumulated semen of more than 40 Bonsmara bulls resulting in an arsenal totaling more than 28 000 straws.

All our heifers are bred between the ages of 18 to 24 months and have to calve before the age of 39 months. Every single heifer that does not conceive is sold. We use selected bulls on the heifers to ensure that potential calving problems are prevented.

Chosen cows are also subject to the synchronized insemination program at the beginning of the breeding season. We make use of CIDR inserts and every female is inseminated with a single straw.

We use a multi-sire mating system with a bull to cow ratio of at least 20. To ensure good herd health and optimum performance all our bulls are screened for defects and tested for fertility as well as sexually transmitted diseases (STD’s) such as Trichomoniasis. We follow this procedure before and after every breeding season. 

As soon as the calves are born they are ear-notched. We draw a few tail hairs to determine the sire by means of DNA profiling, this procedure is performed by Unistel Laboratories in Cape Town.

Please refer to our Sires section to see some of the bulls currently used in the breeding program.