Tips to judging a cows age

[chiefgriz]

There has been a couple of ads in the paper where people are selling off their herd. I figure that most have taken their 1st and maybe 2nd culls to the sell already. I am thinking about going to look to find a couple. With no improvement on the drought condition, I'm thinking there might be some good cattle up for grabs. Bred cows anywhere from 5 to 7 months are becoming avalible for about $675. I would like to get (obviously) a good young cow to have for a few years. With the price of steers and heifers, I could recoop the original price of the cow once the calves are weaned and sold. Does this seem to be a legitamite plan? Also, when I look for these cows, what are the best indicators on calculating a cows age. I've seen some cattle that look poor because of being underfed, but I dont want to confuse that with age. So there it is Guru's. How about the top 3 age indicators?

 

[TheLazyM]

Cheif, i'm not good at guessing age. what i look for is if she has any teeth. now this isnt the best age test cause lose of teeth can be due to a few factors. one beening the soil type they graze in. sandy soil will erode the teeth faster. i look for teeth to make sure she'll be able to chew enough to supplement for her and the calf.
i have a very different oparation than most. I buy 10{the very least} heavy bred cows. when they drop i put another calf on them. i sell all 30 head at one time when the calves has weined. then i buy 10 more bred cows so on so on. i do pretty well this way. i have no bull to keep up. and i stay on top of the market. i can switch with market when it does. at $675 your calf should cover your buy in price if you sell at weined age. this week 550lbs calves where branging $700. good luck in what ever you decide.

 

[stocky]

I dont know that there are hard and fast rules about aging a cow. The checking of teeth is what all sales barns go by. This is about the most reliable and consistent way to compare cattle as there is. Like was posted before, it all depends on how good the pasture was and if the ground was rocky or not as to how much wear there is on the teeth. If you cant "mouth" the cows, some things to look at are the condition of the cows compared to others being fed the same way. The size of the head can be a tip off, everything gets bigger and thicker on some older cows, the udder, most cows' udder tends to break down some with age, if they are good milkers, an old cow will have her eyes set deeper and she will be slower and less agile in her movements. As a young cow matures, her bone structure and body thicken and spread out, after maturity and as she is getting older she will lose some of this and be more frail. Not all of these are 100% and it is difficult to explain, but most cattle people can tell if cows are young or mature or old, when they first see them by the general appearance and actions. At a sales barn, a good cattle person can look at a cow in the ring and be just as right on age overall as the vet is by checking the teeth. Most sales barns dont even have the vet check the teeth, the guy who is taking the blood just runs his hand through the mouth without even looking. That is why you can sell a 15 year old cow and she is tagged 7 years old, sometimes and how you can sell a 6 year old and she may test old---use your own judgement. Good Luck

 

[Beef11]

I like the easiest method for age determination 1. ask the owner 2. eartag alot of people use a numbering systemwhere the first number is the year they were born 3. Bangs Tatoo should indicate year 4. Teething i once bought cows out of a registered deal (all the same year) there was alot of difference in teeth through the group 5. Look once you develop an eye for it older cows look older its that simple but not exactly precise but great for ballpark figuring.

 

[Susie David]

Agree with Beef11...the Bangs tattoo will give you year that the cow was vaccinated, figure that she probably got the tag and tattoo when she was six months old, give or take. If she has all her adult teeth then it's anybodies guess at how many over six years...depends on what she's ben eating. Haven't seen many sales barns that check the tattoo only whether she's a broke mouth. Seen some folks provide age and vaccination info on the haul slip and it actually mades it to the ring. Ever notice how the nose on a older cow is a bit wider that younger cows of similuar breeding...no indication of age just an observation. DMc

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Biggest thing is check her udder & feet. Nice tight udder means she should be young. You want good feet/legs no matter how old she is.
The length of tail - longer the older. But, after a few years old, they probably are as long as they will get. Deffinately a good way to tell calves from yearlings.

 

[Scout]

It seems like eared cattle age more, um, gracefully. Anybody else ever noticed that?

 

[Beefy]

yeah, they do.

 

[cherokeeruby']

Brahmans, i.e. eared cattle, do age more gracefully. They just basically live longer than Bos Tarus cattle. Have seen many 9 and 10 year old Brahmans aged 6 years old via their teeth. Read somewhere once that they have more enamel on their teeth.

 

[Beefy]

ive noticed that the brahman crosses tend to retain their teeth longer and, for us at least, the angus get short mouthed the fastest.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Now not meaning to be a smart mule here but what difference does it make until she can not maintain body condition or provide a healthy calf every 12 months. As long as she is doing the 2 things above she is doing her job. When a cow can no longer maintain body condition or provide a calf every 12 months your fired and the worthless cull is on the way to Jack in the Box.

PS I have seen 7 year old cows aged at 10 or 12 and 12 year ols as 7 depends on the country they have grazed and the improved pasture. I am more intresested in how many calfs she has had and how many more potential she has left. Old bramer gal leaving here this spring at 22.

 

[dun]

Now not meaning to be a smart mule here but what difference does it make until she can not maintain body condition or provide a healthy calf every 12 months. As long as she is doing the 2 things above she is doing her job. When a cow can no longer maintain body condition or provide a calf every 12 months your fired and the worthless cull is on the way to Jack in the Box.

PS I have seen 7 year old cows aged at 10 or 12 and 12 year ols as 7 depends on the country they have grazed and the improved pasture. I am more intresested in how many calfs she has had and how many more potential she has left. Old bramer gal leaving here this spring at 22.

There is also simply a genetic thing. Some cows age faster then others on the same forage.
Teeth aren;t the only resons a cow gets old. As CB said, if they can do the job, ..............

dun

 

[denoginnizer]

I am thinking that the older they get the more statistacally likely they are to have a re-breeding problem. Would I be thinking incorrectly?

 

[Rod]

Some how i've done well at aging by looking at a cows head and and the skin around their face. Older cows seemed to have loose skin around thier nose,eyes, and neck. I'm not one to be shyed away form a cow thats said to be old if she's got a good body score with a nice bag and doesn't look old to me.

 

[nenmrancher]

One thing that I did not see mentioned on here is a year brand. We use a single digit on the right hip to show the year of birth. If the cow was born in 2003 we put a 3 on her when we retag and get ready to turn the bulls in for the first time.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Generally, cattle are in the "prime" of their career between age 4 and 7. Before and after that they have less milk production. A mature cow usually will breed back easier than a 2/3 year old because she is not growing + tring to reproduce. Now, it doesn't make any difference how YOUNG/OLD they are, if they are in poor BCS, have bad udder or bad feet & legs - they are poor candidates for easy breeding & rainsing a calf.

 

[Craig-TX]

I agree with those who don't care how old she is if she can raise a good calf every year. If you're new at it you might stay away from heifers and anything obviously over the hill in some way. Outside that, a proven middle-aged cow is hard to beat. You know she's proven if she's half decent looking and you see a half decent calf sucking her.