holstein

[andrews29]

so i had a still born calf to day so we went to the dairy and got a holstein calf. my question is how will the meat be will we see a difference ?

 

[bigbull338]

to me theres no differance in the taste of the meat.the truth is no 1 really knows how much meat they are eating from holstein steers.

 

[novaman]

All we eat on this place is Holstein beef and love it. It all depends on how you feed him but Holsteins tend to have leaner meat than Angus and the like.

 

[andrews29]

so would i feed them the same as i would my angus

 

[bigbull338]

yes an youd feed them till they weighed 1300lbs.

 

[auctionboy]

I butchered a #800 Holstein steer last year and was told buy a customer it was the best sirloin steak she ever had. You \don't have to feed them till they are #1300.

 

[andrews29]

So I had an old rancher tell me to leave him as a bull and butcher him at 1 year and it will be just like a beef steer anybody have any thoughts on this ?

 

[TexasBred]

So I had an old rancher tell me to leave him as a bull and butcher him at 1 year and it will be just like a beef steer anybody have any thoughts on this ?

Andrew we butchered on that was around 30 months old and breeding cattle. Probably weighed around 1400 lbs. The meat was awesome...he was getting 30 lbs. of grain per day tho.

 

[novaman]

So I had an old rancher tell me to leave him as a bull and butcher him at 1 year and it will be just like a beef steer anybody have any thoughts on this ?

No experience with butchering bulls but I would be more concerned with the animal becoming agressive by that 12 month age and be a hazard. Steers are much easier to work with. Just something to keep in mind.

 

[traderaaron]

Holsteins can marble well along with other dairy breeds, they will require a higher energy ration when finishing though compared to say an angus, not as feed efficient.

You can run them on grass or native forage quite effectively and then put them on that high energy finishing ration around 7-800lbs for harvesting around 1200lbs. However, if the animal seems large framed and bony then it probably won't do well on grazing and will need to be started on a higher energy ration sooner than a smaller framed Holstein.

If you want the animal to grade choice then you really need to get it up to that 1150-1250lb. range, generally speaking.

And they don't do that well in the heat so take that into consideration, especially if grazing them.

 

[longtimelurker]

Holsteins can marble well along with other dairy breeds, they will require a higher energy ration when finishing though compared to say an angus, not as feed efficient.

Fed the proper ration they will have a better FC.

You can run them on grass or native forage quite effectively and then put them on that high energy finishing ration around 7-800lbs for harvesting around 1200lbs. However, if the animal seems large framed and bony then it probably won't do well on grazing and will need to be started on a higher energy ration sooner than a smaller framed Holstein.

Suggesting that any holstein should be placed on any grass, tells me alot about why you think they are less feed efficient. That less feed efficiency is a result of management rather than breed.

 

[hillsdown]

Holsteins can marble well along with other dairy breeds, they will require a higher energy ration when finishing though compared to say an angus, not as feed efficient.

Fed the proper ration they will have a better FC.

You can run them on grass or native forage quite effectively and then put them on that high energy finishing ration around 7-800lbs for harvesting around 1200lbs. However, if the animal seems large framed and bony then it probably won't do well on grazing and will need to be started on a higher energy ration sooner than a smaller framed Holstein.

Suggesting that any holstein should be placed on any grass, tells me alot about why you think they are less feed efficient. That less feed efficiency is a result of management rather than breed.

We did a grass finished Holstein steer last fall, he was 25 months old. The meat is phenomenal, really marbled well. He is not lean, but the fat is distributed more evenly throughout the different cuts . We gave hamburger, roasts and steaks to a few different friends to try and they all thought it was the best beef they had ever had. The key is finished, whatever course you take. This was the first grass finished Holstein we had ever done .I think with proper management you can have amazing grain finished or grass finished Holstien beef.

 

[traderaaron]

I know nearly everyone disagrees about the ability of holsteins to graze but they can and do.

And they are less feed efficient in the feedlot.

 

[TexasBred]

I know nearly everyone disagrees about the ability of holsteins to graze but they can and do.

And they are less feed efficient in the feedlot.

Aaron there have been many discussions on this. But..I'll give you one very small example. Last week I sold a holstein steer 715 lbs. and it brought $.58 per pound. The same day I sold a black steer 710 lbs. and it sold for $1.11. Now, the guy that bought that holstein has about $300 less invested in the animal. I do believe a good feed lot operator will make more money on the holstein than on the black steer and that's the name of the game. AND the meat will be just as good. All just a matter of knowing how to finish the holstein...some know how and some have never even tried it and probably never will because of their preconceived notions and just too set in their ways to even give them a chance.

 

[bigbull338]

bro your right the feedlots make their profits off the holsteins.an then pump them into the other loss leader cattle in the feedlots.

 

[traderaaron]

From first hand experience I can tell you that Feedlots do like feeding holsteins but they aren't the profit centers they might appear to be, the margins are consistent if you can get them to convert consistently but they aren't particularly large margins and you are tied up with large amounts of money over a very long time period if feeding them from 300#-1250 as many do. Now if you are custom feeding them then it's a nice deal because you sell a lot of feed.

Maybe someone else has vastly different experiences than I.

And those 700# holstein steers at the auction may very well have been a feedlots rejects, I see them all the time.

A more accurate look at the market would be 300# calf-fed holstein steer calves bringing upwards of $1.20. Forward contracted Fat steers bring a discount to the market so say you could get $92, with the higher cost of gain associated, generally speaking, that doesn't look like it leaves a big profit.

 

[longtimelurker]

From first hand experience I can tell you that Feedlots do like feeding holsteins but they aren't the profit centers they might appear to be, the margins are consistent if you can get them to convert consistently but they aren't particularly large margins and you are tied up with large amounts of money over a very long time period if feeding them from 300#-1250 as many do. Now if you are custom feeding them then it's a nice deal because you sell a lot of feed.

Maybe someone else has vastly different experiences than I.

And those 700# holstein steers at the auction may very well have been a feedlots rejects, I see them all the time.

A more accurate look at the market would be 300# calf-fed holstein steer calves bringing upwards of $1.20. Forward contracted Fat steers bring a discount to the market so say you could get $92, with the higher cost of gain associated, generally speaking, that doesn't look like it leaves a big profit.

I'm not real sure how your cost of gain is higher on holstiens but you say it is I will take your word for it. I guess your feedlot is run differently than mine nothing wrong with that. I'm in grain country, you may be from forage country. Here a pound of gain on forage based diet is considerably higher than a corn diet. Things change everyday.

I'm not following your logic on the large amounts of money over a long period of time, a dollar is a dollar doesn't matter how you spend it.

 

[MF135]

I'm not following your logic on the large amounts of money over a long period of time, a dollar is a dollar doesn't matter how you spend it.[/quote]

Again, the concept of Present Value and how it is discounted to reflect the time value of money. I can tell you still haven't tried to grasp the concepts.

 

[longtimelurker]

I'm not following your logic on the large amounts of money over a long period of time, a dollar is a dollar doesn't matter how you spend it.[/quote]

Again, the concept of Present Value and how it is discounted to reflect the time value of money. I can tell you still haven't tried to grasp the concepts.

How about you show us all how it works instead of showing only yourself.
I can't grasp something that doesn't exist.

 

[TexasBred]

I'm not following your logic on the large amounts of money over a long period of time, a dollar is a dollar doesn't matter how you spend it.[/quote]

Again, the concept of Present Value and how it is discounted to reflect the time value of money. I can tell you still haven't tried to grasp the concepts.

MF....how long you think it takes Lurker to finish out a Holstein Steer and how much do you think the value of the dollar is going to change during that time??