12 month Bull beef

[Full of bull(s)]

Is under 12months not classed as veal!?

Yes but that’s not a problem where mine go

 

[Norfolk Hill Farmer]

Did the Buitelaar fattening thing for a few years. When they first started the spec was a lot broader and easily achievable but now the maximum age is younger.
Works ok for the Bulls you get in spec ,but the ones that don't , won't just not earn money , the will loose money. Stopped doing it because lack of labour, and a lifestyle choice. Having cattle inside all year means that if you get the chance to go away, you've got to have someone who can sort things out when things are going right ,or wrong , i.e. you need someone who has got the whearwithall to get the loader going when it won't start or be able to spot, and treat an ill one.
Would have another go if circumstances changed.

 

[Full of bull(s)]

Did the Buitelaar fattening thing for a few years. When they first started the spec was a lot broader and easily achievable but now the maximum age is younger.
Works ok for the Bulls you get in spec ,but the ones that don't , won't just not earn money , the will loose money. Stopped doing it because lack of labour, and a lifestyle choice. Having cattle inside all year means that if you get the chance to go away, you've got to have someone who can sort things out when things are going right ,or wrong , i.e. you need someone who has got the whearwithall to get the loader going when it won't start or be able to spot, and treat an ill one.
Would have another go if circumstances changed.

The spec is still the most easily achievable of any out there. 450 kilos live at thirteen months with no grid?

 

[Norfolk Hill Farmer]

The spec is still the most easily achievable of any out there. 450 kilos live at thirteen months with no grid?

Agree , and can get many there ,well before that , it just the odd poor doers that don't get the weight in time , or the extreme ones that come back P 1 or -P

 

[Haydn Lloyd]

Is there much of a trade for continental bred bulls 8 months old.

 

[Full of bull(s)]

Is there much of a trade for continental bred bulls 8 months old.

Far more than you would think. Looking at the shape, they would make very similar to whatever price you got last year, it’s that way up north anyway.

 

[Haydn Lloyd]

We sold as steers in March last year from home 950

 

[Hfd Cattle]

Is there much of a trade for continental bred bulls 8 months old.

They would make big money in Hereford .

 

[Haydn Lloyd]

Hereford is my local market I just seen catalogue and seems a couple good runs of bulls so shall see the trade

 

[Hfd Cattle]

They were a good trade last Thurs .

 

[Werzle]

Is there much of a trade for continental bred bulls 8 months old.

2.30-2.40ppk

 

[gone up the hill]

Is there much of a trade for continental bred bulls 8 months old.

Would easily make £900+ down here!

 

[Haydn Lloyd]

Hope so here too

 

[Bwcho]

We run 150 bulls all the time, all on purchased feed (we haven't that much land so we need to farm something we can keep indoors) I use 2.4-2.5 tonne of feed from 12 weeks to 13 months. I do trade my straw in return for the muck to spread on the grassland. The main difference I've found in profit & loss is the type of calf going in at the start. For me they need to be 3/4 fresian with only a bit of Holstein. I can't make beef bred calves pay any better than good dairies, the extra money at the end has to be spent on the calf in the beginning. I tried buying weaned calves to cut down the workload but they cost money when they went, too much expense and not up to scratch regarding health status and early growth rates. Everything comes at 4 weeks old now and we take them right through. I do have a couple of pens of limousins off the suckler cows but if I had to buy them at 6 months I wouldn't bother. As much as I enjoy looking at them while they grow! Got too be 280kg min deadweight at 12 months to make a bit of profit. Find a good fair buyer though. There is money to be made, just have to work it just right!

Are you still doing this Muley? With current barley and milk powder prices would you say its still a viable enterprise? Do you sell them live or dead?

Reason I ask is I'm in a similar position albeit on a much much smaller scale. Not much land and wanting to make use of the outbuildings and looking at the B&W bull beef option. All fodder and feed purchased in.

All thoughts greatly appreciated.

 

[Anymulewilldo]

Are you still doing this Muley? With current barley and milk powder prices would you say its still a viable enterprise? Do you sell them live or dead?

Reason I ask is I'm in a similar position albeit on a much much smaller scale. Not much land and wanting to make use of the outbuildings and looking at the B&W bull beef option. All fodder and feed purchased in.

All thoughts greatly appreciated.

Swapped to blues now. They’ve come cheaper and good b&w bull calves have gone scarcer and scarcer with sexed semen gaining popularity. Still doing it but I took fright at the potential costs last year with no guarantee the beef price was going to do what it has. So I dropped to 50 bulls, bought a ruck of heifers to grow on and upped the sheep a bit. In hindsight it might have been better to carry on regardless but the risk of dear calves on dear powder eating dear corn with no promise of the good beef price just didn’t appeal to me at all.
now barley is dropping fast I reckon it’s still
A viable option for someone without the scope to graze.
Wasn’t over happy with my dead trade so tried a load in Drayton the other week. Came home very pleased.

 

[Anymulewilldo]

Good type of b&w bull calf is 120+ now, medium blues can be bought 170-220 a lot of the time nowadays. Soon be we’ll in front with a conti now

 

[Bwcho]

Swapped to blues now. They’ve come cheaper and good b&w bull calves have gone scarcer and scarcer with sexed semen gaining popularity. Still doing it but I took fright at the potential costs last year with no guarantee the beef price was going to do what it has. So I dropped to 50 bulls, bought a ruck of heifers to grow on and upped the sheep a bit. In hindsight it might have been better to carry on regardless but the risk of dear calves on dear powder eating dear corn with no promise of the good beef price just didn’t appeal to me at all.
now barley is dropping fast I reckon it’s still
A viable option for someone without the scope to graze.
Wasn’t over happy with my dead trade so tried a load in Drayton the other week. Came home very pleased.

Thanks Muley for sharing that - really appreciate it.

What target weight/age have you set on the blues?

Are you keeping the blue bulls entire as well? The only thing that concerns me in this regard is our set-up and whether we could safely manage the bulls....keeping them entire until they start to get too boisterous to maximise the growth gains I guess would be an option.

 

[Anymulewilldo]

Thanks Muley for sharing that - really appreciate it.

What target weight/age have you set on the blues?

Are you keeping the blue bulls entire as well? The only thing that concerns me in this regard is our set-up and whether we could safely manage the bulls....keeping them entire until they start to get too boisterous to maximise the growth gains I guess would be an option.

Blues should all be gone by 14.5 months. Biggest grossing one at Drayton other week was just over £1700 just over 13 months but he had been a big lad all his life. That week average age was 13.5 months 575kgs, DW I’ve been between 310-360 for blue bulls the same age. Every now and then get a thumper who will hit 400
Yes all entire, haven’t got space to turn many extras out really so might as well have the max growth rates with bulls.
The blues are a hell of a lot quieter than the dairy bulls were. Massive difference

 

[Bwcho]

Blues should all be gone by 14.5 months. Biggest grossing one at Drayton other week was just over £1700 just over 13 months but he had been a big lad all his life. That week average age was 13.5 months 575kgs, DW I’ve been between 310-360 for blue bulls the same age. Every now and then get a thumper who will hit 400
Yes all entire, haven’t got space to turn many extras out really so might as well have the max growth rates with bulls.
The blues are a hell of a lot quieter than the dairy bulls were. Massive difference

Bloody hell That's some serious growth figures The slight premium over B&W at purchase is more than worth it, when you look at the numbers.

Would you be feeding barley ad-lib I'm guessing to maximise the growth and get those sort of weights?

 

[Anymulewilldo]

Bloody hell That's some serious growth figures The slight premium over B&W at purchase is more than worth it, when you look at the numbers.

Would you be feeding barley ad-lib I'm guessing to maximise the growth and get those sort of weights?

Ad-lib from day one onwards. Don’t try and skimp at any part. Few years back we were buying a cheaper blend for the growing phase, our time to finishing got to 16 months and not getting weights like we are now. Eating far too much food by that point to pay.
I reckon the biggest thing is buying the right calves. No grass rat bred stuff, nothing with a pencil arse. That last lot were all out of BIG pedigree holstein cows. No crossing in them since the 70’s. The odd time I’ve bought 3/4 cheaper calves to get my average back where I want it I usually regret it 6 months down the line.