gonna buy some really small cows

[MtnCows93]

most of my cows right now are just commercial angus with some charolais in them they weigh 1000lb on average and ive got some that are 700 and 800 pounds all about the same body condition 4 or 5. im liking the smaller cows they are more profitable for me the calves arent very big but they top the market suprisingly. i been going to the sales and see small cows that weigh 500 and 600 pounds some thin but not bad, im planning on buying some this winter and eventually have a whole herd of small black cows and run low bw angus bulls on them. im thinking these small cows will be more profitable because i can up my stocking rate and i believe they will be easier to keep fat.for example i saw one today black bcs 4 weighed 580 about 5 years old 3 months bred sold for $375.

 

[TexasBred]

most of my cows right now are just commercial angus with some charolais in them they weigh 1000lb on average and ive got some that are 700 and 800 pounds all about the same body condition 4 or 5. im liking the smaller cows they are more profitable for me the calves arent very big but they top the market suprisingly. i been going to the sales and see small cows that weigh 500 and 600 pounds some thin but not bad, im planning on buying some this winter and eventually have a whole herd of small black cows and run low bw angus bulls on them. im thinking these small cows will be more profitable because i can up my stocking rate and i believe they will be easier to keep fat.for example i saw one today black bcs 4 weighed 580 about 5 years old 3 months bred sold for $375.

Down here those are called corrientes. :hide:

 

[Katpau]

I am having trouble imagining a 580 pound 5 year old Angus cow. Corriente may be correct. My registered Angus herd might be considered smaller frame by many, but they still weigh 1250 to 1400 pounds at a condition score of 5 to 6. I just weaned their 5 to 6 month old calves and most of the heifer calves weighed between 500 and 600 pounds. The steers and bulls were heavier. This was entirely on grass in a severe drought year. The buyers of my calves want an animal that will grow and make them money. They would severely discount my calves if they thought they were incapable of good growth. That is why Corriente calves bring only a fraction of the dollars that you will get from an average to large size Beef calf.

There is a good reason that cow only brought $375. If you want to get the best prices on your calves, buying the cheapest little cows won't help.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

Small frame genetically sound like their stunted... If I were looking to go smaller than I have,Id look to lowlines or Galloway...

 

[Muddy]

Sounds like it's either a corriente, lowline or Dexter.

 

[Muddy]

Small frame genetically sound like their stunted... If I were looking to go smaller than I have,Id look to lowlines or Galloway...

I'd rather not using full blooded lowlines, but the halfblood cows aka Moderater cattle makes good commercial cows.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

Those smaller cows are great,and I've been reducing my cow size the last few years myself.. but I don't want to shoot myself in the foot, by reducing my calf size to a 350 pnd weaner...

 

[MtnCows93]

most of my cows right now are just commercial angus with some charolais in them they weigh 1000lb on average and ive got some that are 700 and 800 pounds all about the same body condition 4 or 5. im liking the smaller cows they are more profitable for me the calves arent very big but they top the market suprisingly. i been going to the sales and see small cows that weigh 500 and 600 pounds some thin but not bad, im planning on buying some this winter and eventually have a whole herd of small black cows and run low bw angus bulls on them. im thinking these small cows will be more profitable because i can up my stocking rate and i believe they will be easier to keep fat.for example i saw one today black bcs 4 weighed 580 about 5 years old 3 months bred sold for $375.

Down here those are called corrientes. :hide:

yea these arent corrienties but they arent far off, they arent full blood angus either obviously, and they dont look like dexter no horns and the head is not the same. next time ill go to the pens and take some pictures for yall

 

[MtnCows93]

I am having trouble imagining a 580 pound 5 year old Angus cow. Corriente may be correct. My registered Angus herd might be considered smaller frame by many, but they still weigh 1250 to 1400 pounds at a condition score of 5 to 6. I just weaned their 5 to 6 month old calves and most of the heifer calves weighed between 500 and 600 pounds. The steers and bulls were heavier. This was entirely on grass in a severe drought year. The buyers of my calves want an animal that will grow and make them money. They would severely discount my calves if they thought they were incapable of good growth. That is why Corriente calves bring only a fraction of the dollars that you will get from an average to large size Beef calf.

There is a good reason that cow only brought $375. If you want to get the best prices on your calves, buying the cheapest little cows won't help.

i understand where your coming from i know the calves arent gonna be big but the way its been going the price per pound has been very good on the calves from my smallest cows.

 

[Muddy]

Lot of dexters are dehorned or polled nowadays.

 

[MtnCows93]

Those smaller cows are great,and I've been reducing my cow size the last few years myself.. but I don't want to shoot myself in the foot, by reducing my calf size to a 350 pnd weaner...

yea you would think a little dinky calf wouldnt sell good at all and for good reason but the way its been goin the little calves do well at my salebarn. i sold a 8 month old 355lb bull calf off a poor helfer thats probly my smallest cow and it brought $1.66 which topped the market at the time

 

[MtnCows93]

Lot of dexters are dehorned or polled nowadays.

they could be dexter im no dexter expert, i figured they were part of a closed herd for years and the guy just kept the smallest heifers and ended up with something small but i really dont know

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

Those smaller cows are great,and I've been reducing my cow size the last few years myself.. but I don't want to shoot myself in the foot, by reducing my calf size to a 350 pnd weaner...

yea you would think a little dinky calf wouldnt sell good at all and for good reason but the way its been goin the little calves do well at my salebarn. i sold a 8 month old 355lb bull calf off a poor helfer thats probly my smallest cow and it brought $1.66 which topped the market at the time

Where the heck do you sell them?

 

[MtnCows93]

little cattle sale in wilkes county nc they sell about 300 head a week. i have no clue why they do good

 

[Muddy]

More power to you for raise these small cows.

 

[greatgerts]

Those smaller cows are great,and I've been reducing my cow size the last few years myself.. but I don't want to shoot myself in the foot, by reducing my calf size to a 350 pnd weaner...

yea you would think a little dinky calf wouldnt sell good at all and for good reason but the way its been goin the little calves do well at my salebarn. i sold a 8 month old 355lb bull calf off a poor helfer thats probly my smallest cow and it brought $1.66 which topped the market at the time

So, selling a calf for $589.30 was the highest selling calf that day? Price per pound is ok, but it's the amount on the check that matters.

 

[True Grit Farms]

We have a name for those type of cattle around here, but it's not politically correct or needed.

 

[Gators Rule]

I get where the OP is coming from.....sort of. Yes, the check is smaller, but so is the investment to get the calf born and to the sale barn auction floor. Yes, we can also carry more small cattle on more acres. I could even see doing this long range if we were initially selecting "good" small cattle, but I'm not reading it this way. I'm getting the vibe that the OP might be building a herd with the cheap stunted cows that are going to have a hard time feeding their calf, and just plain poor genetics. The additional problem I see is that these types of cattle are just going to continue to get smaller and smaller. A mama cow has got to produce enough milk to carry her calf from birth to weaning age regardless of her size. If she can't do that job, then we lose pounds that could be earning money for us. If we were talking Lowlines or another smaller bodied cow, I can't argue with that philosophy, but building a herd with runty dinks is not the way to go.

 

[MtnCows93]

Those smaller cows are great,and I've been reducing my cow size the last few years myself.. but I don't want to shoot myself in the foot, by reducing my calf size to a 350 pnd weaner...

yea you would think a little dinky calf wouldnt sell good at all and for good reason but the way its been goin the little calves do well at my salebarn. i sold a 8 month old 355lb bull calf off a poor helfer thats probly my smallest cow and it brought $1.66 which topped the market at the time

So, selling a calf for $589.30 was the highest selling calf that day? Price per pound is ok, but it's the amount on the check that matters.

definately not it was price per pound

 

[MtnCows93]

I get where the OP is coming from.....sort of. Yes, the check is smaller, but so is the investment to get the calf born and to the sale barn auction floor. Yes, we can also carry more small cattle on more acres. I could even see doing this long range if we were initially selecting "good" small cattle, but I'm not reading it this way. I'm getting the vibe that the OP might be building a herd with the cheap stunted cows that are going to have a hard time feeding their calf, and just plain poor genetics. The additional problem I see is that these types of cattle are just going to continue to get smaller and smaller. A mama cow has got to produce enough milk to carry her calf from birth to weaning age regardless of her size. If she can't do that job, then we lose pounds that could be earning money for us. If we were talking Lowlines or another smaller bodied cow, I can't argue with that philosophy, but building a herd with runty dinks is not the way to go.

all true, ive got to start somewhere though i figure on trading, culling and keeping heifers but i gotta get a frame to work off of