“heifer” vs “heiferette”. what is the difference?

[Patriot Trading Co]

Heifer vs. Heiferette:
Heifer: 1. Female bovine that has never had a calf or barren. She can be put into the feedlot with Steers (castrated male bovine) 2. Heifers (Beef type-Angus-Hereford etc) are usually bred to produce a calf (hopefully a bull) that gets castrated to be fed for steer beef. The milking breed (Holstein) are used for milking after the calf is born. Usually, if the calf is too small then they may send her back to the feed lot for 160 days-guess?) and feed her a very high ration of protein to put some type of marbling and white fat into and on the meat. That is a "Heiferette" BUT-in my opinion, this is a industry word that is falsely used, because she is a Re-Fed "COW" that usually grades out as USDA No-Roll (ungraded) due to not enough marbling to make any grade. There are instances that they can be graded USDA Select. *They DO put the Holstein Steers into the feedlots and use a high ration of protein so they can grade out as USDA Select and Choice, they can be graded USDA Prime as well. I have seen it and eaten it. Amazing piece of beef. It is usually less money wholesale to the distributors. I know of several white table cloth wholesalers that cut ONLY that beef. They age all the middle meat (short loins, shell strips (bone-in) and they age it in the vac-pack bags as well. I love this business. I hope I was accurate and helpful. If I was not accurate, please enlighten me.

 

[LazyARanch]

Patriot, you gotta pay attention to the DATES on the posts.... you are definitely beating a :deadhorse: on this topic.


And :welcome: to Cattle Today Forum :tiphat:

 

[Bigfoot]

When I first seen this thread I thought, how in the world did Liz get his old name back.

 

[Nesikep]

Well, since this thread is back alive apparently, I'll say my piece.

Quite possibly contrary to all industry standards, I call my weaned heifers "heiferettes" until my long yearling heifers have calved (at which point they're cows!) To me, the "-ette" ending means 'little', so it is logical in my world. So from about 8-13 months I call them heiferettes, before that they're just calves.

 

[Nesikep]

Oh, and for steers, I call them "Steerlings" during that age period

 

[ibetyamissedme]

Loin I like you, you add a certain flair the makes me read entire posts every now and then, sometimes you are justanass other times you are justabigass, but I still like ya. Roll out some new jokes before you get banned again please.

 

[JWBrahman]

Fact: heiferette has been used on the boards more in the last three days than ever before. Fact: using or not using "heiferette" as a real term will not make me any more money nor cost me a dime. IMO- Y'all need something better to do.

The meaning of the suffix -ette is smaller than normal sized. You use that term with a person who has graduated from high school or a Francophone and he will think you have dwarf heifers. :lol:

 

[ibetyamissedme]

Cigar
Cigarette
Yep seems right, just don't ask them southern boys what a yearling is.

 

[pdfangus]

I thought a heiferette was a term reserved for plump gals of the homo sapien variety....

 

[LazyARanch]

Jim!!!! :lol: :lol:

 

[TexasBornNRaised]

FACT: According to animal science textbooks (paraphrased by me for your convenience) a heiferette is a female that has not actually raised a calf (I.e. She lost it or she has never been bred) despite being old enough to have been bred (it said probably around 3 years)
IMO: It's a stupid term with a definition that is way too loose and it will not ever be used by any respectable human being in their right mind.

 

[Gators Rule]

This is easy...

Heifer - a young female cow, less than two years of age who has given birth to no more than one calf.

Heiferette - the young female MAIDEN offspring of a heifer; ie. a cow less than two years of age, having no more than one calf.

I feel better about myself now.

 

[Nesikep]

I'd like to know what someone was smoking when they added the suffix "-ette" for a BIGGER heifer... pass it over here!

Around my place I'm not going to change.... my newborn-8 month olds are heifer calves, 8-13 month olds will be called heiferettes, the 14-25 month olds are the heifers, and after that they're cows

 

[BunnyHugger]

I have always been told when growing up a heifer is a female bovine who has not given birth for the first time yet, when she does she is then considered a 1st calf heifer or a cow. A heiferette is a female bovine who has been spayed and can no longer reproduce in order to gain more weigh for butcher, the female version of a steer basically (steer=castrated male). A free martin heifer is a heifer calf who is a chance of being naturally sterile due to being born a twin sibling to a bull calf. But this is just what I have been told by vets and ranchers and personal experience since I was small. It may have changed over the years

 

[76 Bar]

Love it or hate it the term has been around for ages.
USDA description:
Heiferette: A female bovine, 2 ½ years old or younger that exhibits cow characteristics, that has not had her first calf or recently lost her first calf.
Depending on the market and her condition, typically brings a premium above the price of high yielding slaughter cows and usually but not always destined for short term finishing in a feed lot.

 

[Brute 23]

i use to rope with a feller, who roped off a 12 year old colt :cowboy:

Yup, I have dogs that I called pup for years. :lol:

I'm guilty of calling heifers we raised heifers for years and years. I caught myself telling some one... that heifer is on her third calf. LoL we both laughed.

 

[farmerjan]

We bought a group of 10 charl heifers when my son was working for a neighbor farmer. We have daughters and grand daughters and last year we just sold the last of the "milton heifers". She was "18 yrs old" LOL. Yep Brute 23, we tend to call heifers we raised, "heifers" for several years. It is common on dairies to call any 1st lactation animal a "1st calf heifer". I always thought that "heiferette" was more of an English (British) term or designation, like they use "bullock" much more often than you would hear around this area.

 

[Dave]

Around here the term heiferette is used on those heifers who didn't conceive. Thus when you preg check the open heifers are referred to as heiferettes. Also used one who slips her calf would be the same thing.