Black makes a difference here

[Muletrack]

Took my fall calving steers to town yesterday. A pen of 9 weighed about 500 lbs., but there were three reds in to group so the auctioneer colored them for the bidders. Now I had six blacks at 481 lbs. fetch $2.09, and the three reds weighed 5:36 and brought $1.75. So the little blacks brought $1006 a head, and the bigger reds brought $939. But I'm not complaining. Two of the reds were from bred heifers I bought cheap last summer, and their calves looked very Hereford. If these cheap heifers do as well with an Angus bull this year, I'll be very happy. Two bigger black steers (655 lbs.) brought 1.77 for $1159 apiece (these also were from low cost summer calving cows (one born June 6), so they almost paid for their dams yesterday (less expenses, of course).

 

[kenny thomas]

Averages of $1,000 a head is still pretty darn good.

 

[A.J.]

Sounds like your calves did well. There's about that kind of spread if not more between blacks and reds here.

 

[moses388]

You received good prices. Prices at my local sale barn: 700 lb steer $1.40 and 700 lb heifer $1.15. I may need to start buying male-sexed semen.

 

[jltrent]

I don't see near that price around here. Maybe your location helps.

 

[Muletrack]

Well, North Dakota is the best place on earth! And it's a pretty straight shot to the feedlots in Nebraska where good "northern" cattle are the real deal. Pity that we are only No. 9 on the list of the top 10 beef cows states. There is room, and feed, here for another million cows -- easily. It's just that the USDA supports corn, wheat, and soybeans -- government picking winners and losers.

 

[Muletrack]

You received good prices. Prices at my local sale barn: 700 lb steer $1.40 and 700 lb heifer $1.15. I may need to start buying male-sexed semen.

I'm not selling any heifers this year. Will breed them all and sell any non-breds next spring. Yes, I could probably do better buying replacement cows (especially for fall calving), but I like them to be born and raised on my farm, looking at me everyday, and knowing just where they are supposed to go when I yell, "Hyah!"

 

[callmefence]

Took my fall calving steers to town yesterday. A pen of 9 weighed about 500 lbs., but there were three reds in to group so the auctioneer colored them for the bidders. Now I had six blacks at 481 lbs. fetch $2.09, and the three reds weighed 5:36 and brought $1.75. So the little blacks brought $1006 a head, and the bigger reds brought $939. But I'm not complaining. Two of the reds were from bred heifers I bought cheap last summer, and their calves looked very Hereford. If these cheap heifers do as well with an Angus bull this year, I'll be very happy. Two bigger black steers (655 lbs.) brought 1.77 for $1159 apiece (these also were from low cost summer calving cows (one born June 6), so they almost paid for their dams yesterday (less expenses, of course).

From your description it sounds like your saying the reds weren't as good.... so maybe there was more to it than just color.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Did those steers go south, or is someone taking them to grass?

Reds and smokes do sell at a discount here, but the discount per cwt. goes down as the group gets bigger and the cattle get bigger. Light steers might be 5 cents back and bigger ones might be 2 cents back. Since reds and smokes are usually better cattle - - they are a buy. Herefords are a different story.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I'm not selling any heifers this year. Will breed them all and sell any non-breds next spring.

Doing some fencing off a snowmobile this week, but our snow is melting fast. We will have moisture to germinate a crop. How is the drought going in your hill country?

 

[Dave]

Not a lot of difference in price of reds, blacks, char crosses, and red or black baldies here. Lots of calves get sold in groups. They will size and sex them but there is very often a pretty good mix of colors in a single bunch. Straight Herefords, longhorn and dairy crosses will get sorted out and sell for significantly less.

 

[coachg]

Black is the way we roll !

 

[Gobbler'sKnob]

Well, North Dakota is the best place on earth! And it's a pretty straight shot to the feedlots in Nebraska where good "northern" cattle are the real deal. Pity that we are only No. 9 on the list of the top 10 beef cows states. There is room, and feed, here for another million cows -- easily. It's just that the USDA supports corn, wheat, and soybeans -- government picking winners and losers.

Yet another person insisting that North Dakota is a real place.

 

[Muletrack]

Yet another person insisting that North Dakota is a real place.

Good to hear from friends in North Dakota's South Unit. I imagine the nation turns on an axis along the 98th meridian, and that you and I are the bearings on each end.

 

[Muletrack]

From your description it sounds like your saying the reds weren't as good.... so maybe there was more to it than just color.

No. They colored them. The calves were just as good, and heavier. Hereford, though, is not something the buyers want too much of. Mine were clearly cross bred, but a little more Hereford than red baldie. Black bred heifers brought $300 more than red baldies out of the same group. I prefer reds, but will never likely buy anything but a black bull unless things really change. Red guys up here like to breed Charolais. In any case, I was more than happy to sell the the reds for $933. The matter matter may also say something about price slide since they weighed up quite a bit more. Black is good, and apparently so is smaller. Am seriously trying to find a smaller, more efficient black cow.

 

[Gobbler'sKnob]

Good to hear from friends in North Dakota's South Unit. I imagine the nation turns on an axis along the 98th meridian, and that you and I are the bearings on each end.

There you go again, claiming that North Dakota is real

I'm just hackin' on ya.

 

[Stocker Steve]

On average, reds have more muscle here than blacks.
Could be those red char bulls some are marketing.
Could be too much stein in the blacks.

 

[dave_shelby]

This color preference shows that there is a lot of nonsense in the cattle business. I'm sure you all know that but writing this post helps get rid of a little frustration for me. :/

 

[LocustDaleCattleCompany]

Yeah it always ticks me off when I take a load into any of the sale barns around here and they cut out the red or smokes. These "off" colored calves usually grow better than 80% of our black or BWF calves.

Took 50 in a few weeks ago and my one "black Hereford" (their words not mine); heifer just had too much chrome she looked and graded with the rest but they still cut her out sold 22 cents lower per pound and two reds (biggest two heifers of the group) got cut out but only sold 7 cents lower which wasn't terrible. I swear I'm keeping every red Baldie as a replacement from now on because they are some of my best cows. Historically they usually throw black calves anyways with homozygous black bulls in our experience.

 

[Little Joe]

This color preference shows that there is a lot of nonsense in the cattle business. I'm sure you all know that but writing this post helps get rid of a little frustration for me. :/

I was talking to a guy the other day who had no idea about anything cattle related, I was telling him about the CAB deal and how if it's black it automatically sell higher, he said it sounds like they're judging the wrong part of the animal if they're buying based on color. I 100% agree with his assessment, it is pure stupidity.
And why is it that steers that look to have aot of hereford get docked heavy? I've finished herefords out before and they marble just as good as any other cattle.