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From: Anibal Pordomingo
Category: Cattle
Date: 09 Mar 2006
Time: 16:10:35 -0800
The meter works well, as many others do (Falco 100, Zonovet, etc). I believe, however, that backfat thickness does not (by itself) tell de story of beef quality and marbling. We need to look first to the animal finishing (roundness) of hind quarters and brisket fat. I would say the the ultrasound would not be necessary after adjusting your eye and seing what you get after cutting some beef. Backfat ensures that the exposure to a high energy diet has happened and that marbling is likely to be there. But there is no 100% correlation between the two. I would buy a scanner to homogenize groups and bull selection purposes, but not just to look at individuals only. If you have the ultrasound, it is fun to play with it and get a feeling of what you may be doing in terms of laying fat. I would get something more complete (like a Zonovet or Falco 100, or other brand with similar capabilities) which could also give you a picture of ribeye area and estimate marbling.