Finally, here they are

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critterair2

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After about a week I finally got the pics done. How about some thoughts. They are about 210 days in these pics.









 
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got any of them alongside their dams? need a comparison / point of reference to really see. I have to say they don't look as fat as you'd expect to see on dams that were really milking well.
 
Jeanne - Simme Valley":22z0ysnb said:
Agreed. They look lean and small. Pictures can be so deceiving, especially without reference as Robert said. Looking at pic alone, I would guess they were in the 400-450# range.


Amen,

I got calves on the farm that are five months old and bigger than that. Mine are fat as mud.
 
Since we are all on the same page, and we surely wouldn't want to group our cows with S&W's phenominal herd. ie. I can do with out the sarcasm pal. Do the rest of you think they will fill out with feed for replacement heifers?
 
critterair2":2ru13ukj said:
Since we are all on the same page, and we surely wouldn't want to group our cows with S&W's phenominal herd. ie. I can do with out the sarcasm pal. Do the rest of you think they will fill out with feed for replacement heifers?

I guess it depends on what your goals are. Will they grow up to be cows and raise calves? YES. Will they grow up to be above average cows? Don't know their breeding or background so I can't answer that one.
 
critterair2":17ht7ixm said:
Do the rest of you think they will fill out with feed for replacement heifers?

Yes.

They look like they have the potential to fill out, just that they were a little short on the groceries. I would get them on a good ration and see what they gain a day and then go from there, if they do not have a decent gain then you may want to not use them for replacements as the could be hard keepers..
 
critterair2":2bhcwluh said:
Do the rest of you think they will fill out with feed for replacement heifers?
Depends on what you consider a "feed for replacement heifers". If it's above avberage in nutritional value, yes. If they're going to be turned out on just fall/winter pasture without supplement I wouldn;t hazard a guess
 
Thanks for the good advice. The Dams milk production was less than I desired. Could have been my fault, they calved at 2 and in the beginning I did not supplement them. Their Sire is Connely Danny. I have noticed a obvious change in them since we have started creep feeding them. I think they will fill out nicely, just curious what ya'll thought. I'll post pictures again in about 90 days. Winter plan is free choice on wintergrazer rye or passerel plus. Along with generous portions of Southern States bulk feed. I am thinking about weinning them in apx. 3 weeks.
 
critterair2":18epk3zf said:
Since we are all on the same page, and we surely wouldn't want to group our cows with S&W's phenominal herd. ie. I can do with out the sarcasm pal. Do the rest of you think they will fill out with feed for replacement heifers?


Im not the one being sarcastic. Jeanne told it like it was and did I. If you cant take it get out of the business.
 
Are they fullblooded angus? Danny shows to be a -.2 on his YH, so I would tend to think you might get smaller framed cattle from him. For their age there doesn't appear to be much to them, you should put them on some scales and see what you have. The one in the second pic is the only one that has any appeal to me, and she looks too narrow. The last one isn't a good enough pic to tell anything.
 
Jovid":2udawndz said:
Will they grow up to be above average cows? Don't know their breeding or background so I can't answer that one.
and feeding them now wont determine this one bit
 
For being small and thin, they still seem to have some volume to them. They may come on really nicely. Just costly. Much more economical to have them put the pounds on with mom's milk & good grazing.
This winter, make sure your calving cows are in good condition BEFORE they calve, and then try to make sure they stay in that condition. Thin 2-year olds at calving have a real up-hill battle to get re-bred & produce enough milk for their calf while they are still cutting teeth.
If most of these calves are on 2-yr olds, I would definately wean them ASAP. It will help the dams put on weight and if you have started these calves on a creep feed, they should be ready to be weaned. Might think about a vaccination program for the calves.
 
First round of Reg. Calves, and breeding heifers to calve at two. I know lots of folks think that this should'nt be a problem. FOR US, I will breed at two to calve at three. For somebody who is not at home three or four days a week this makes the most sense for us, AT THIS TIME. Conditions change, people adapt, so we may not always be in this situation. Vet was out yesterday, pics, don't know why, really don't do them justice. Maybe its my photography skills or angles that I took pics who knows. Hell, maybe I'm making excuses, by all means they are far from perfect, vet liked them very much, although they could use some help . He's not they type to tell you different to keep you happy for repeat business. I read on a board that first time calving heifers put out 15 to 20% less milk. Did not know that until about four days ago, add that to the fact that the dams were young and I wasn't supplementing them as much as I should have all equals to the fact they are smaller. Vet recommeded weining in three weeks, which was my plan anyhow, when we give booster. They have been eating feed everyday and I do believe I see a difference in them. Especially when I'm gone for a few days and the wifey is feeding. Hopefully, in 90 days we will post some more pics and we'll get some positive comments. Most of you have been quite helpful, we thankyou for that. Its a learning experience, we get smarter everyday, but I do think they still have some potential to be really nice heifers. I short change them early by mistake, so its only fair to them to try to make up for it now and see what we get. God Bless
 
The question I have is, what breed are they? They're black, which means they could be any breed. If they are straight Angus, then they are on the thin side, but if they have Chi blood in them, then they could just grow frame for a long time before putting on condition, and the condition they put on won't make them as thick looking as a shorter breed. If I missed where it was stated what breed they are, I apologize.

Now, no matter what breed they actually are, I would have to say, I like to see a little more heart girth and spring of rib than are in some of the pictures, but don't think I'm criticizing too hard. My herd is a bunch of short, fat, skinny, tall mutts. :nod:
 
Just a comment from my limited experience.....If you want to add size to your herd, don't keep them. They look healthy as can be but small. We have a bunch of smaller framed cows that have some small calves on them this year. We have tried in the past to keep the heifers out of some of these smaller cows, always trying to "breed them up". So far, it has never worked for us. I am looking forward to hauling all of the small frame stuff off to sale this fall. I just can't see settling for 400 pound weaned calves when I could be getting a 600 pounder from a better cow for probably not much more input.

Not trying to be critical, just sharing experiences.
 

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