Buying a cow for slaughter, highland/hereford mix. 1st time

[RockyRidgeFarmRI]

Hello,

I have a few questions about buying a cow for slaughter.

I have a local farmer selling a cow raised on organic grass only that's a little over 3 years old. It's a Scottish highland mixed with a hereford. The cost is $1200, farmer claims it's about 1400lbs, and he thinks hang weight would be around 650-700 lbs. I think his weight estimate might be high. My plan is to rent a trailer, pick up the cow and drive it to the slaughter house. I am splitting this with my dad who has also never done this before. His heard size is 5 right now, he has sold a few this year after they calved out. This cow I'm buying just had her calf a few months ago, he sold the calf already. This is the last cow he has available this year, and i placed a deposit on the cow. I plan to bring it to processor in about a week.

Questions:

Is this old for a cow of this breed for processing ?
How does this age effect taste and tenderness in this case ? Farmer says steak won't be tough, and it's a fine age for slaughter.
Are there certain cuts that I should get ground up instead of cut because they maybe wouldn't be tender enough?
Does the cow in the photo look like it would hang at 650-700lbs?
Recommended hang time ?

Final question, I am packaging myself at slaughterhouse, should I do butcher paper, vac seal or papered then vac sealed ? Hoping it lasts 3 years at most, probably 1-2 years.

Thanks in advance

 

[Mini Horses]

@farmerjan....help her pls

 

[farmerjan]

Okay, I will try to help a little. Would like to see better pictures... BUT.... my opinion from what I can see... the cow might go 1300 but I would say more in the 1050-1200 lb range. She looks to be in decent flesh... Highlands are not big cattle and so she is probably not going to weigh what he thinks.
Question... why does/did he calve her out, pull the calf after a few months then sell a YOUNG productive cow???? That to me is suspect... unless she was not making good milk to feed the calf.
One thing about the cattle market.... RIGHT NOW.... calf prices are through the roof... a 350-500 lb calf is bringing $2.50-$3.25 PER LB... so a 400 lb calf is worth in the 1200 lb range... being a highland cross that will hurt the calf price some... But you get what I am saying. Calves/weaned feeder calves are worth a small fortune. We sell most of ours in the 4-550 lb range weaned off the cows and eating feed for several weeks. Not going to get into all the logistics... but we sold some 515 lb steers (which bring more than heifer calves) for 3.30 lb 3 weeks ago... that's around $1700 for a feeder steer...
Cull cow prices are running in the $1.00 / lb... and that is where she would go if taken to the stockyard to sell... she is a cull cow at that age and with an existing udder. So she is worth about $1.00/lb live weight.

No, I don't see her hanging at 650-700 lbs.... Maybe 600 ... but again, it is hard to see with the pics.

Suggestion, since you seem committed to this cow... take the truck/trailer and get it weighed at any truck stop that has "scales".... then go get the cow... then take it back to the same truck stop/scales and do what is called a "reweigh"... if done within 24 hours of the first weigh in... it will only cost an additional couple dollars... Original weigh in is between $5 and $10 usually.... that will give you an accurate live weight on the cow. Make sure you do nothing different to the truck/trailer except load then unload the cow.... same people in the truck, do not fill will gas between weigh ins, etc.

The slaughter place will give you a hanging weight...

3 years old is okay... BUT.... LEGALLY in the US anything over 30 months you CAN NOT get back any bone in meat that is along the spinal column... NO T-Bones... if you do NY Strip steaks and Filets, you cannot get back the backbones for soups or anything... I like them for "barbeque like with ribs" they are very meaty.
We try to NEVER kill anything over 27-28 months in order to stay under the radar with the 30 month rule... This is FEDERAL... it has to do with the prion that is found in "older animals" that causes "mad cow disease" and is related to the same thing that people with Crutzfield-Jacob disease have... probably spelling it wrong.

I have never eaten a highland... they say they are tender... the butcher can look at the meat and tell you how good the marbling is and how it should do as far as tenderness. ASK if they do a "sheer test"... it will determine the tenderness also...
Hanging no less than 14 days... I would prefer 21 days with an animal over 30 months... it helps to break down the connective tissue a little better. There will be a little more trim on an older animal that is hung longer.
I vacuum pack EVERYTHING... including the hamburger done in 1 lb packages... FLAT... and they will stack in the freezer better than those round tubes... plus the meat will stay better with the vacuum packaging. Some of the steaks we will have a piece of butcher paper wrapped around any bone so it does not cause a pin hole in the vacuum pack plastic. Not necessary to wrap then vacuum....

I am eating some meat that was packed in 2017.... no pin holes in the vacuum pack, tastes fine... may not have the full nutritional quality????

Not sure about what would be more likely to be "tougher". I had a jersey heifer that did not breed, killed at 38 months so a little over 3... jerseys are normally very tender... and she was tougher than I liked... had another that lost 2 pregnancies that we killed at about 32-33 months and she was like melt in your mouth tender... EVERY animal is different... That is why you need to ask the butcher if they do a sheer test... it has to do how the meat "sheers off" and that is an indication of tenderness.

Also, expect that you will get about 50-60% of the hanging weight back in edible meat... Most times we stress to a person buying a 1/2 from us , or a whole animal... that you will get back in edible meat about 25-30% of the live weight... When a cow is killed there is Head/Hide/Hooves/ Guts.... that accounts for about 50% of the weight of the cow.... I am thinking that you will get back in the neighborhood of 250-350 lbs of actual frozen meat.

 

[RockyRidgeFarmRI]

Okay, I will try to help a little. Would like to see better pictures... BUT.... my opinion from what I can see... the cow might go 1300 but I would say more in the 1050-1200 lb range. She looks to be in decent flesh... Highlands are not big cattle and so she is probably not going to weigh what he thinks.
Question... why does/did he calve her out, pull the calf after a few months then sell a YOUNG productive cow???? That to me is suspect... unless she was not making good milk to feed the calf.
One thing about the cattle market.... RIGHT NOW.... calf prices are through the roof... a 350-500 lb calf is bringing $2.50-$3.25 PER LB... so a 400 lb calf is worth in the 1200 lb range... being a highland cross that will hurt the calf price some... But you get what I am saying. Calves/weaned feeder calves are worth a small fortune. We sell most of ours in the 4-550 lb range weaned off the cows and eating feed for several weeks. Not going to get into all the logistics... but we sold some 515 lb steers (which bring more than heifer calves) for 3.30 lb 3 weeks ago... that's around $1700 for a feeder steer...
Cull cow prices are running in the $1.00 / lb... and that is where she would go if taken to the stockyard to sell... she is a cull cow at that age and with an existing udder. So she is worth about $1.00/lb live weight.

No, I don't see her hanging at 650-700 lbs.... Maybe 600 ... but again, it is hard to see with the pics.

Suggestion, since you seem committed to this cow... take the truck/trailer and get it weighed at any truck stop that has "scales".... then go get the cow... then take it back to the same truck stop/scales and do what is called a "reweigh"... if done within 24 hours of the first weigh in... it will only cost an additional couple dollars... Original weigh in is between $5 and $10 usually.... that will give you an accurate live weight on the cow. Make sure you do nothing different to the truck/trailer except load then unload the cow.... same people in the truck, do not fill will gas between weigh ins, etc.

The slaughter place will give you a hanging weight...

3 years old is okay... BUT.... LEGALLY in the US anything over 30 months you CAN NOT get back any bone in meat that is along the spinal column... NO T-Bones... if you do NY Strip steaks and Filets, you cannot get back the backbones for soups or anything... I like them for "barbeque like with ribs" they are very meaty.
We try to NEVER kill anything over 27-28 months in order to stay under the radar with the 30 month rule... This is FEDERAL... it has to do with the prion that is found in "older animals" that causes "mad cow disease" and is related to the same thing that people with Crutzfield-Jacob disease have... probably spelling it wrong.

I have never eaten a highland... they say they are tender... the butcher can look at the meat and tell you how good the marbling is and how it should do as far as tenderness. ASK if they do a "sheer test"... it will determine the tenderness also...
Hanging no less than 14 days... I would prefer 21 days with an animal over 30 months... it helps to break down the connective tissue a little better. There will be a little more trim on an older animal that is hung longer.
I vacuum pack EVERYTHING... including the hamburger done in 1 lb packages... FLAT... and they will stack in the freezer better than those round tubes... plus the meat will stay better with the vacuum packaging. Some of the steaks we will have a piece of butcher paper wrapped around any bone so it does not cause a pin hole in the vacuum pack plastic. Not necessary to wrap then vacuum....

I am eating some meat that was packed in 2017.... no pin holes in the vacuum pack, tastes fine... may not have the full nutritional quality????

Not sure about what would be more likely to be "tougher". I had a jersey heifer that did not breed, killed at 38 months so a little over 3... jerseys are normally very tender... and she was tougher than I liked... had another that lost 2 pregnancies that we killed at about 32-33 months and she was like melt in your mouth tender... EVERY animal is different... That is why you need to ask the butcher if they do a sheer test... it has to do how the meat "sheers off" and that is an indication of tenderness.

Also, expect that you will get about 50-60% of the hanging weight back in edible meat... Most times we stress to a person buying a 1/2 from us , or a whole animal... that you will get back in edible meat about 25-30% of the live weight... When a cow is killed there is Head/Hide/Hooves/ Guts.... that accounts for about 50% of the weight of the cow.... I am thinking that you will get back in the neighborhood of 250-350 lbs of actual frozen meat.

Thanks for your response . I am not sure why or when he sold the calf. I think he said that this girl already had her calf this year and he sold it, but I'm unsure of the timeline. He said his other cows are either pregnant or with a calf so this one was the only one for sale.

I know it's cheaper than other cows I've found for sale, however, he was not advertising that he was selling the cow. I contacted him originally to buy a lamb from him and I asked him about the cows. I would rather have a lot of ground beef at a cheaper than market rate, than more expensive meat like lamb or GB from another local farm that I pay 6/lb for.(non organic)

My thinking is that this will hopefully be good enough to have decent steaks and roasts in addition to a bunch of GB. I am not thinking this will come out like a young grain fed steer but it would be nice to have something that isn't too far off from that.

I did hear about the issue with the bones not legally being allowed to bring home. I asked the farmer about that and he said he had no idea and he's never heard this. Is this a new law or something ?

I will ask the butcher about the bone thing and also a sheer test. Thank you for your input on this. Overall, even if it has to be all ground up, it will still be a better deal than I can find anywhere else for organic grass fed and finished ground beef.

 

[farmerjan]

Hello again. Glad to read that you are not "starry eyed" over getting something that you think is one thing and is another.
The bones are those along the spinal column. This federal law has been in effect for quite a few years... if this farmer is not aware of it, he must not sell much beef. It is in effect even for beef slaughtered on farm for personal consumption.. Since BSE was first found in cattle in 2003 or 2004, the law was enacted not long after that... so it has been in effect for over 10-20 years... things like leg bones and such are still allowed to go home to the farm...
I see no reason to not get all the filet mignons, which is a part of what would otherwise be the T-bone... and the NY strip is the "other side " of the T-bone. Sirloin steaks are often pretty tender too... there are all sorts of different cuts that could be quite tender.... Look up a chart on beef cuts/ showing the whole animal and where the different cuts of meat come from. There is usually a reference to which are more tender, and which are more suited to different kinds of cooking... ie...grilled, roasted, moist cooking... It will give you an idea.

Do not get too hung up on the "organic" part of it. Locally raised animals are going to be a better deal and healthier than not knowing where your beef comes from. We follow basic organic principles... BUT... if an animal gets sick, we will treat it with whatever we need to, in order to prevent it from getting real sick, or be in pain or whatever. 99% of the farmers do not routinely give antibiotics to animals... it is not cost effective. We try to keep our animals healthy... they get supplemental mineral and salt... we sometimes use a feed through IGR which helps to stop the horrible fly populations... which cause pinkeye and are painful and very traumatic to cattle... we also try to breed from animals that seem to be resistant to flys and things like pinkeye. But if they get it, we treat immediately to help them to have fewer side effects and to get back to feeling better asap.

Organic farmers are usually very dilligent and try to take as good a care of their animals just like any conventional farmer. BUT, they are very limited to what they can use to treat an animal for sickness... and if they do treat them with some sort of antibiotic or "unapproved" for organics substance , then the animal has to be sold and cannot be used in their program... most get sold off the farm.

If your kids got sick and you had to use an antibiotic, would they then be "tainted" for life in your eyes?

We do not use alot of drugs, and we do not use them indiscriminately. Many of the animals that we have, have never seen a drug of any kind their entire life. We do vaccinate for certain things... it helps to build the cow's immune system so her colostrum is as strong as possible with the immunities that they pass on to their calves. But those immunities are not life long, and there are things that the calves need to get boosters for. As an animal ages, they tend to build immunities and therefore do not need constant boosters themselves. I also believe that the modern day people "health care system" goes way over board in the use of all these "vaccines" on little babies ... way too many, TOO SOON, and in too great a number at one time... but I am not against vaccines overall...

I eat 99% grass fed beef from my own animals... Mostly all jerseys or jersey crosses. I do use some grain as a "treat" to cattle... to call them into the catch pens and get them used to being worked around without panicking everytime they are around people... There are cattle that have a higher "flight response" and they do not make good beef... they are good for ground beef but not for things like steaks. Mine are not finished on a grain ration... just that they get a little so that every time I go up to the pens, they get rewarded for coming in when I call. We have had cattle get out, recently, a group of mostly all 2 day just weaned from their mommas, and moved to the barn lots, ... so not very happy with us... but had 2 "babysitter cows" in with them... and when they went down the road a 1/2 mile and were all over... calling them and getting the cows to come for a bucket... got the calves to all follow too... they all came back down the road, down the long drive and into the lot that we had them in to be weaned... So bucket training is very helpful... You do not have to feed a ton of feed to an animal to finish it but it helps for them to know what it is and to like a taste of it.
Something like good alfalfa hay also will work as a treat, so not just grain, but it does not rattle in the bucket to tempt them like a little grain.

This is NOT a lecture on organic vs conventional... just wanted you to understand that locally sourced meat is still usually much better and you get to know the farmer and what their practices are day to day. There are farmers I would not eat their meat, or drink milk from their cows... so it pays to know who and what about the places you source your food. And there were a few here, local to me, that espoused the "organic" card that I would not touch their animals... good husbandry practices and care are more important than the label.

Since the rest of this farmers' animals are bred or have a calf, maybe this cow did not breed back so that is why he is selling her... lots of reasons to cull out animals.

Grassfed and/or finished will give a stronger flavor to the meat. I prefer it... some people do not like it. There is usually a higher level of CLA's that occur in grassfed beef..... the fat will be more "yellow" and that is objectional to some people but then again... it is a sign of a different feed input. Guernsey's were known for their "golden guernsey milk" due to the higher beta-carotene in the milk which is in part, derived from grazing... among other benefits... they have a very yellow fat ... A grazing animal will marble slower than a straight grain fed animal... and different breeds marble more than others.

I think if you are wanting a good quality ground beef, with other cuts , that this cow should be good for that... Make sure that they do not make this "hamburger"... this is to be ground beef from ONLY your animal... hamburger by definition is allowed to have added fat mixed in to get it to the 70/30 or 80/20 defined levels.. MOST butchers do not add fat to a private animal... but just make sure.
If you eat stew, this animal would also make some good cuts of stew meat... and you can do things like shiskebabs with good stew meat too...
$6.00/lb is a fair and decent price for ground beef.
I am assuming that you are paying for the butchering... and you said you are going to be helping do the packaging... If the butcher were to do it all it would cost you in the neighborhood of $500 for what we call cut/wrap/ package costs... It runs around .75-1.00 /lb of hanging weight to be fully processed. So you would have about $3.00-5.00/ lb in the animal in the cost of meat you bring home. So yes, less than to just buy meat outright.

Tell us how it goes, always like to get feedback from people that do things like this... to know what you like/don't like... what was less than expected and what you were pleasantly surprised with.