backyard steers

[5minpins]

Hi All
new here, wanted to ask a couple of questions about finishing a steer for my freezer. I have two mutt steers, supposedly bull was angus x galloway and dam was angus x beefmaster...maybe. Anyway these steers are by the same bull, one looks great, the other is a scrawny thing and I cant seem to get him to gain any weight. I brought them off pasture first week of Feb. and put them in a 100x200 pen, started them on hay and grain, they get 12 quarts (dont know how to figure the weight of a quart of grain) rolled corn mixed with sweet feed, 9 quarts corn to 3 quarts sweet. alfalfa (4 flakes) in the evening, they also have a round bale of local grass haylage to free feed. they are on their second round bale. they have a mineral block, I wormed them and just for fun gave them some probiotics trying to help the scrawny one out. the polled steer looks just fine, getting fairly fat, the horned steer is just staying the same. If they werent fed very well as calves does it stunt them? nothing I can do to get this scrawny steer to put on some weight? maybe he is taking after some unknown ancestor? I am planning on butcher at end of may. they were a year old late fall, they are about armpit high lol sorry I am not getting close enough to see how tall they are. I am 5'4. I have no idea how much they weigh and I wish I knew, its hard to guess weight in pictures.

this is the scrawny one, yes hard to see against the snow...in spring...7 inches of snow...

I realize that mutt steers wont ever be as big or look as good as better bred ones but when you compare the cost of feeding one yourself to the cost of buying the same amount of meat at the store, (11 bucks and up per pound for decent steak that tastes like crap) I will save money feeding my own verses buying the same amount over the year at the store.

 

[Sir Loin]

5minpins, :welcome:
Sounds to me that you are doing everything right and from what I can see "It's in the genes".
They look good to me so keep doing what you are doing and Bon appetite.
SL

 

[shorty]

They should be fine , just keep putting the feed to them. The only thing I would watch is the haylage . What you're doing is okay now but when it gets warmer a bale may start to spoil when its open too long . it might take a couple weeks for them to clean a bale up, that might be too long to have it open in warm weather.

 

[bigbull338]

those steers dont look that bad.just keep feeding them like you are.an they will grow good enough to butcher.

 

[kscowboy]

Age difference ? Keep feeding they all get big

 

[5minpins]

thanks for the nice comments, I got em started on the grain slowly as they didnt know what it was and wasted it if I left it out for them. Now they get a little exuberant when I show up with the grain can. I looked up as much info on galloway as I could because the horned steer looks just like one. that shaggy hair is like 6 to 8 inches long in places. smaller type beef cow? Anyone have them?
I do watch that haylage bale, that stuff rots fast and if it gets warm it starts smoking in the feeder, I kick it around a little and it dries out. I built my own round bale feeder, these two havent torn it apart yet so I am doing ok there.
These two are by the same bull and they are about 2 months apart. least that is what I am told. I bought them from a guy up the road last fall. I think the polled steer is the older of the two. was just hoping the horned steer would pick up a little better, he is always sunk in right behind his ribs and is just slab sided. well no matter I guess, bet he will still taste better than the grocery store stuff
after these two are frozen I plan on finding a beefmaster breeder in this state (Washington) and buying 2 cows to breed and raise a beef for me and one to sell. I only have about 13 acres so have to keep the cow herd pretty small.

 

[angie1]

OK ~ I am asking cause I don;t know. Not trying to make some sort of round about point....

I am 5'5. If a steer was up to my armpit, I'm thinking they maybe have some grow on them yet before the finish. Maybe the end of May is too soon to consider ~ no?
anybody?

Excellent feed and care BTW.

 

[kscowboy]

Best to get a weight if you have any doubts , your steer is maybe 4 1/2 feet or a bit less , ive got an angus finishing now that is just flat growing sideways and is about that height while the holstein / angus crosses are both putting on the pounds and butts at about 5 feet , starting to look like a frigging bovine basketball team. :lol2:

 

[5minpins]

Angie they probably would get some more growth to them, but with what I have to pay for feed here would make most of you fall over! most of my property is still woods, I am just one woman and can only clear so much at a time when I manage to get a hold of an excavator big enough to clear with. I live on the wet side of washington, good hay grows on the dry side (eastern) and has to be trucked over to here sooo.... a ton of alfalfa is anywhere from 240 to 300 bucks a ton. orchard grass or timothy even higher. Right now I am buying alfalfa feeder hay from a dairy for 225 a ton. Rolled corn is 15 bucks for a 75 pound sack and anything with molasses in it is 13 bucks and up. Big round bales are 45 and up per bale and on this side of the mountains are usually wet and moldy, storage can be a problem to. I have one round bale left so when thats gone they are too regardless of how big they got. I just cant afford to feed them thru the year till they are as big as they are gonna get. I am gonna say these two are anywhere from 16 to 20 months, at what age would you normally butcher a steer? or would you go by condition and weight?

And I can relate to the bovine basketball team! ha! the guy down the road from me raises Simmental and he has some good looking stock but man they are HUGE!! :shock: I drive by them and then get home and look at my two runts and think maybe I ended up with some mini dexters after looking at the simmental down the road lol. That guy has a really nice bunch of red and white with the occasional black and white tossed in.

 

[dun]

I am gonna say these two are anywhere from 16 to 20 months, at what age would you normally butcher a steer? or would you go by condition and weight?

Usually butcher at 16-18 months and in finished condition, i.e. fat covering on their backs.

 

[angie1]

HOLY SMOKES! The price of your feed?! :shock: :cry2:

When people there sell freezer beef, what are they asking for it/lb, do you know?

 

[5minpins]

HOLY SMOKES! The price of your feed?! :shock: :cry2:

When people there sell freezer beef, what are they asking for it/lb, do you know?

the price of feed here is pretty much why I am aiming for the end of may! I have 3 horses to feed to so any pastures I have right now they are in.
I see advertised quite a range of prices for freezer beef, smaller steers 600 to 900 pounds around $1 to $2 per pound, usually on the hoof or hanging weight. Bigger steers range from $1 to $4 on the hoof or hanging. Grass fed beef is usually $4 and up. cut and wrap is added on when you pick up. These are just prices out of the papers or craigslist and on the feed store bulletin board, I havent asked any of the custom guys what they get for their steers. Just about everyone sells on the hoof or hanging weight and you can order the cuts the way you want it after you pay for the side. So that way you get to pay for all the bones and trim and the seller isnt losing money on your boneless cut order lol.

 

[alftn]

I know there are probly exceptions but if there is angus in your steers they should not be horned...That said give them plenty of corn and all the good hay ( ber.) or they want and in 90 to 120 days they should look great... I would also worm them right away with ivemec and give them a good loose mineral ( a couple of oz. a day each in there corn) for the next couple of months...

 

[5minpins]

I know there are probly exceptions but if there is angus in your steers they should not be horned...That said give them plenty of corn and all the good hay ( ber.) or they want and in 90 to 120 days they should look great... I would also worm them right away with ivemec and give them a good loose mineral ( a couple of oz. a day each in there corn) for the next couple of months...

what other black cattle are Horned? these are 3 or 4 way cross mutts. half brothers. Northwest washington has timothy or orchard grass or alfalfa for hay, no bermuda. grass hay is 15 bucks or so per 100 pound bale. alfalfa around 10. cost wise I have to stick with the alfalfa.
They have a mineral block, they have it about half gone since first week of feb. I am not sure the feed stores around here would even have loose mineral, I went in looking for a pour on wormer and 3 of them didnt carry it as they dont have many people that use it..... ended up using pelleted wormer.
I was kind of amazed, there are like 30 or 40 dairy farms here and countless small beef operations, have to wonder where they get all their wormers and other stuff, mail order? internet? delivery truck? I will have to ask someday... the feed stores are aimed at horse people. They sell a lot of plants and pink purses and blue cowboy boots at the one in town. bought by tractor supply last year.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

countless small beef operations, have to wonder where they get all their wormers and other stuff, mail order? internet?

Catalogs and internet and some of those folks may travel a good ways to a co-op or other supplier.

ValleyVet, KV Vet Supply and Jeffers carry many products. (catalogs that also have websites) I've used ValleyVet and KV and was happy with both.

Many of the supplies I need I am able to purchase at the co-op.

Katherine

 

[daydreamingacres]

I would say your "scrawny one" is a highlander cross.... but that is just my opinion. I dont think that they look bad.. just some genetics comming into play and sometimes the "better bred ones" don't turn out so great. I had one that was supposed to be super and she looked good on paper but when she showed up on the doorstep yeah not so much.. Good luck on your endevor!

 

[ALX.]

I would say your "scrawny one" is a highlander cross!

That was my first thought as well. :lol:
Anything else black have horns???!! :lol: :lol:

They been dewormed?

Like everyone else has said - good job.

Edit - just re read and see where you wormed them.

 

[spoon]

Could it be part Dexter?

 

[simcross]

5 gallon of corn weighs about 30 lbs

 

[Onthebit]

The horned one really looks dexter....and is muscled over the back...the two although from the same bull obviously have very dif. mothers...both look great and will prolly taste great too come May! GL