First Steer Report

[I luv herfrds]

Got the report on this steer.
Live Weight 1020
HCW 580
Dressing % 56.90
Back fat 0.1
KPH%1.00
REA 11.00
Yield GR 1.63
Dk Cutter N
Quality Grade Se-
% Cutability 52.52
SOM N

Ok I have a little idea of what this all means but I know daughter is going to have questions and I do not have the answers. I know the back fat and rib eye area and grade but the rest are confusing.

 

[Jessica06]

HCW - hot carcass weight, dressing percent - carcass wt/live weight, KPH - kidney, pelvic, and heart fat, dark cutter - No. Just off the top of my head, I believe cutability is the marketable cuts (meat)/carcass weight. You can't eat bone! He did excellent to grade low select with only .1" of finish.

 

[Rahe Family Belties]

Dark cutter means the meat is very dark red in color and often not suitable for steaks and roasts. Can be marketed by grinding and mixing with other meat. Commonly caused by stress on the animal prior to slaughter. Heat, shipping, mixing with others, heat cycles etc can cause it. Usually you will take a big hit on what you receive for the meat.
I took a second look at your info and it looks like yours was not a dark cutter. That is a good thing!

Low select means there was almost no marbling in the meat and will likely be tough and dry.

Quality grades from high to low are: As I recall from my Meat Science classes of yesteryear
Prime 3 levels within
Choice 3 levels
Select 3 levels
Canner/Cutter

To me, it looks like your steer needed another 90 days on full feed to get to a more profitable and marketable product of Low Choice grade. He likely would have had about .5 inch backfat and yield grade of low 3.
His dressing % would improve as well and you should have something like 63% when slaughtered.
1250 pound steer should yield about a 785 pound carcass.

Based upon prices I have received for my privately marketed cattle-
Prime carcasses with acceptable levels of backfat will be the top of the market. These are quiet rare. Buyers pay a premium for them. They are like Wagyu and Kobe beef.
Choice, yield grade 2-3 carcasses are about $2.13 pound based on hot carcass weight This is my base upon which I sell to folks wanting a 1/4 or half beef. (Also the price I receive for my beef from my local locker for his retail sales.)
Select carcasses will be discounted by .10-.35 or possibly more.

Calf looked good on foot. Just too light weight.

Good luck!

 

[I luv herfrds]

Yeah daughter admitted that she needed to feed him better. That is her goal for next years steer, finish him out better.

 

[Jessica06]

Low select means there was almost no marbling in the meat and will likely be tough and dry.

Quality grades from high to low are: As I recall from my Meat Science classes of yesteryear
Prime 3 levels within
Choice 3 levels
Select 2 levels
Standard
Canner/Cutter

Low Select absolutely does not guarantee that it will be tough and dry. The link between tenderness and marbling is negligible at best. Any cut of meat will be tough and dry if you handle and cook it improperly. Flavor is a different story.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Talked to daughter yesterday. I had checked the pairs and told her there are at least 6 or more steers out there she should look at for her next 4-H steer. I recorded what the judge said about this guy and we have 1 out there I think will fit the bill.

As for tenderness we have gotten our butcher to hang our beef for 3 weeks instead of 2 and we could really tell the difference in the T-bones.

 

[bigbull338]

how much feed a day did your daughter max that steer out at this year.an how much hay was he eating a day.

 

[Rahe Family Belties]

I will respectfully disagree that marbling has little to do with taste and tenderness. I believe marbling to be the major factor (along with proper aging and handling of course) to enjoy a quality steak.

I will grant though, that cooking method is very important and maybe my statement about low select grade carcasses being tough and dry did not include certain cooking methods.

Like wild deer or elk meat and bison, low select beef cuts cooked above medium rare will be disappointing. All have very limited intermuscular fat.

Individual taste though will determine quality, regardless of cooking method or quality grade of the meat.

Good luck next year!

 

[SPH]

Yeah daughter admitted that she needed to feed him better. That is her goal for next years steer, finish him out better.

That's the best part about projects, you learn something from it and try to improve on it next year. From the picture I'm not surprised he graded out that lean. What did he gain per day? I like to see a finished steer in the 1200-1300 lb range that gained over 3 lbs a day or more depending on what you had for a start weight. You'd see some steers at the fair that gained over 4 lbs and usually those guys were pushing the 1400+ weights and probably carrying a little too much fat or should have been sent to market before the fair. Best of luck to her next year!

 

[I luv herfrds]

BB she was suppose to be feeding him 25# a day but she got lazy and was not feeding him every day. She would just feed him some grass hay. needless to say when I caught on to what she was doing, it got pretty explosive around here.

SPH he started at around 645# in December. He should have been around 1200# or more if she had kept up the feed. I figure if she has fun and learns something new it is a good deal. With my town job I cannot stand over her shoulder like I would normally do, but got to kick them out of the nest at some point and let them fly on their own.

 

[bigbull338]

i had a feeling that he wasnt getting 25lbs of feed everyday.because i knew if he was he shouldve been 1200 to 1250lbs.

 

[SPH]

BB she was suppose to be feeding him 25# a day but she got lazy and was not feeding him every day. She would just feed him some grass hay. needless to say when I caught on to what she was doing, it got pretty explosive around here.

SPH he started at around 645# in December. He should have been around 1200# or more if she had kept up the feed. I figure if she has fun and learns something new it is a good deal. With my town job I cannot stand over her shoulder like I would normally do, but got to kick them out of the nest at some point and let them fly on their own.

That's a good mentality to have and glad to see some parents still have that approach. I can appreciate it now how my parents didn't go out and buy some expensive animal for me to show when I first started and made me learn something first about what it takes to raise and show a calf so that I could appreciate it more once I did have an animal that was competitive in the show ring. You still see it today with kids who dad would go out and buy a pricey club calf for them and do most of the work for them then the first year that they didn't have a calf that would win all the time and had to start doing more of the work to take care of it the kid would pout about it and some even want to quit showing.

 

[I luv herfrds]

SPH that is the same attitude I have with my 16 yo son. He would tell us that he needed something for his truck; he bought it himself; we just told him to get a job. Danged if he didn't! He went out and worked the harvest this fall and is helping guys get their places sprayed and planted. Paying for his own fuel, insurance and truck costs.

On the subject of my daughter the first animal she showed was a lamb. The judge was impressed with her. She did not line up for the show, would not look at the judge or do anything correctly, BUT she was having fun! She also tripped and fell just as she entered the show ring, but did not let go of her animal. She was just laying there waiting for someone to pick her up so she could continue. Judge had to tell her to let go.

Now with this steer he had an awesome temperament for her first animal. He did spook after the weigh in as she was leading him to the barn and he knocked her down and dragged her across the gravel before she lost her grip on the lead rope. Had a bad case of road rash up her left arm. After that one spook he did great. Just before their show he was eating grass and all of a sudden her show stick hit the ground and I hear the AAHHH AAAHHH! I look and he is standing on her foot! I shoved him off.
Her Jersey heifer would not set up during that show. Also stepped on the same foot at the end of her show.
As long as she is having fun that is all that matters to me.

 

[bigbull338]

why did you have to mention being drugg by show calves an steers.ive been drugg a few times an had road rash a few times.been dropped on the back of my head when the calf took off.but i dont remember turning the rope loose.

 

[I luv herfrds]

BB if I had put a knot at the end of the lead rope she wouldn't have lost her grip.

Going to take her out this Sunday and take a good look at this years calves!

 

[bigbull338]

post some pics of her choices to pick from.

 

[Beef Man]

Doe's my heart good to see and hear storie's like this. I showed my first steer 63 years ago and we[2 sisters,1brother] did everything ourselves. Halter broke our first one's by leading them to water to outside tank at least 100 yards fromthe barn and never let them go or even get a start away from us. This was the days before carcuss evualuation but did one time win a medal as atop dressing steer. Won a lot of showman ship and followed this with 5 kids of my own and they lived by these same rules and also have many awards, now have a bunch of grand kids and they to are makeing a place for themselves. My whole point is not just to brag but to point out that a little encouragement and a proper push every now and then and kids can get a job done and every year improve. This is one of the most important lesions any young person can learn--- learn responsibility,take charge of the job, learn from mistakes and improve on the project some way every year. Anyway"I luv herefords" you are on the right track. You and the little girl hang in there.

 

[I luv herfrds]

Here are some pics of the "Boys" out on pasture learning to eat hay.

 

[bigbull338]

i like 1 an 3 calves.

 

[I luv herfrds]

I don't think I got a picture of the one I call "The Brick". He is really deep and has that good square look to him. every time I tried to get a picture he hid behind a cow.