Why prices are in hundredweight CWT

[toddhatcher]

Why are prices in CWT rather than total price for each weight class?

For instance with a 700 lb animal selling at $150 cwt. Why not use the total price $1050?

Is there some other helpful way of looking at it? Or why it is more useful in that format? Because I find it easier to compute the total price to figure cost.

 

[dun]

Don;t know why but that's the only way I've ever seen it done. Not hard to multiply the animal weight by $1.50 for 150 cwt or divide the total price by $1.50 for 150 cwt or use whatever the dollar is divided by 100 or move the decimal point 2 places to the left.

 

[TexasBred]

Why are prices in CWT rather than total price for each weight class?

For instance with a 700 lb animal selling at $150 cwt. Why not use the total price $1050?

Is there some other helpful way of looking at it? Or why it is more useful in that format? Because I find it easier to compute the total price to figure cost.

Actually most down here sell by the pound...$1.50 a pound...unless it's sold by the head $1050.

 

[sackshowcattle]

I think it is reported in hundred weight so no matter were you go you can quickly compair prices. 150 a hundred is the same as 1.50 a pound. All the sales I have gone to sell either by the pound or hundred except really small calves sell by the head(typically 300 pounds or less).

 

[cowboy43]

In the past all sale barns did not weight the animal until afer it had gone throught the sale ring, you have to get good at guessing weights to get a guesstimate as to what you are paying per head.

 

[brown]

I have a question for those of you that have cows at several different pastures. A year or so ago I put in a few cows at a smaller pasture of someone I knew because I was needing the extra pasture space. After about a day one of the cows jumped the fence and was off and gone which turned into a whole mess getting her caught again. Flash forward to recently when I put a couple cows in someones pasture with a really good fence just to eat down some grass. I was mainly doing it at their request and not because I was looking for something that small. Same scenario just a different cow jumps the fence and is gone and yet to be found. It didn't have a calf and until this event has been a pretty calm cow, as most of mine are pretty easy going. What do yall do when moving cows to different pastures? Someone told me that the time of day you move them makes a difference but I don't really know.

 

[cowboy43]

I have found if you keep them confinded in a pen for a few hours till they get hungry and thirsty they tend to calm down after the move, and will eat rather than run and circle the fence. I do not think time has much to do with the move. When penning cattle they will pen better early in the morning as they are getting up and before they have had breakfast. In the Tx summer heat it is hard to move them after 10:00am .