Want to Raise Bottle Calves
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Bama
Well-known member
tg said:
I have never fed 4 bags of milk replacer to a calf. I give them about 1 and a half. The other half goes into their feed dry. On the other hand I would rather not mess with them in the first place. I guess I don't have the time and patients.
bubchub
Well-known member
I raised my bottle calf on milk until it was 4-5 months old. She turned into a nice 900-1000 pound heifer. Turned out to be a freemartin though and I sold her to a lady who wanted infertile cows.
I generally go through about 50lbs of milk replacer (one bag) per calf. 1/2lb of powder per feeding mixed with 2 quarts hot water. By the time it gets out to the calves it's a good temperature. 1/2lb per feeding 2x a day means 50 days worth of milk. I wean at 7 weeks, if not before. Costs too much to give them milk any longer.
Rod
Well-known member
A TRAINWRECK READY TO HAPPEN!!
Sorry.. but lets say I've been there!
Sorry.. but lets say I've been there!
We feed 2 25lb bags of milk and on feed from there. It's like everything else, once you get some experience with them its not that bad to raise them. Learn what to look for before its too late. The price goes way down on them after they reach 500lbs. I try to get rid of them at no more than 450lbs unless someone wants it to slaughter. I just wouldn't start out with too many.
shorty
Well-known member
It's hard to believe people would dump good calves at the side of the road. calf prices at auctions here are high. If you can get good calves for nothing that's a big plus. If you can buy good calves for $100 you can make something on them if the feeder market stays up . A good 3-4 day old 100 lb holstien bull calf will bring around $200 at auction . There is alocal dairy here that will still sell me calves for $100. If you have to pay much more than that it takes away from your profit. It is also easier to train them to drink from a bucket rather than bottle feed them . If you have heathy calves at home and you would find adumped off calf keep it away from the others untill you are sure it is also healthy if not you could make your other calves sick.
Wow! $100 for a holstein bull calf? I'd love to find a deal like that. The holstein steer feedlots around here have jumped the prices sky high. The dairies will sell me a newborn dayold holstein bull for $165-190. That's too steep for me, so I have to hit the sale yard and hope for some good deals.
Ditto to that, pdoramus; I haven't seen calves that cheap in quite some time. Prices started climbing last January and haven't stopped since. I've heard up to $225 for day-old bulls. Can't even find bull calves on this side of the state; everyone's contracted out, even the small dairies.
bgm
Well-known member
I buy some from a dairy near me. I pay $175 for them, but they are strong and healthy. I see the ones at the sale barns, especially the Saturday sales that go very high. All of them at the sales go above $200. $250 is the highest I've seen a holstein bottle calf go for at a sale in this area. I've seen one angus bottle calf bring $325. You need to search for a source, and I don't think sale barns are the best source. Find one that can provide you with healthy stock that has had their colostrum.
We still got a bunch of dairies down here that i used to buy them from. If you were looking for some come down here. I might know of a couple places in Idaho that have some. I have a buddy who gets them in Blackfoot and I know seagull bay sells them in American Falls.
Colostrum Is the Key.
Be Clean, don't short them
if you do that it works
Colostrum Is the Key.
Be Clean, don't short them
if you do that it works
Beef 11 - I have a connection for bull calves if I want them, but if you have any connections for day-old holstein heifer calves, I'd sure be interested in that. Have 40 days left until one of my nurse cows calves, and I'd rather put heifers on her than steers.
Medic24
Well-known member
I see MM is still dying for some more heifers........lol.........
Current local prices for holstiens bull calves...$30-75 bucks, subject to change in wamer weather of course.
Jersey calves...almost free up to $45.00@
I only have 8 bottle calves at the moment...an all time low number, and plan to be that way fro a while ....this cowboy needs a break.
I am also doing the neigborly thing, and taking care fo a few beef orphans for some local folks as they have entered calving season, and they know where to bring the ones that need some extra TLC.
One thing I would continue to advice......................stay away from the jersey bull calves, even if they are cheap or free, unless you have a definate market for them ( we do raise some for CSA beef) They eat alot of groceries for the little bit that they grow, and grow slow, and ALWAYS get pot bellies, and seems not nearly as strong as holstiens or beef breeds, and you never get a good price for them at any stage of growth.
Even when we beef em for CSA, we loose alot of wieght to guts and bones. Even if the meat is better then most.
:cboy:
Current local prices for holstiens bull calves...$30-75 bucks, subject to change in wamer weather of course.
Jersey calves...almost free up to $45.00@
I only have 8 bottle calves at the moment...an all time low number, and plan to be that way fro a while ....this cowboy needs a break.
I am also doing the neigborly thing, and taking care fo a few beef orphans for some local folks as they have entered calving season, and they know where to bring the ones that need some extra TLC.
One thing I would continue to advice......................stay away from the jersey bull calves, even if they are cheap or free, unless you have a definate market for them ( we do raise some for CSA beef) They eat alot of groceries for the little bit that they grow, and grow slow, and ALWAYS get pot bellies, and seems not nearly as strong as holstiens or beef breeds, and you never get a good price for them at any stage of growth.
Even when we beef em for CSA, we loose alot of wieght to guts and bones. Even if the meat is better then most.
:cboy:
