Brahma cross bull prospect

[MurraysMutts]

Just a few random pics of Richard's calves
The 2 calves nursing are the ones I talked about earlier. 10 and 11 cows got mistagged years back. I tagged the calves wrong totally on accident. And today they are BOTH nursing number 11 cow (Ditto)
Strong cow family I guess.

Earzzzz

 

[MurraysMutts]

Couple crummy pics of that number 9-5 heifer and Val.
As well as 180. The purchased heifer ID like to keep. They look to be doing well on what grass there is. Val and 9-5 are out of Richard.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Sold 5 calves OUT of mutt cows BY Richard...
How bout that? I do that right?

Average weight was 420lbs (I'll get ages in a bit, but they were young. None over 6 months. Drought selling early, seemed like a good time for it.)

Edit to add...
The oldest was the heifer born 4/2/22
Had I some grass and kept em on mama for 7 months I think I'd a got close to 550lbs. Whaddya do?

2 buck a lb flat.
4 steers. 1 heifer. No sale barn involved. So no commission. Straight off the cow.
Ages were spread out a bit. But I think they did well!

Even sold my 4 lil project calves same price. Came out ahead and ain't gotta feed em any more.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

The market is really good.
You can calculate their WPDA and multiply by 205. This is standard weaning age so everyone is comparing apples to apples.
Saying I weaned a calf and it was 900# is very impressive until you learn it was almost 10 months old.
Or, having a 5 month old at 420#, which is a pretty good weight if using a 205 day weight.

 

[MurraysMutts]

The market is really good.
You can calculate their WPDA and multiply by 205. This is standard weaning age so everyone is comparing apples to apples.
Saying I weaned a calf and it was 900# is very impressive until you learn it was almost 10 months old.
Or, having a 5 month old at 420#, which is a pretty good weight if using a 205 day weight.

Thanks @Jeanne - Simme Valley

I thought they did pretty good. The heifer was oldest. That number 4-5 steer was BIG
Average on the 5 was actually 418lbs right off mama. After they got their bellies full of feed and milk this morning.

I guess that bull and my cows were a pretty decent combo really!

So what would the "calculated" 205 day weight be? How I figure that?


I'm hoping to keep BiG Sexys calves on the mamas longer this season. It may or may not work out. Hay is a big issue this year and I may be selling a few pairs before end of year.



Edit.....
I think I figured it out.
Would that really put em at 571lbs Average? IF and I mean IF they continued to gain the same right?
Jeez. That's almost 2.8lbs per day on the mama.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

True way to calculate:
Weight - BW divided by number of days old. Take that number X 205 + BW.

 

[MurraysMutts]

D'oh!
Forgot to subtract the birthweight. Twould only be a guess as I don't weigh mine when born...

If I guessed at 75lbs
That would still put me close to my goal of 550lbs.

Of coarse that's an average. As all calves were different ages.

Very interesting!
Thanks @Jeanne - Simme Valley

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Just don't forget to ADD the BW back into the figure.

 

[Warren Allison]

Sold 5 calves OUT of mutt cows BY Richard...
How bout that? I do that right?

Average weight was 420lbs (I'll get ages in a bit, but they were young. None over 6 months. Drought selling early, seemed like a good time for it.)

Edit to add...
The oldest was the heifer born 4/2/22
Had I some grass and kept em on mama for 7 months I think I'd a got close to 550lbs. Whaddya do?

2 buck a lb flat.
4 steers. 1 heifer. No sale barn involved. So no commission. Straight off the cow.
Ages were spread out a bit. But I think they did well!

Even sold my 4 lil project calves same price. Came out ahead and ain't gotta feed em any more.
View attachment 21259View attachment 21260View attachment 21261View attachment 21262View attachment 21263View attachment 21264View attachment 21265

Very, very nice looking set of calves, which means you must have a nice set of cows for mommas. If I were you...which I am not...we are different and live in different areas of the country, etc. But if I were you, I'd sell the hell out of that Hereford, and buy the best registered...or at east purebred..Brangus bull I could afford, that would compliment the cows you have like the mommas of these. I'd sell all of my calves, steers and heifers both, at weaning. You can buy good cows for what it costs to raise a heifer for 2 years til she calves, minus what she would have brought at weaning. You have those 2 nurse cows that you can use for your experiments buying bottle calves after they have their Brangus calves, thus still being true to your moniker, Murray's Mutts! :) Again, this is a nice bunch of calves that I would be proud to take to any sale around here myself.

 

[MurraysMutts]

@Warren Allison
Thanks for the compliments!

I've definitely considered a brangus bull. As evidenced by my decision to use the one I had, tho he was not true brangus.

One thing I've noticed is, SOME of the buyers at sales around here make the comment about other folks calves having too much ear/leather. Those particular calves seemed similar to mine from this crop. So I'm hesitant! (Remember, the more buyers that want your calves, the better the odds of getting a better price)
The baldies do well. Pretty much anywhere around here. As well as solid black. A good group of red or smokey calves do ok too.

I don't want to give things away, but I'm considering a bull change in the spring. For the next breeding season.

I may ask what yall think about the bull I'm considering when the time comes. But it isn't a "normal" type.
But I guess what's normal to some.....

 

[Warren Allison]

@Warren Allison
Thanks for the compliments!

I've definitely considered a brangus bull. As evidenced by my decision to use the one I had, tho he was not true brangus.

One thing I've noticed is, SOME of the buyers at sales around here make the comment about other folks calves having too much ear/leather. Those particular calves seemed similar to mine from this crop. So I'm hesitant! (Remember, the more buyers that want your calves, the better the odds of getting a better price)
The baldies do well. Pretty much anywhere around here. As well as solid black. A good group of red or smokey calves do ok too.

I don't want to give things away, but I'm considering a bull change in the spring. For the next breeding season.

I may ask what y'all think about the bull I'm considering when the time comes. But it isn't a "normal" type.
But I guess what's normal to some.....

I dunno, Murray, about the too much ear thing. Brangus on non-Brahma influenced cows don't produce that much ear. Have you seen Ultrablacks? Yes, if you have some Herford cows, or Herf cross cows, BWF calves sell as well as blacks do, or here, at least they do. If you got your entire calf crop looking like those in your pics, I think you'd consistently do well. Whatever you do, though, it will be interesting. Gotta say again how good that bunch looked.:)

 

[MurraysMutts]

Gotta put a pic or two up of Ricky's first born daughter.
I still got her and she's ready to breed.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Look what I missed out on
@Lee VanRoss
Is he RED enough?

 

[branxchar&charx]

Wonder what he brought?

 

[elkwc]

I’m not far from Murray. Here the Hereford/Angus baldie tops the market both as a feeder and as a replacement. The demand for good Hereford bulls keeps growing and sale averages increasing. We have some Brangus cows. I really like them but some buyers will ask for them to be cut off. I tell the barns I sell at no culling for color or ear. I feel it has hurt us a little. But they make up for it in lbs on the scale. We tried Gelbveigh and they didn’t work for us. We use Hereford and Angus sires now. We run our cows in groups from 7-25 head. We have 7 pastures of spring calvers and one of fall calving cows. We usually buy at least one bull a year and retain 2-5 bull calves we raise. We usually retain Angus and Hereford calves but have retained some crossbred calves that have sired good calves for us. This year we retained one 3/4 Angus/1/4 Hereford calf and one true black baldy. The 3/4 Angus is by an AI sire and could be the top calf we raised. We can’t justify paying 5-6 thousand for a bull to breed 7-12 head. That is one reason we started AIing. We usually wean all of the spring calves and sell as a group. Due to the drought we are selling some pasture at a time. Cut them off and go to the sale. Our big end is weighing over 700 on the steers. They have been selling well. JM o as long as you have Angus cows I would use a Hereford bull. I like a rancid cow but would never use a Brangus bull.

 

[Lee VanRoss]

Murray's M' We have been without service since the 18th and just got back on line.
Thanks for the Braham pic. I wonder how he would work on some Beckton heifers? LVR

 

[MurraysMutts]

Murray's M' We have been without service since the 18th and just got back on line.
Thanks for the Braham pic. I wonder how he would work on some Beckton heifers? LVR

I was wondering where ya been!
Did not hear what he brought @branxchar&charx

But here's another one. Priced a bit steep for my liking tho.

 

[Lee VanRoss]

pass

 

[Travlr]

I was wondering where ya been!
Did not hear what he brought @branxchar&charx

But here's another one. Priced a bit steep for my liking tho.
View attachment 23574

It seems like a lot of people selling on the internet are asking outrageous prices for just about anything. I've been looking for a used GM van and I've run across several that are being priced at well over 50% higher than blue book.
After several weeks they suddenly get willing to negotiate at much lower prices...

 

[MurraysMutts]

Been a bit since there's been any action on Richard's calves. Last steer sold today.
Weighed 350 weaned 3 weeks. $2.03 lb
Not too bad!

We're I able to have kept the last group, now was a better time to sell as far as prices!