Another beginner question..

[J]

When looking at buying bred cows at the sale barn is there anyway to tell about how long they are bred? Or do you tell you? Be easy on me I know this is probably a dumb question.

 

[dj]

They will tell you if the cow is 1st,2nd, or 3rd stage

 

[Frankie]

When looking at buying bred cows at the sale barn is there anyway to tell about how long they are bred? Or do you tell you? Be easy on me I know this is probably a dumb question.

Most sale barns mark the cows according to how long they're bred. You might need to ask the sale barn manager what the numbers on the cows mean because the three sale barns in my area all use different markings.

 

[ctlbaron]

Cows and heifers will be tagged, 3 mo, 5 mo, ect. Say 3 mo. and sound. Meaning they are 3 mo. bred and their bag and teats are sound. Some will be marked as non breeders if they are. Thats the way they do it here anyway.

 

[flaboy]

When looking at buying bred cows at the sale barn is there anyway to tell about how long they are bred? Or do you tell you? Be easy on me I know this is probably a dumb question.

I never buy cows at the sale barn (even though 1848 claims that's where I buy)(speaking of the little twit, where is he? Comes on here gives me a ration and disappears) but I have purchased at cattleman's associations sales. At these sales they have a vet there checking them and estimating what trimester they are in. When run through we receive that information. I think our sale barn just takes the sellers word for it that they are bred and by what on normal sale days. Not too many cows are bought for breeders at our barns on normal sale days.

 

[J]

Well I don't feel so bad about my question now because it looks like there are a few different ways of doing it. Thanks alot for ya'lls answers.

 

[memanpa]

that is very true frankie, aound here 3 out of the 4 barns all use 1-2-3- stripes on hip to indicate they always tell you at the start what the stripes mean, the other barn uses the number 1-2-3 painted on the side. all 4 also tell you if cow is broken mouth or not! bred cows sell by the head, broken mouthed cows by the pound (all 4 sale barns)
just to tell by looking is difficult if not impossible, just an educated guess! IMHO

 

[J]

When looking at buying bred cows at the sale barn is there anyway to tell about how long they are bred? Or do you tell you? Be easy on me I know this is probably a dumb question.

I never buy cows at the sale barn (even though 1848 claims that's where I buy)(speaking of the little twit, where is he? Comes on here gives me a ration and disappears) but I have purchased at cattleman's associations sales. At these sales they have a vet there checking them and estimating what trimester they are in. When run through we receive that information. I think our sale barn just takes the sellers word for it that they are bred and by what on normal sale days. Not too many cows are bought for breeders at our barns on normal sale days.

Our local sale barn has a vet palpating them before they go through but I didn't know if they would just sell them as bred or if you could get an estimation before buying.

 

[bigbull338]

our sale barn puts the age pn shoulder .an how far bred on the hipp.never says nothing bout the bagg being sound.an docs arm aint to accurate on palpating either.so i look at their baggs in the ring.scott

 

[J]

our sale barn puts the age pn shoulder .an how far bred on the hipp.never says nothing bout the bagg being sound.an docs arm aint to accurate on palpating either.so i look at their baggs in the ring.scott

I've seen numbers on the hip at ours but never bought bred cows there before so I never really paid much attention to it. I'm not sure if there is a number on the shoulder or not, but I'll find out. Thanks alot.

 

[flaboy]

Our local sale barn has a vet palpating them before they go through but I didn't know if they would just sell them as bred or if you could get an estimation before buying.

The sales I have been to where the vet is checking them, they announce it in the ring. I see other areas mark theirs. I guess each area has their own way of doing it.

 

[Brandonm2]

The barn I go to the most often paints a 0 for cows that check open. Avoid those cows at all costs because you know the owner has pasture exposed her to a bull and if she is dry she probably failed to settle for TWO breeding seasons. For cows that palpate positive they are painted with a 1 to 9 based on how many months along the Doc thinks they are bred at. Of course these are just for the cattle that the owner pays the preg checking fee on. There are a lot of cows selling by the pound (some of whom are obviously bred) that are not checked.

I went to one barn last summer a couple of times that preg checked every brood cow and MOUTHED every one of them to tell you their ages; though normally that is done at most sales ONLY at special replacement female sales (usually in the fall). On aging they use 2 to 7 for the age of the cow. After age seven she is a "full mouth"(F), after ~age 12 she is a "Smooth mouth"(S), and if they call her a "broke mouth"(B) she is old (probably 16+++) and generally is falling apart; though there ARE individuals who buy those old bred cows. Most of the time I see the preg check painted on the cow and the age written on a sticker; but there is a lot of variation between stockyards. I have also seen roman numerals I, II, and III for which trimester the vet thinks she is in as well as 1,2,3. Don't be afraid to ask the barn what the numerals and letters mean. I don't think there is any standard system in use.

 

[Rancher6]

If you do buy a bred cow at the sale, it is always worth it to have your vet recheck how far along she is and how old she is. I have taken cows back because they are marked 8 months and she may be 1 or 2 or even open. If that is the case, most sale barns will make it right with you (they make mistakes too). Mistakes happen and there is nothing worse than feeding an open cow and waiting on a calf that is not coming.

 

[Rancher6]

Oh by the way sale barns around here put a white tag in their ear maked something like 8/7 that means she is an 8 year old and 7 months bred. 8/0 means 8 years and open and so on...

 

[MoGal]

Around here they use colored tags on their back.... green, yellow and pink depending on what stage they are in and then write the age on the colored tag.

 

[Susie David]

The local barn, 70 miles close by, uses 0, 1, 2 & 3 for open and the trimester and a red stripe down the head for a broke mouth unless more specific info is provided by the seller. DMc