Where to buy, what to buy, where to start?

[greybeard]

If you get a cow (being a mature female bovine), you have the opportunity to breed her to produce a calf every year for you to raise as a feeder/stocker animal for the freezer. She won't be for butchering, unless you want to have a freezer full of ground beef and/or sausage.

Boy did I need to learn the lingo

I think I meant to say that a steer (a neutered bull calf) or a heifer (female calf, right). Is there a difference in taste, texture, between the two then? I am leaning towards steer but just want to make sure I understand the basics so thank you for helping me get a good foundation here.

I am not really wanting to actually keep a breeding animal at this point and am looking more to get a few young animals, raise them for the freezer, and then see how well we liked the experience before we would consider getting a cow to breed/produce our own freezer cattle.

As colder weather arrives, prices are apt to drop as cattle are sold off due to a lack of winter forage or hay especially if you are in the part of Indiana that has or is still seeing drought conditions. BUT, that is a double edged sword. If your area has seen drought, and the calf you look at was carried and/or nursed in drought conditions, it can (IMO) result in poor meat quality even if the calf is from a sire and dam of good genetics, and even if you provide good nutrition and medical care. I have seen it happen here after last year's Texas drought. The marbling and other beef characteristics are partially a product of good breeding, but also a product of very early nutrition requirements. Good nutrition can rarely overcome bad genetics but poor nutrition can very often negate good genetics. If the mother cow suffered nutrition wise while carrying the calf, the calf's early development in utero will suffer. The same holds true for the period between birth and weaning. If the mother provides less milk than the calf requires or poorer quality milk, the early onset of condidtions that allow for the finished meat to be good quality and taste just won't be there. You can pour all the high quality feed to any calf and make it fat, but fat surrounding the cuts most people look forward to have little to do with what that cut of meat actually tastes or even looks like. This can easily mean the difference between select, choice and prime.

Since this is your first venture into freezer beef, I would recommend a dairy calf, as they are a lot cheaper to acquire and probably more readily available, and I can assure you, that your taste buds will never know the difference. In addition to that, most dairy farmers keep their milking herd in good shape nutrition wise, therefore taking my above comments out of the picture.

Bull calf, heifer or steer? To me, there isn't enough difference to make a difference, but that depends on personal taste I suppose.

 

[Pearce Pastures]

Thanks again. We did find someone who has both Holstein and Angus bulls calves. The personally recommended we start with the Holstein, which are less expensive anyway, and they said they prefer to not give theirs as much room to roam because they say the meat is less tender. They also feed theirs straight grain (at least the teenage daughter said so it may be that they get hay and feed or something but I will be talking more with them). What are your thoughts on that front? We are getting things prepared for doing this but are getting a meat goat in the meantime so it could end up being next Spring before we actually get a steer so lots of time to learn before leaping in

 

[Stubbornhillfarm]

Did they say why they would recommend going with the Holstien first?

In my opinion, if you are raising it for beef, then go with the beef critter. We have 2 Jerseys and Hereford that are the same age. They both eat the same amount and the Jeresey s because they are milking breeds, just don't pack on the meat like the beef breeds. So for the same amount of time, food, work, we are getting less beef from them. Yes, we paid a lot less for the Jerseys, but in the end, the better value will be in the beef breed.

Can't wait to hear and see of what you do. Best wishes!

 

[Cricket]

I'd agree with Stubbornhill on going with the Angus. Can't imagine raising it on straight grain! Did they say what the price difference was between the two breeds and the age you could get them? I'd give them as much room to roam as you want to--if you want to raise them in feedlot conditions, you may as well buy your beef.

 

[ourflockof4]

Maybe their Angus are high strung? I would think that your choice would come down to economics and person choice. A beef steer will gain much easier then a dairy steer will, and require less grain finish. With how high grain and hay prices are I would put a pencil to paper and see what makes more sense. Any dairy steer will require a lot more grain to finish then a decent beef steer.

If you plan on raising on pasture only I would not get a dairy steer. I can say from person experience they do not do well without grain (corn is $7.50ish a bushel now) In the same pasture our beef steers were gaining good, and our dairy steers were losing condition fast. We pulled the dairy steers last week to drylot them on full grain.

 

[Pearce Pastures]

No they didn't say why that breed. I wonder if maybe they just have more of the Holstein to sell, but they are very nice folks too and I would hope that they weren't trying to take advantage of my newness.

I am glad you all think that the grain thing is not the norm---that stuff it so pricey and we would have a perfectly nice, planted pasture for them to use too if we did this. I have no problem feeding part grain and part pasture but all grain? Not so much what I was thinking.

 

[greybeard]

With the acreage you have, you will have to supplement your pasture with "something" a good part of the year regardless of the breed. Certainly use whatever pasture you have available as well as hay for the winter, mineral and salt. I recommended the dairy breed because they seem more available to you at a lower buy in. Tho I don't generally care much for Craigslist, sometimes you can run across a good deal--just be careful with anything you see on those type lists--always.

 

[Bossroo]

Econ 101: Which one will be the most economical price for one's dinner ? The dairy type may be lower in $s to buy in .... since most are sold as days old , the price of milk replacers is quite high $$$, there is a greater possibility of illness, treatment costs and mortality. Much more in $$$$$s in feed costs ( less efficient in converting feed to meat) then add the longer time and labor ( $$$$$) to reach butchering size. This will in most cases exceed the total of higher purchase price and lower production costs of a beef breed animal. :bun

 

[greybeard]

All true bossroo, but often times, hobby farmers or brand new to the cow business folks just starting out don't have the extra $$ to make the original purchase of a good beef calf.
If everyone had to (all at once) come up with all the $ it takes to get either beef or dairy to market weight PLUS the purchse price, there would be a lot fewer people here, but when you can do it from wages on a weekly basis, it's a little more palatable to the wallet.
Besides, here at BYH anyway, it isn't all about profit, loss, risk management, or bottomline.

 

[GLENMAR]

I want to try this too. I am finding that most weaned beef calves are around $800. Does that sound right??