Study has shown that some producers are managing their bulls in a way that is inefficient and could be leading to increased bull breakdown (infertility). Bull breakdown is a serious issue for beef and dairy producers in Western Australia and I am hoping to identify the major causes of bull breakdown and find if these are related in any way to management practices. I am a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine student at Murdoch University and am researching bull breakdown with my supervisor, Associate Professor Pete Irons. I have created a 15min survey to help investigate the causes of bull breakdown in the south west of Western Australia.
A summary of the results of this study will be distributed to various organisations, including; breed societies, the WA Landcare Network, Western Beef Association, rotary WA and Natural Resource Management Organisations. It is hoped that the results of this project will help producers to improve their management strategies to decrease bull turnover and use bulls in a more efficient and effective manner. Completion of the survey will also enter you into the draw to win a prize valued at $100.
Attached to this email is a link to the questionnaire and a word document with a table. The questionnaire allows for information about three bulls lost in the past 12 months to be entered, the table allows you to include more than three bulls.
Eligibility: Participants in this survey should live in the South West, Great Southern or Wheatbelt regions of Australia and have a herd size of at least 100, with at least one beef breeding bull. This survey should take around 15mins. This survey will close on the 17th May 2021. Completion of this survey will enter you into a raffle to win a $100 prize.
If you know of anyone else that meets the eligibility for this study that has not been included in this email, it would be greatly appreciated if you could forward this email to them. Your response is greatly appreciated.
There is further information about the study in the attached document, Background to Survey. If you have any questions you can email myself, Michael Craske, at: 33170658@student.murdoch.edu.au or my supervisor, Associate Professor Pete Irons, at: P.Irons@murdoch.edu.au
