Cha-Ching Fatties!

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SBMF 2015

SBMF 2015

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Joined
Feb 15, 2020
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4,647
City & State/Province
West Central,IL
I mentioned in a recent thread that we had a load of fed cattle to deliver today.
I’ve marketed a lot of fat cattle over the years but this is the first load that I’ve sent directly to the packers that the check will come in my name. It’s really a “we’ve finally made it “ kinda moment.
It was just a goose neck load, 6- strs & 2- hfrs. They averaged 1,573! I knew they were big but I guessed their average a hundred pounds lighter than they were.85170B36-057A-499A-8E79-577039091400.jpegAFA59632-481A-4A63-9EFD-3E785DF2651E.jpeg
 
SBMF 2015 said:
Sold live. I have a really good working relationship with the buyer so I’ll still find out how they grade and yield.
They pencil shrink them 2% off the truck. That’s less than they would shrink standing overnight at the sale barn.
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Keep us informed. Did you raise or buy them?
 
SBMF 2015 said:
I mentioned in a recent thread that we had a load of fed cattle to deliver today.
I’ve marketed a lot of fat cattle over the years but this is the first load that I’ve sent directly to the packers that the check will come in my name. It’s really a “we’ve finally made it “ kinda moment.
It was just a goose neck load, 6- strs & 2- hfrs. They averaged 1,573! I knew they were big but I guessed their average a hundred pounds lighter than they were.View attachment 69298View attachment 69299
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How old are they ?
 
Brute 23 said:
Good looking animals. Be interesting to hear your process from start to finish if you don't mind sharing at some point.
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Thank you.
They are pure bred angus. There sire lines are Weigh Up, Cowboy Up, and Barricade.
They are born on pasture, weaned around six months depending on how busy we are doing other things. Strs are banded after weaning, routine vaccinations, and Encore implants. Then they were grown in a dirt lot getting shell corn and hay until around 1,000lbs. Then they were moved to the feedlot. I used Kent NRB and cracked corn. You start out hand feeding them and then switch to a self feeder. Big cattle like these it only takes about 2 weeks of carrying buckets to get them worked up to the self feeder.
 
Noticed some around here put their calves in a dirt lot after weaning. They lay the corn and hay to them and they grow fast. Does any grass in their diet slow them down from packing on the weight?
 
jltrent said:
Noticed some around here put their calves in a dirt lot after weaning. They lay the corn and hay to them and they grow fast. Does any grass in their diet slow them down from packing on the weight?
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Not so much the grass slowing them down as the space to roam. When you give them smaller spaces their options are be bored, eat, and rub/ tear up stuff because they’re bored .
It’s just like someone who sits and watches tv all day and eats because they’re bored .
 
SBMF 2015 said:
Not so much the grass slowing them down as the space to roam. When you give them smaller spaces their options are be bored, eat, and rub/ tear up stuff because they’re bored .
It’s just like someone who sits and watches tv all day and eats because they’re bored .
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Thanks for the info. A good description.
 
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SBMF 2015 said:
Around 20-22 months
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It’s amazing at how well they look. You done a great job finishing those. I wish I could finish one just a fraction like that. I know I have been pestering you for years now asking question after question for advice from building my facility to feed some calf’s out in to everything else you can think of and haven’t attempted it yet.

But in my defense it’s not because I haven’t been trying. Have just had a few unexpected things happen that’s set me back. I finally got my finishing pen built and it’s not much or nothing fancy but have to keep in mind I was basically on crutches and having to go get back injections the whole time I was trying to build it. And one thing after another has happened ever since that time. I guess nearly 3 years has passed since I started pestering you asking for advice. But I promise you SBMF 2015 I am going to surprise you and show you I wasn’t just blowing in the wind about following through with this. I have a couple of Herford steers located that I might have to pay way more than I want to for them along with the feed to do it. But come hell or high water I am going to do it. It’s not about making money off of these. It’s about finishing something I started out to do whether it’s right or wrong.

SBMF 2015 You are a master craftsman and the best of the best in my opinion when it comes to finishing cattle. And I think everyone here on CT that has had the pleasure of reading you post and learning from the knowledge you so willingly and graciously share with anyone that has asked you will all agree with me on what I am saying.

I wish I could some how get that picture taken to a photo shop and have it enlarged into a small portrait to a size appropriate to hang on my living room
wall. That’s how impressed I am of how well those calf’s has turned out. You are truly a master craftsman at finishing cattle. And sincerely mean that.
 
504RP said:
It’s amazing at how well they look. You done a great job finishing those. I wish I could finish one just a fraction like that. I know I have been pestering you for years now asking question after question for advice from building my facility to feed some calf’s out in to everything else you can think of and haven’t attempted it yet.

But in my defense it’s not because I haven’t been trying. Have just had a few unexpected things happen that’s set me back. I finally got my finishing pen built and it’s not much or nothing fancy but have to keep in mind I was basically on crutches and having to go get back injections the whole time I was trying to build it. And one thing after another has happened ever since that time. I guess nearly 3 years has passed since I started pestering you asking for advice. But I promise you SBMF 2015 I am going to surprise you and show you I wasn’t just blowing in the wind about following through with this. I have a couple of Herford steers located that I might have to pay way more than I want to for them along with the feed to do it. But come hell or high water I am going to do it. It’s not about making money off of these. It’s about finishing something I started out to do whether it’s right or wrong.

SBMF 2015 You are a master craftsman and the best of the best in my opinion when it comes to finishing cattle. And I think everyone here on CT that has had the pleasure of reading you post and learning from the knowledge you so willingly and graciously share with anyone that has asked you will all agree with me on what I am saying.

I wish I could some how get that picture taken to a photo shop and have it enlarged into a small portrait to a size appropriate to hang on my living room
wall. That’s how impressed I am of how well those calf’s has turned out. You are truly a master craftsman at finishing cattle. And sincerely mean that.
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Thank you. That really means a lot.
I have been managing and marketing fed cattle for 24 years. I have had some outstanding mentors in that time. Cattlemen who had made a living buying feeder cattle and finishing them out.
I learned patience and timing are key. Push a group to hard to fast and you’ll stunt their frame size. Not to mention acidosis, foundered cattle, or kill one. The flip side is that if you don’t push enough you can get cattle that never seem to stop growing and won’t grade. There’s a fine line and every group is different.
I was taught to feed cattle by eye, that scales were a crutch and that you better “just know “ how much corn to add to a ration. Talk about a hard learn . I asked one of my mentors one time how much corn I needed to add to a TMR ration and he told me “ until it looks right “
I learned that you increase corn by what the feed bunks and manure look like. Not by a scale or where “they should be “ for their age or days on feed.
I have always taken pride in the cattle I managed. I think I mentioned in a post some time that I have never thought of myself raising cattle for a Walmart quality meat counter, but rather I’m raising cattle that will end up in a Chicago steakhouse.
 
kenny thomas said:
Do they fuss about the yield grade? I know you sold them live so its theirs now but thats pretty fat.
Very good %age.
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The 5’s are a little embarrassing they were 25% of the group.
I think when they grade and dressing % so well they kinda over look the extra fat.
Try really hard not to make that a habit.
 

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