Show steer prices

[Jacob]

My kids been showing steers now for 4 years and I am in the market for the 5th year steer. I was thinking I want to try to find a better quality calf that can compete but after looking at prices I'm not sure we will be doing that. I currently pay 1500 for there steers and with the market I'm sure will have to go up some but some of these I'm liking are $5,000 to $10,000 and that's not gonna happen. They will gross around 8,000 at the end of project and more if they win grand.

When I was a kid I found a family that raised club calves but sent them to a feed yard. Sold a few steers but not halter broke or anything like that guess they sold them to steer traders but that was my senior year and don't remember who is was. I won grand that year. I know there are calves that are green that has the potential to compete I just got to find them.

So does anyone know of club calf breeders that raise calves but don't really market them? Or Someone that has extremely good calves at reasonable prices?

Looking for spring born calves with final fat show end of October!!

 

[Mountaintown Creek Ranch]

I believe Ms. Jeanne- Simme Valley is the expert for fluffy cattle... at least that's what I call them.

 

[GoWyo]

We always looked for the sleepers that were bringing less than the headliners in sales, whether they were fluffed and broke to lead or unbroken and no clipping yet. That is a big part of the challenge getting out and finding them within a reasonable distance from home. There will be a lot of calves in online sales, but the top end will bring big money and the vast majority will bring a lot less. Some of the top end now will be puds that are good for early jackpots then fall apart or won't grow. Sort hard and find the late bloomer that will do well at the end.

 

[Jacob]

We always looked for the sleepers that were bringing less than the headliners in sales, whether they were fluffed and broke to lead or unbroken and no clipping yet. That is a big part of the challenge getting out and finding them within a reasonable distance from home. There will be a lot of calves in online sales, but the top end will bring big money and the vast majority will bring a lot less. Some of the top end now will be puds that are good for early jackpots then fall apart or won't grow. Sort hard and find the late bloomer that will do well at the end.

I absolutely agree with you but I hate the format of the online sales and a lot of people putting them on didn't breed the cattle. I perfer to deal with the breeder that knows their genetics. They should be able to tell me what they will look like at the end. I know some fall apart but if you know your cattle I feel that is an exception. We don't have many clubby breeders around us and the ones we do have I wouldn't do business with. We raise angus. (My mom is Gizmom on here ) my girls show our angus in the spring because the birthdates work. We don't have anything born that will work for a fall show age wise so I like to find a more clubby type calf that would compete.

 

[GoWyo]

Maybe need a road trip into Missouri and Iowa. Lots of breeders there. Traders usually working with the top calves. Have seen a calf go from Wyoming sold to Iowa then sold to Nebraska then wound up back in Wyoming at 5x the original price. Need to get into that first transaction. Unfortunately I don't know anyone down your way.

 

[Lucky_P]

Forty years ago, when we were in practice in southern middle TN, we had a local family who'd screwed over every business in the county that would extend credit... but they'd go to Oklahoma and buy $5000 ChiAngus show calves for their boys, who'd dominate all the regional and state livestock shows... but everything was put in the boys' names... so no one could even make a run at trying to recoup any of the monies that the parents had screwed them out of. It used to p!ss my wife off to no end to see the mom coming out of the furniture store on the town square, buying new furniture, with a cigarette hanging out of her mouth, when we were slugging along, working 60 hrs a week, paying off school loans, eating frozen burritos or a microwaved potato and living with 'late childhood/early attic' home furnishings.

 

[VCC]

I'm real good at picking the 7000 and up ones, if your going to go through the sales you have to look at all the calves find the ones that will work for your show and then set your price, there are always calves that have the pieces but are green or just so out classed in the sale they do not sell high these are the ones you have to act on. SC online sales lets you put calves on a watchlist so you can have several calves selected and watch as the sale progresses, problem is the sale really starts when it is over, calf might be sitting at 2000 at the close of the sale and when it finally closes it setting at 4500. Just evaluate them for what you think they will be as a fat steer and be patient, that diamond in the rough is out there. I watched a calf yesterday at 3:00 he was setting at 3500 I think it ended at 28,000 but you knew by looking at him he was going to go high.

 

[VCC]

There were some nice calves in your age range selling yesterday for fairly low prices in the M lazy Heart sale, just need to hang in there you will find a deal

 

[I❤️shorthorns]

Definitely go to local breeds and look at calfs there it is cheaper + you know what you are getting.

 

[Travlr]

My kids been showing steers now for 4 years and I am in the market for the 5th year steer. I was thinking I want to try to find a better quality calf that can compete but after looking at prices I'm not sure we will be doing that. I currently pay 1500 for there steers and with the market I'm sure will have to go up some but some of these I'm liking are $5,000 to $10,000 and that's not gonna happen. They will gross around 8,000 at the end of project and more if they win grand.

When I was a kid I found a family that raised club calves but sent them to a feed yard. Sold a few steers but not halter broke or anything like that guess they sold them to steer traders but that was my senior year and don't remember who is was. I won grand that year. I know there are calves that are green that has the potential to compete I just got to find them.

So does anyone know of club calf breeders that raise calves but don't really market them? Or Someone that has extremely good calves at reasonable prices?

Looking for spring born calves with final fat show end of October!!

It would help if you put your state/location on your profile. It makes any advice we give you more likely to be relevant.

 

[Farm Family]

My kids been showing steers now for 4 years and I am in the market for the 5th year steer. I was thinking I want to try to find a better quality calf that can compete but after looking at prices I'm not sure we will be doing that. I currently pay 1500 for there steers and with the market I'm sure will have to go up some but some of these I'm liking are $5,000 to $10,000 and that's not gonna happen. They will gross around 8,000 at the end of project and more if they win grand.

When I was a kid I found a family that raised club calves but sent them to a feed yard. Sold a few steers but not halter broke or anything like that guess they sold them to steer traders but that was my senior year and don't remember who is was. I won grand that year. I know there are calves that are green that has the potential to compete I just got to find them.

So does anyone know of club calf breeders that raise calves but don't really market them? Or Someone that has extremely good calves at reasonable prices?

Looking for spring born calves with final fat show end of October!!

We do but up in Canada. One of our steers went state side a few years back and won the Illinois State Fair. That was cool. Have some embryos lol.

 

[Steve123]

My kids been showing steers now for 4 years and I am in the market for the 5th year steer. I was thinking I want to try to find a better quality calf that can compete but after looking at prices I'm not sure we will be doing that. I currently pay 1500 for there steers and with the market I'm sure will have to go up some but some of these I'm liking are $5,000 to $10,000 and that's not gonna happen. They will gross around 8,000 at the end of project and more if they win grand.

When I was a kid I found a family that raised club calves but sent them to a feed yard. Sold a few steers but not halter broke or anything like that guess they sold them to steer traders but that was my senior year and don't remember who is was. I won grand that year. I know there are calves that are green that has the potential to compete I just got to find them.

So does anyone know of club calf breeders that raise calves but don't really market them? Or Someone that has extremely good calves at reasonable prices?

Looking for spring born calves with final fat show end of October!!

FL isn't know as the Show Steer raising capital of the world (unless you want an "American"). With fuel prices and your time at a premium you need to spend most of your time on the phone. Call someone in your area that has a good eye and looks at hundreds of calves a year to find that next great one. Steve Bonham sells in the neighborhood of 700 show steers a year and his crew probably looks at 1000's to get them. Call Baylor or one of his crew and they can find you exactly what you want for the price you want to pay. A great source is someone that travels around and "fits" for the high dollar folks. They always have a cousin, uncle, friend that raises a few on the side and they know what they are looking at. He is the one standing in all the back drop photos with dirty knees and black all over his face. Don't buy anything unless you or someone you trust has seen them in person. I stopped buying in the online sales unless I see the cattle. It seemed like anything I thought I got a deal on would show up with a blue eye, a really bad attitude or be half the size they should be.

Good luck. It is a fun time of year.

 

[Warren Allison]

These prices I am seeing on here, for buying a show calf, to what they sell for at the end of the season blows my mind! I mean., I can see a registered heifer selling for that, but why in the world would anyone pay $28k for a steer, even if it was the WGC that year? Reckon it is the breeder buying it for that, to make his stock sell for more?

If they cost this much to buy, then that dude Clay and I found in July, that raises those Black Simm x Chi-Angus, is leaving some money on the table. He told us he gives his best heifer and best steer to this family that has kids that show in 4H and FFA. He said at the end, when they sell, he lets the kid keep the money for the steer, and most of the money.. I think he said half?....the heifer brings! I know he said he has people that buy others for their kids to show. Reckon he thinks having those 2 sell so high ( And they are usually Champion or Reserve Champion) allows him to get higher prices for the ones he sells? This is now driving me nuts....I got to ask how this works. Is the kid listed as owner? Is he showing as Whatever County 4HJ/FFA? Or is the farm the owner, and the farm enters them, and this kids is just showing them for the farm? I think the last time I watched a judging at the fair was 20 years ago., so I don't remember exactly how all of that works. Clay and I contracted to buy 30 of next year's heifers at under $2k each, so why would the man sell them for that? Got me thinking we might need to get Clay's granddaughters to show a couple, but don't know if you could take one weaned in July and have it ready for the shows in September?

 

[VCC]

28K, I have been following a few of the sales this year, saw a steer sell for 75,500 thought that was outrages 3 or 4 days later 76,000 and last week I saw a heifer sell for over 175,000, in that same sale 2 Char steers sold for 110,000 and another 99,000. I can see if you have the money and are into it rolling the dice and buying one for Denver, Fort Worth or one of those shows for 20,000+. I do not have the money or desire but some do. I sure would not spend 70,000 for a steer, my luck he would come up lame on the trailer ride home, then get hit by lightning a month later.

 

[Travlr]

28K, I have been following a few of the sales this year, saw a steer sell for 75,500 thought that was outrages 3 or 4 days later 76,000 and last week I saw a heifer sell for over 175,000, in that same sale 2 Char steers sold for 110,000 and another 99,000. I can see if you have the money and are into it rolling the dice and buying one for Denver, Fort Worth or one of those shows for 20,000+. I do not have the money or desire but some do. I sure would not spend 70,000 for a steer, my luck he would come up lame on the trailer ride home, then get hit by lightning a month later.

If a Burger King rep shows up and sits across from a McDonalds rep... it only takes two bidders that want to show each other up.

Bragging rights has sold a lot of overpriced stuff.

 

[GoWyo]

Some folks spend their money on airplanes, boats, beauty pageants, swimming pools, horses and others spend it on show cattle. Makes the world go round.

 

[Jacob]

It would help if you put your state/location on your profile. It makes any advice we give you more likely to be relevant.

Done, but i am in Pensacola, FL

 

[farmerjan]

For @Jacob ... what about @gizmom ... oh wait, you are part of that operation right? I always liked the cattle she pictured.

 

[Jacob]

Yes, we will show some of our angus steers in the spring. We calve in the fall. But need a spring born steer for the fall show and we arnt going to hold any back to calve in spring.