Question

[dt34715]

What age do you normally consider culling your cows from the herd?

 

[pdfangus]

i don't give a rats rump about age.....
fertility and productivity are the criteria....
I will cull a three year old if she weans two sub par calves.
i sold a cow last year that had 17 calves....

 

[Bigfoot]

Age is just a number on my place. As long as a cow has 1 calf a year, that calf meets my weight criteria, and the cow comes through the winter in good shape, I keep her. I have found that I need to keep about 10 percent of my hiefers each year, because I have a bout that many cows that must go every year.

 

[snake67]

What age do you normally consider culling your cows from the herd?

Like the responses before me - I do pretty much do not give a rats azz about age.

If she can have a calf - raise it and not cause me any probs - she stays.

Had one die on the place a few years ago - over 20 years of age - ticked me off - only a few weeks before dropping her calf - died because she got cast between a couple of bales. Can't complain she gave me one every year - and a few times she gave me twins.

Push button cows that know the country, know how to move from pasture to pasture, come to the call, drive easy, go through the chute and squeeze with no ruckuss, raise a calf, cause you no grief and more - are worth more than their sale weight at any sale barn.

At present, along with all the "kids" in the field, we have multiple ten plus year old girls, a couple over 14 or 15 and I think three that are coming close to 18. All have good feet, good mouths and they sure keep the kids in line.

"pdfangus said - I will cull a three year old if she weans two sub par calves."

I completely agree and I wish more people would think like this.

If more people would do this there would be far less trash in the fields.

In closing this is something to always remember:

A few decent "elders" can make a herd very easy to handle when conditions are tough.

Best to all

Bez

 

[Bestoutwest]

Age is just a number on my place. As long as a cow has 1 calf a year, that calf meets my weight criteria, and the cow comes through the winter in good shape, I keep her. I have found that I need to keep about 10 percent of my hiefers each year, because I have a bout that many cows that must go every year.

What is your weight criteria on your calves?

Thanks.

 

[Workinonit Farm]

My criteria are are pretty much the same as pdfangus, Bigfoot and snake67. The last old cow I culled left becuase she was open and she happened to be 14 yo. I had an even older cow that remained because she wasn't open.

Katherine

 

[Bigfoot]

I do know someone that sells every cow at 9 years old. He keeps a lot of hiefers. His point is the cow still has considerable value at our local yard at 9 years old. I could argue she has equal value if not more to keep her. To each his own. He does have a big herd of really slick young cows.

 

[cow pollinater]

It depends on the cow and the environment she's lived in and the environment she's going to be in in the future.
Around here most guys will cull before age eleven and there's really not alot of guys who can consistantly get a large percentage of their cows to last that long.
In my irrigated pastures on the vally floor, I've had cows well into their teens that did just fine but I was right there watching and ready to cull as soon as they did fail. Almost every cow over ten years of age from my valley bunch failed me the first time they went to the leased pasture in the mountains. The young cows adapted just fine.

Another thing to consider, a teenage cow is teenage genetics. Most of my valley herd was registered cows and by the time they were teenagers, the breed had passed them by and there was nothing I could breed them to that would make a calf that was anything beyond average. The same is true for commercial cows, we just don't notice because they don't have epd's. I think if you sell them as a pair before they fail and see the hidden profit of updated genetics then culling for age looks pretty good.

 

[Bigfoot]

Age is just a number on my place. As long as a cow has 1 calf a year, that calf meets my weight criteria, and the cow comes through the winter in good shape, I keep her. I have found that I need to keep about 10 percent of my hiefers each year, because I have a bout that many cows that must go every year.

What is your weight criteria on your calves?

Thanks.

Every cow has to wean a 500 pound calf. Obviously I hope they do better than that. A few of my cows are to big to be practical. I know they are. Those cows need to wean calves well above 600. I usually keep the weaned calves for a couple of months or longer. There's not a lot of value added calves in my area. I have a couple buyers for them this way.

 

[Isomade]

Age is just a number on my place. As long as a cow has 1 calf a year, that calf meets my weight criteria, and the cow comes through the winter in good shape, I keep her. I have found that I need to keep about 10 percent of my hiefers each year, because I have a bout that many cows that must go every year.

:nod: and once they get the second blown teet they are gone. I hate bottle calves.

 

[jerry27150]

old ornery and open is what they tell you at most state univ. i also try to cull by 11 or 12 as i have kept to many too long & end up losing them, and any heifers you keep should have better genetics