If you know you're going to cull a cow, do you sell now?

[redangus]

as a cow/calf or do you wait until the end of the summer? If I wait, the calf will probably weight 500lbs. Prices are relatively high right now. What would you do?

 

[jt]

as a cow/calf or do you wait until the end of the summer? If I wait, the calf will probably weight 500lbs. Prices are relatively high right now. What would you do?

for me, it depends on the cow... her condition, disposition, age, time of year, etc... and i have some cows that i am going to sell this year that have calves anywhere from 200-350#... as a general rule i sell my culls in the fall... i will rarely winter a cull unless the price for killer cows is too low. the reason i will try to keep the cows i have now is... the calf will be bigger then, and the cow will be heavier bred. the cows will go to the sale barn... if they are bred, someone will buy them. they will be in better shape then than they are now with the calf on their side...

you will find others that do it differently... and i will on occasion... but this is generally my approach..

good luck..

jt

 

[Farmhand]

Sell now if you're looking for $. End of summer means end of grass. No grass means less people looking for cattle. Less people means less $.

You don't say why you want to cull her. If she's goin' bad then you would want to sell 'em separate. Send the cow to the weigh cow pen. If she's not calving with the rest of your herd but is still good, then sell as a pair. Could get even more $ if sold as a pair and is bred back.

 

[jt]

wow... i re-read my post and some of it didnt sound right ... maybe i should restate something... just because a cow is a cull to me doesnt mean she is a bad cow... i will sell cows that have nothing really wrong with them... they just dont fit my program, wean a lighter calf than i want or i just dont like the way they look... maybe that is a good cull :lol:

and then there are some that go to the giant coolers of the land... real culls... i will try to make sure they are fleshed out enough to dollar up...

hope between this one and the last post..all this makes sense :roll:

jt

 

[dun]

For us it depends on the reason she's being culled. The cow that thought her calf was a soccerball this year went right away as a killer cow. We have one that has arhtritis in her hips, raises a dandy calf, we have two of her daughters in the herd, but the winters and pregnancy are tough on her. When we wean this fall she'll go as a killer. Then there are the ones that we won;t really decide until weaning. Too light a calf, she'll sell bred in the fall, open cows go to the kill pen, disposition at weaning, not much of a problem, but if she's a real snot and POs me too badly the day we're loading out she'll possibly end up on the truck.
What I'm getting at is that there are so many variables that we don;t have a hard and fast rule.

dun

 

[jt]

For us it depends on the reason she's being culled. The cow that thought her calf was a soccerball this year went right away as a killer cow. We have one that has arhtritis in her hips, raises a dandy calf, we have two of her daughters in the herd, but the winters and pregnancy are tough on her. When we wean this fall she'll go as a killer. Then there are the ones that we won;t really decide until weaning. Too light a calf, she'll sell bred in the fall, open cows go to the kill pen, disposition at weaning, not much of a problem, but if she's a real snot and POs me too badly the day we're loading out she'll possibly end up on the truck.
What I'm getting at is that there are so many variables that we don;t have a hard and fast rule.

dun

yeah... thats what i was trying to say... :nod: :lol: :roll:

jt

 

[Bama]

Like others I would say it depends on the reason for culling. If she has a problem that is getting worse and will degrade her further I would sell her now. If its something that won't make any differance if you wait, she is feeding a calf that is putting on pounds that add up to dollars. The key is to hit it where the weightgain is not offset by the falling prices later in the year. Also you will have to figure out how much it will cost you to carry this pair until selling. The best thing to do would be to sell them when all of this lines up to the most profit in your pocket. Also if you hit everthing perfect go ahead and buy some lottery tickets cause you are luckier than the most of us.

 

[jerry27150]

i only cull when i wean the calf, unless she is going to die or getting cancer eye

 

[stocky]

in general, most years, the highest price for slaughter cows and bulls is just before july 4 and early march. if you are selling a slaughter cow, she should go by july 1. if she is good enough to go back to the farm, the longer you can keep her and heavier bred, the better. for example, keep her calf with her until weaning, sell the calf, and then keep her 60 days to be green tag (springer) and sell her as a springer about november---that usually works real good-----most years the slaughter price will drop 30-50 percent from july 1 until sept 15 ----sometimes by aug 15. springers are higher in oct-nov than are the 2nd period cows in aug-sept. if the cow is losing weight or going down hill, sell her now because the slaughter market is so high. i have about a dozen slaughter cows to sell and they are in great shape, i was going to hold them until june 30, but with the slaughter market so good, i will probably sell them next week---am still not certain

 

[flaboy]

wow... i re-read my post and some of it didnt sound right ... maybe i should restate something... just because a cow is a cull to me doesnt mean she is a bad cow... i will sell cows that have nothing really wrong with them... they just dont fit my program, wean a lighter calf than i want or i just dont like the way they look... maybe that is a good cull :lol:

and then there are some that go to the giant coolers of the land... real culls... i will try to make sure they are fleshed out enough to dollar up...

hope between this one and the last post..all this makes sense :roll:

jt

JT I am taking some calves to market next Monday. I have two culls that are going long for the ride since the trailer won't be full. One is a fine cow that quit calving two years ago. We gave her one more chance and she didn't make it this year so she is gone. The other is a cow that really gets pulled down by her calf and doesn't recover well. The result is the calf doesn't grow off very well. Next year I have a couple more going just because like you said they don't fit into my plans for the herd. I send the culls out on a matter of convenience more than anything else. As I was going anyway sort of thing. I also check the market and would hold of if it was down. Like Dun said there are many things that come into play when culling.

Here is the latest report here in FLA if anyone is interested.


Slaughter Cows Boner 80-85%
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
850-875 858 58.00-59.00 58.66
905-1090 1006 54.00-62.00 58.18
1100-1285 1176 54.00-62.00 58.14
1100-1240 1141 63.50-65.00 64.11 High Dressing
1350-1410 1372 55.00-58.00 56.33
1380-1900 1692 57.00-64.00 59.81 Holstein

Slaughter Cows Lean 85-90%
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
760-880 822 51.00-58.00 55.02
925-1090 991 50.00-58.00 52.98

Slaughter Bulls Y.G. 1
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
1210-1280 1245 68.00-69.00 68.49
1485 1485 77.50 77.50 High Dressing
1800-1880 1840 74.00-75.50 74.73
1660 1660 79.00 79.00 High Dressing

Feeder Steers and Bulls Medium and Large 1-2
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
150-185 165 205.00-235.00 217.10
200-240 214 185.00-235.00 194.02
250-275 258 165.00-190.00 172.49
300-335 318 148.00-165.00 155.50
350-390 375 134.00-143.00 138.13
400-430 410 128.00-134.00 130.75
450-465 456 120.00-132.00 127.10
505-525 519 118.00-122.00 120.82
560-585 569 112.00-122.00 117.54
600-630 616 106.00-118.00 111.25

Feeder Steers and Bulls Medium and Large 2-3
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
205-235 210 150.00-170.00 163.96
250-290 276 150.00-160.00 154.36
300-335 317 128.00-146.00 136.48
375-380 378 118.00-132.00 125.37
400-415 407 114.00-126.00 120.59
450-480 470 110.00-118.00 116.09
505-530 517 105.00-112.00 109.04

Feeder Heifers Medium and Large 1-2
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
150-175 162 220.00-240.00 227.84
200-240 216 180.00-205.00 189.92
250-290 268 145.00-180.00 163.51
300-325 314 130.00-145.00 136.78
350-390 370 126.00-140.00 131.90
400-420 409 122.00-130.00 124.47
450-470 457 116.00-130.00 122.25

Feeder Heifers Medium and Large 2-3
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
200-240 219 145.00-160.00 155.72
275-285 278 134.00-140.00 137.95
305-320 310 118.00-128.00 123.96
365-385 372 110.00-124.00 115.97
400-430 421 108.00-114.00 112.82
475 475 102.00-111.00 108.00
505-520 513 98.00-102.00 99.98
555-590 572 94.00-98.00 95.94

Bred Cows Medium and Large 1-2 Young
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
815-880 840 88.00-108.00 97.67 4 - 6 mos bred
900-1070 954 68.00-104.00 81.74 4 - 6 mos bred
920-1050 972 70.00-114.00 91.22 7 - 9 mos bred

Cow-Calf Pairs Medium and Large 1-2 Young
Wt Range Avg Wt Price Range Avg Price
750-880 810 700.00-900.00 809.18
900-910 905 850.00-1350.00 919.61

 

[jt]

flaboy,

i just sold a 4 yr old cause she wouldnt breed back...she was in good shape and brought good money... now i have one like you mentioned.. she is old and her calf has gotten her down... she is hard to catch too... and with me that is a no no... BUT... as luck would have it... i managed to catch her yesterday... she is in poor condition and i am trying to decide whether to try to put some weight on her and her calf or not... i moved her to a better place for managing such girls.... and it will depend on how she acts in the corral the next few days...

if she will settle down some and go to eating better (she wouldnt come up and eat with the herd... thus she has lost condition), i will probably hang on to her a couple more months... if not... she is a gonnner...and soon..

i like the way someone put it the other day... she is in the aint ok corral, or something like that... :lol:

good luck

jt

 

[preston39]

jt,
We must remember these animals are one shade from being wild. Then we have to deal with the individual temperment. She will probably settle down in a couple days.

I have found that enticement with some special feed...maby sweet feed...will get their attention and allow some type of bonding. Hasen to add that it doesn't work in all cases as you know. I would try to put some weight back on her....this time of year buyers would wonder why she is below normal.

Just some thoughts.

 

[jt]

jt,
We must remember these animals are one shade from being wild. Then we have to deal with the individual temperment. She will probably settle down in a couple days.

I have found that enticement with some special feed...maby sweet feed...will get their attention and allow some type of bonding. Hasen to add that it doesn't work in all cases as you know. I would try to put some weight back on her....this time of year buyers would wonder why she is below normal.

Just some thoughts.

i agree 100%...and i had plans to buy a sack of sweet feed today... this morning she hadnt touched her corn and cotton seed.. she only has a few days to come around... i really dont have or want to take the time to mess with her if she doesnt.. i will have to be careful with her... she is one that will go thru a barb wire fence to get away from you... so... when i did catch her, that is why i moved her... and right now me and her are not on the best of terms..

jt

 

[stocky]

sounds like your cow, being old and not in good shape would probably be in the 40-45 cent range and the calf, if it is in the 250-300 range and is a good framed calf would be 1.75 area. if the calf is that size, and the cow is old, she wont build up much anyway, sounds like it mght be a good idea to go ahead and sell them to save the aggravation. good luck with whatever you decide

 

[preston39]

Assuming you have her in a corral type situation...put the trough on the opposite of the corral so when you go to feed her she has space...shell smell and find the feed ..after a while. Might even try putting another cow and calf with her for a few days....help settle her down.

 

[jt]

sounds like your cow, being old and not in good shape would probably be in the 40-45 cent range and the calf, if it is in the 250-300 range and is a good framed calf would be 1.75 area. if the calf is that size, and the cow is old, she wont build up much anyway, sounds like it mght be a good idea to go ahead and sell them to save the aggravation. good luck with whatever you decide

she is at tops a 40 and the calf is not a 1.75 calf either... he could be with a little help... and she could be 5 more better with a little help... extra per # and more weight, would be better,.... not sure what i will do.. my patience has just about run out on this one... i guess the bottom line is... she better start eating more... i have her and the calf where i can feed them well... and that is what i really want to do... its her decision now..

thanks

jt


and preston... dont know how to do the double quote thing here, but she has found the feed... just hasnt ate any yet... and she has enough room to run from me.. :lol: but that steel wont give like the barb wire did :lol:

thanks

jt