Longhorn cross

[Dave]

Over the years (I have been on CT for over 18 years) there has been a lot of discussion about longhorn cross calves. Anyway we ran some of the calves through on Wednesday. I had one heifer who was developing horns. So we dehorned her. B made the comment that she looked less like a longhorn. He should know his brothers run over 1,000 longhorn cows which they breed to Charolais bulls. I said well she still looks like a longhorn cross to me. He made no comment. I didn't buy any longhorn cows. But buying bred cows you never know what the bull was which bred the cow. So this morning I took her picture along with pictures of some the other heifers. They were all born in the same time frame. The first picture is my red longhorn cross. She is slab sided and no butt. The others are the heifers who would stand for a picture. Run them into the ring in a group and I would cut her out. Buyers who buy thousands of calves would cut her out before I could open my mouth. The others will sell together here no problem.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Over the years (I have been on CT for over 18 years) there has been a lot of discussion about longhorn cross calves. Anyway we ran some of the calves through on Wednesday. I had one heifer who was developing horns. So we dehorned her. B made the comment that she looked less like a longhorn. He should know his brothers run over 1,000 longhorn cows which they breed to Charolais bulls. I said well she still looks like a longhorn cross to me. He made no comment. I didn't buy any longhorn cows. But buying bred cows you never know what the bull was which bred the cow. So this morning I took her picture along with pictures of some the other heifers. They were all born in the same time frame. The first picture is my red longhorn cross. She is slab sided and no butt. The others are the heifers who would stand for a picture. Run them into the ring in a group and I would cut her out. Buyers who buy thousands of calves would cut her out before I could open my mouth. The others will sell together here no problem.

View attachment 21490View attachment 21491View attachment 21492View attachment 21493View attachment 21494

She gets her hair on her head grown out good, it'll help..
Definitely not the worst calf I seen!

I like your chocolate heifer in the last pic!

 

[Dave]

She gets her hair on her head grown out good, it'll help..
Definitely not the worst calf I seen!

I like your chocolate heifer in the last pic!

Might not be the worst calf but I would bet money they will cut her out. Heifers that size are selling for $1,80-1.90 here. She will be more like $1.25. I will keep track and when they sell I will post the results.

 

[Dave]

So the results. That longhorn cross looking heifer weighed 425 and brought $0.68 ($289). There was 7 other heifers which weighed 422 -450 they brought $1.78 to $1.81 Steers, 6 weighing 457 got $2.13, 9 weighing 513 got $2.03, and 2 weighing 361 brought $2.48. I averaged $830 on 31 calves. Same sale I bought 5 black and BWF steers weighing 440 for $1.59.

 

[Travlr]

So the results. That longhorn cross looking heifer weighed 425 and brought $0.68 ($289). There was 7 other heifers which weighed 422 -450 they brought $1.78 to $1.81 Steers, 6 weighing 457 got $2.13, 9 weighing 513 got $2.03, and 2 weighing 361 brought $2.48. I averaged $830 on 31 calves. Same sale I bought 5 black and BWF steers weighing 440 for $1.59.

For $289 I could see keeping her and using her to raise a calf every year. Put a good muscled up bull on her and see what you get. As a first calf heifer she'd sell for more with a muscular calf at her side.

 

[Dave]

For $289 I could see keeping her and using her to raise a calf every year. Put a good muscled up bull on her and see what you get. As a first calf heifer she'd sell for more with a muscular calf at her side.

I am not in the business of raising and breeding heifers. These were calves out of broken mouth cows. Cows go to kill and the weaned calves get sold. What did old Forest Gump's mother say about a box of chocolates? Same thing applies to buying bred cows at the sale. If I were going to feed a heifer up until the time that she had a calf I would certain do that with a better heifer. Not some cull of unknown linage.

 

[Dave]

For $289 I could see keeping her and using her to raise a calf every year. Put a good muscled up bull on her and see what you get. As a first calf heifer she'd sell for more with a muscular calf at her side.

Push a pencil to that one. To get her to the point where she has a calf at her side to sell. Two winters at 150 days each is 300 days. I figure that it cost $3.00 a day on feed. That is $900. One summer on pasture 215 days at $0.75 a day that is another $161.25. Plus the $289 she sold for. I would have $1,350 into a pair that wouldn't bring over $1,000 around this part of the world.

 

[faster horses]

IF she got bred and IF she didn't die.
I wouldn't keep her either.

 

[farmerjan]

They stole her, but if there is no market for them, then some buyer would have to find a place to send her... She would have made a decent one for someone to raise for a young beef at that low a price. Not a ton of hanging weight, but one winter of hay and grass next year and kill in the fall.... We hauled 4 jersey bull calves for a neighbor that avg 425 lbs and they brought .75 a week ago.....

 

[Dave]

They had nearly 3,000 head of feeder calves that day. The vast vast majority would have been good quality beef calves. The better heifers were bought by a man who is the head buyer for a big company that has half a dozen feedlots and their own kill plant. I knew that he wouldn't buy that heifer. Feedlots here simply don't want those kind. I recognize the buyer numbers on all the calves except that longhorn cross heifer. Don't know who bought her.
I went and looked at their market report. They list a range for the bulk of that class and the top selling lot. The 400-500 pound heifers the bulk was $1.57 - $1.81 with a top of $1.84. So my heifers at $1.78 -$1.81 were at the top of the bulk. In the steers 300-400pounds the top was $2.48. That was some of mine. The 500-600 the top selling lot was $2.03. That was 9 steers of mine that rang the bell.

 

[gcreekrch]

But they can't tell the difference Dave, some here on CT will tell you that! Expound on it for fact!

 

[Dave]

But they can't tell the difference Dave, some here on CT will tell you that! Expound on it for fact!

The ones who can't tell the difference sure wouldn't get a job as a buyer around here. And it may be one of the reasons for low calve prices in their area.

 

[50/50Farms]

Regional cattle prices have a lot to do with what cattle people can raise in certain areas.

 

[Dave]

Regional cattle prices have a lot to do with what cattle people can raise in certain areas.

And regional calf prices affected a lot by what people are raising.

 

[50/50Farms]

And regional calf prices affected a lot by what people are raising.

There are some very fine blooded and commercial cattle in the south and upland south. There's also a lot of cattle prioritized for being good doers in fairly austere conditions. There is very little public grazing down here, people are almost all on fixed, fenced range. The average cattleman doesn't have access to much more than 80-120 acres down here, and many less than that. 100 head would be considered a good sized operation in many areas, much more than that and you're considered a BTO locally in many spots. Most under that are retired or have a town job. Most of the native shortgrass prairies are towns or timber now. Cows with ear or other hard-charging breeds that can hustle make up what most people can reasonably keep if they want to have more than 5-15 head.

That said, cost of living is lower here and the sheer scale of row cropping which generates byproduct feeds and extra grazing opportunities balances it out. There's cattlemen going bust everywhere, and they aren't all here. You can sell erasers and have 1,000 of them or pencils and have 100, difference is null and void if you get the same amount scaled for your efforts.

 

[Warren Allison]

There are some very fine blooded and commercial cattle in the south and upland south. There's also a lot of cattle prioritized for being good doers in fairly austere conditions. There is very little public grazing down here, people are almost all on fixed, fenced range. The average cattleman doesn't have access to much more than 80-120 acres down here, and many less than that. 100 head would be considered a good sized operation in many areas, much more than that and you're considered a BTO locally in many spots. Most under that are retired or have a town job. Most of the native shortgrass prairies are towns or timber now. Cows with ear or other hard-charging breeds that can hustle make up what most people can reasonably keep if they want to have more than 5-15 head.

That said, cost of living is lower here and the sheer scale of row cropping which generates byproduct feeds and extra grazing opportunities balances it out. There's cattlemen going bust everywhere, and they aren't all here. You can sell erasers and have 1,000 of them or pencils and have 100, difference is null and void if you get the same amount scaled for your efforts.

Actually, the past 2 years I have bought several herds Brahma and Brahma cross heifers for some clients, By a large margin, local ( southest) cattle have been far superior to cattle from the west and midwest. Not to say that there aren't great cattle from any region, but for example, Of 100 for sale from here, or Fla, 85 to 100 were the quality I was loking for, where as in other regions, maybe 50 or so were suitable. Down here, the reason for the superior quality is our grass. You have a lot lower inouts here than any place else. Unless you overstock, you only need hay for 2 or 3 months. Yesterday as I was riding around, everyone fescue was still green. It isnt growing like it does in the summer, but in several pastures, the grass was green and there were no hay rings in them. There for, you can sell a top of the line cow or heifer here, for what you'd pay for back yard cattle in the west, north west or midwest. For heavier beef breeds, like the Continentals, there are fantastic cattle from the northeastern regions. like upstate NY. They have the best quality grass anywhere. But, the shorter seasons, the cost of inputs, etc, raises their prices a lot more.

An f1 Bra x Herf heifer produced here may cost you $1500. One from out west might cost you $2000, but the $1500 heifer made the grower more profit, due to less inputs.

 

[50/50Farms]

Actually, the past 2 years I have bought several herds Brahma and Brahma cross heifers for some clients, By a large margin, local ( southest) cattle have been far superior to cattle from the west and midwest. Not to say that there aren't great cattle from any region, but for example, Of 100 for sale from here, or Fla, 85 to 100 were the quality I was loking for, where as in other regions, maybe 50 or so were suitable. Down here, the reason for the superior quality is our grass. You have a lot lower inouts here than any place else. Unless you overstock, you only need hay for 2 or 3 months. Yesterday as I was riding around, everyone fescue was still green. It isnt growing like it does in the summer, but in several pastures, the grass was green and there were no hay rings in them. There for, you can sell a top of the line cow or heifer here, for what you'd pay for back yard cattle in the west, north west or midwest. For heavier beef breeds, like the Continentals, there are fantastic cattle from the northeastern regions. like upstate NY. They have the best quality grass anywhere. But, the shorter seasons, the cost of inputs, etc, raises their prices a lot more.

An f1 Bra x Herf heifer produced here may cost you $1500. One from out west might cost you $2000, but the $1500 heifer made the grower more profit, due to less inputs.

Where the grass is to be had, this is true. The stocking rates across the south and upland south also vary wildly. Good pasture here will have better forage density than many places in the US, but there's also plenty of "rough country" where ears and Spanish blood can be stocked 1.5x or more the rate of straight British or European breeds. But, of course, you already know that from your own experiences.

 

[Dave]

there's also plenty of "rough country" where ears and Spanish blood can be stocked 1.5x or more the rate of straight British or European breeds.

At $0.68 versus $1.80 one would have to stock at 2.64 times the rate and that just flat isn't going to happen. Many if not most of the lease pastures are by the head per month. So adding more cows cost more money if it is even allowed. I understand the need for eared cattle in the south. But lower quality cattle which don't preform as well in the feedlots cost money to someone along the way. As to the rough country I will stack up this country against any others when it comes to rough.

 

[50/50Farms]

At $0.68 versus $1.80 one would have to stock at 2.64 times the rate and that just flat isn't going to happen. Many if not most of the lease pastures are by the head per month. So adding more cows cost more money if it is even allowed. I understand the need for eared cattle in the south. But lower quality cattle which don't preform as well in the feedlots cost money to someone along the way. As to the rough country I will stack up this country against any others when it comes to rough.

Never seen one do that bad, tbh. Seen that shelled that out for worse animals. That said, it's a big country. It's okay, everyone can piss over a ten rail fence.

 

[gcreekrch]

At $0.68 versus $1.80 one would have to stock at 2.64 times the rate and that just flat isn't going to happen. Many if not most of the lease pastures are by the head per month. So adding more cows cost more money if it is even allowed. I understand the need for eared cattle in the south. But lower quality cattle which don't preform as well in the feedlots cost money to someone along the way. As to the rough country I will stack up this country against any others when it comes to rough.

Or here…

In Canadian dollars that heifer brought about 90 cents. She won't gain as well as a "beef" heifer that costs $1.50 per lb gain. If she actually was worth the same per lb at 1000 lbs she would lose the feeder a minimum of $350.00.