J+ Cattle
Well-known member
I just curious how many people weigh their cattle at weaning and record the calf's weight and the cow's weight to see what percentage of the cow's weigh she weans off as a calf.
Example:
Cow #1 weighs 1250 lbs at weaning time and her calf weighs 590 lbs. 590/1250 * 100 = 47.2
The calf is 47.2% of the cow's weight
Cow #2 weighs 1600 lbs at weaning time and her calf weighs 690 lbs. 690/1600 * 100 = 43.1
The calf is 43.1% of the cow's weight
Even though Cow #2 has a calf that is 100 lbs heavier and we sell pounds across the scale is she doing as good of a job as Cow #1?
I know some people like large cows but I would say that in the case of this example the smaller cow is providing a better return. If you had to cull one due to drought and there were no other reasons for culling which one would you keep and which one would you cull?
I know my answer but I'm curious of other's opinions and if they go to the trouble to weigh their cattle to perform this simple calculation.
J+ Cattle
Example:
Cow #1 weighs 1250 lbs at weaning time and her calf weighs 590 lbs. 590/1250 * 100 = 47.2
The calf is 47.2% of the cow's weight
Cow #2 weighs 1600 lbs at weaning time and her calf weighs 690 lbs. 690/1600 * 100 = 43.1
The calf is 43.1% of the cow's weight
Even though Cow #2 has a calf that is 100 lbs heavier and we sell pounds across the scale is she doing as good of a job as Cow #1?
I know some people like large cows but I would say that in the case of this example the smaller cow is providing a better return. If you had to cull one due to drought and there were no other reasons for culling which one would you keep and which one would you cull?
I know my answer but I'm curious of other's opinions and if they go to the trouble to weigh their cattle to perform this simple calculation.
J+ Cattle