Ideal Nurse Cows ?

[farmerjan]

Okay, yes some dairy farmers do use beef semen on their lower end cows. Most that are on DHIA testing know at a glance who their bottom cows are. Surprising, the calves often do not bring much more than a straight holstein bull calf. The beef/dairy cross heifers are often bought to raise up to make beef cows. But, the dairy cross calves do not grow as uniformly as straight holsteins, they feedlot guys don't like to mix them in with the dairy steers, they have a more angular build than straight beef...so they are like a 6 sided peg that doesn't quite fit in a 4 sided or an 8 sided hole. They are great to graft on a beef cow that has lost her calf and can often go through the sale with other straight beef calves in a pen when they are smaller, but the differences get more pronounced as they get some size to them.

Sure, Steve, you can sell a $1200 cow, buy back a $1200 dairy springer and raise 4 calves.....BUT you have to buy 3 of those calves to put on her so have at least $500 more in that equation....AND I don't know of anywhere here close that the calves off that springer will be bringing anywhere near the $2 lb for 3 wts .... because the dairy calves will bring maybe $.80 lb..... add in your time to get the calves on her, maybe one dies, extra grain to keep her production up to feed 4 at a time, at least in the beginning, and I don't think you will make more and maybe not as much. Plus she will lose condition for the first 3-5 months making enough milk and probably won't breed back right away.... sooooooo.....big money??????

 

[Muddy]

So I can sell my cows for $1200+, buy back dairy springers for $1200, and they will each raise four calves!!!

How can a beef cow compete with that?

Good luck with finding beef calves to graft on the milking cow. Dairy X beef calves didn't bring much at most times and I've seen straight Holstein feeders brought more $$$ than the beef x dairy feeders.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Dammmm another get rich quick scheme all shot to hell...

 

[RanchMan90]

Dammmm another get rich quick scheme all shot to be nice...

The key to it is number of turns. I only leave mine on the cow for 6 weeks. Say each calf only makes $150 net profit x 4 calves= $600 profit per turn. 8 times a year= $4800. That's not much profit per cow but helps to keep the lights turned on.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Turns are good, but I am thinking more of a green season deal grazing 3 titter Jersey(s). I think you could gross $10/day/cow w/ 3 calves and no death loss.

Avoiding steins is good. I could start with my 3 to 4 beef spring bottle calves that come from twins and other problems.

What do you think about buying short bred cows and reselling some of them as springers?

 

[RanchMan90]

Turns are good, but I am thinking more of a green season deal grazing 3 titter Jersey(s). I think you could gross $10/day/cow w/ 3 calves and no death loss.

Avoiding steins is good. I could start with my 3 to 4 beef spring bottle calves that come from twins and other problems.

What do you think about buying short bred cows and reselling some of them as springers?

I think your numbers are spot on. I always keep a few light breds around for people looking for a gentle nurse cow. It's a lot of work but primarily what my skeleton herd is made up of. If I had more time I would have more of them.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Done with grafting onto beef cows for the year, so now learning how to work with a dairy nurse cow. She is a 3 titter HoJo. Much better mannered than a beefer, but hard to look at from the rear.

Common bred dairy heifers are running less than $1/lb here, and about $100/head less than fall calving beef cows. Open dairy heifers are about $.65/lb. Is there value here -- or just burger?

 

[Till-Hill]

Steve should be able to find bred dairy heifers bred to Angus bull for about same money, if you have a calving pen with head gate I'd think few days after her calf is born you could start bringing in other calves. I want to do it with putting embryos in, just don't have the spot to do it. Falls would be way to go keep them up close to the buildings and feed the heck out of them.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I have one pen w/ head gate and I am going to build at least one more.
Seems like stall barn cows are OK with being confined in return for some grain.
Sounds like buying a good nurse cow is a crap shoot, so you have to buy them right.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Steve should be able to find bred dairy heifers bred to Angus bull for about same money, I want to do it with putting embryos in, just don't have the spot to do it.

What are open dairy heifers selling for in your area?

 

[Stocker Steve]

Steve should be able to find bred dairy heifers bred to Angus bull for about same money, I want to do it with putting embryos in, just don't have the spot to do it.

What are open dairy heifers selling for in your area?

How will a diary mom effect the WW EPD ?

 

[Till-Hill]

Open heifers are bringing like you said $65/cwt, nice ones off herd dispersal's Johnes vaccinated most of them around here too.

On WW epd heck who knows, all Genomic tests anymore, I don't think most of these big epd pushers will even weigh their cattle in the near future.

The price of them open heifers tho I could put in some eggs I feel are going to be worth $2,000+ at weaning time. I could then just sell any of the ones that were either a pain to feed their calf or ones that didn't take an egg the next time and still make more money than commercial calf going to the sale barn.........

 

[Stocker Steve]

On WW epd heck who knows,

The minute you set up a system, there are folks looking for a way to work it.

I think a lot of the WW number pushers will start implanting into dairy recips, and go for 900# weaning weights. ;-)

 

[Till-Hill]

On WW epd heck who knows,

The minute you set up a system, there are folks looking for a way to work it.

I think a lot of the WW number pushers will start implanting into dairy recips, and go for 900# weaning weights. ;-)

In all honesty you don't need alot more milk than what a beef cow has. Last year my pasture with 5 cows with bull calves at side grass got short. I fed them cows just a tick over a ton of 80/20 corn and DDG with rumension and force fed mineral. 3 were pushing 900#, 2 that weren't didn't have the genetics to do it. And all 5 cows stuck in like 30 days too. People just need to feed their cows a little better.

 

[Stocker Steve]

"Pushing 900#" WW... I thought Simi was a dual purpose breed. Maybe I should sort of some easy Simi heifers for nurse cows ? :cowboy:

 

[Till-Hill]

"Pushing 900#" WW... I thought Simi was a dual purpose breed. Maybe I should sort of some easy Simi heifers for nurse cows ? :cowboy:

Haha no actually modern Simmental's have really lost a lot of milk, and actually not pushing 900# but biggest ones I've raised, 827#, 803 & 840 and first one was SimAngus (Angus dam) two others were on beef/dairy cross cows 3-5 year olds and ET PB Angus calves with WW EPD's in the lowest 45% of the breed. And like I said 150 or so days on grass and just tick over a ton of feed to 5 cows I really think made the difference. I could have creep fed them calves and I know they would have ate well over 2 ton in that period with short grass.

My new plan for these small pastures is to feed the cow and let her feed the calf, maybe I'm crazy.

 

[Stocker Steve]

My new plan for these small pastures is to feed the cow and let her feed the calf, maybe I'm crazy.

Supplementing on pasture is an art, supplying just a little of what is limiting the animal.
Here - - usually energy,and perhaps fiber, is provided to balance out lush high CP cool season grass.
What were you feeding?

 

[Nesikep]

On WW epd heck who knows,

The minute you set up a system, there are folks looking for a way to work it.

I think a lot of the WW number pushers will start implanting into dairy recips, and go for 900# weaning weights. ;-)

that's one reason I'm against using number from ET calves for weaning weights.. If the calf wasn't raised by its biological dam, you can push a lousy calf to grow throwing enough food at it.

 

[Till-Hill]

My new plan for these small pastures is to feed the cow and let her feed the calf, maybe I'm crazy.

Supplementing on pasture is an art, supplying just a little of what is limiting the animal.
Here - - usually energy,and perhaps fiber, is provided to balance out lush high CP cool season grass.
What were you feeding?

80/20 corn/ddg with a mineral pellet with rumension. Probably going to use less DDG this fall.

 

[Till-Hill]

On WW epd heck who knows,

The minute you set up a system, there are folks looking for a way to work it.

I think a lot of the WW number pushers will start implanting into dairy recips, and go for 900# weaning weights. ;-)

that's one reason I'm against using number from ET calves for weaning weights.. If the calf wasn't raised by its biological dam, you can push a lousy calf to grow throwing enough food at it.

Nesi like I said before these two Angus ET calves I had were lowest 45% in breed for growth, I have other dairy/beef recip cows at work that didn't raise nearly that size of a calf last year. That in where I have a hard time believing EPD's some days