Fattening bulls

[FarmerDanny1989]

Is there a demand for young fattening bulls? Iv always cut mine a few days old but fancy trying to leave a few whole. I sell 50% of mine 10/11 months and the rest I finish at home. Usually get U/R grades. What grades would you get with bulls? Most are lim/blue/AA few shorthorn cows, all sired by blue/lim few char.

 

[MrA.G.]

When finished in general the bulls should be a grade better than their steer equivalents but it could be harder to get them to flesh up. I’d say it depends on whether you intend to finish the bulls or sell live prior to intensive finish. In our area young bulls would be discounted against steers when sold live, presumably due to the fact there are less people and hence buyers for bulls.

 

[Vader]

Only ever sold bulls.
Own suckled herd.
Finish our self normally.
Send in at roughly 14 month, or just as start to get neck on them.
Neck means tetesterone which taints flavour so get less price.
Sent most as stores this year as high prices.
Few we sent in fat did £2.50 / kg roughly at market.
Normally E/U grades

 

[czechmate]

Only ever sold bulls.
Own suckled herd.
Finish our self normally.
Send in at roughly 14 month, or just as start to get neck on them.
Neck means tetesterone which taints flavour so get less price.
Sent most as stores this year as high prices.
Few we sent in fat did £2.50 / kg roughly at market.
Normally E/U grades

Do you have a maximum weight you get paid for? But I imagine at 14 months that’s not a problem

 

[tr250]

Do you have a maximum weight you get paid for? But I imagine at 14 months that’s not a problem

400 kg dead but there is outlets for heavyer bulls and over 16 months at markets.

 

[czechmate]

400 kg dead but there is outlets for heavyer bulls and over 16 months at markets.

Our price dies at 24 months. Are you the same?

 

[tr250]

No it’s 16 months here over that it’s cull price but there are buyers at live auction for over 16 months

 

[Porkchops57]

Only ever sold bulls.
Own suckled herd.
Finish our self normally.
Send in at roughly 14 month, or just as start to get neck on them.
Neck means tetesterone which taints flavour so get less price.
Sent most as stores this year as high prices.
Few we sent in fat did £2.50 / kg roughly at market.
Normally E/U grades

What breeds and what TMR would you use to get the cover on them?

 

[Vader]

Do you have a maximum weight you get paid for? But I imagine at 14 months that’s not a problem

No max weights.
Its the maturity that effects price.

 

[Vader]

What breeds and what TMR would you use to get the cover on them?

Blues, limo and blondes crossed cows.
All back to limo or blonde bull.

Getting cover is as much to genetics as to food.
When I took over herd from old man I looked at the cows condition when they came in at autumn.
Some cows were fat as butter, others thin and boney.
All ate same grass. So some convert it better. I culled all poor cows and kept heifers off the fat ones.

Bulls took off mothers at about 7-8 months at end of summer.
Put on rolled barley with bit of protein mixed in. Once onto it then kept ad lib.
Same with clean straw to eat.

That's it. No fancy feeder wagon multi ingredient stuff.

 

[FarmerDanny1989]

Blues, limo and blondes crossed cows.
All back to limo or blonde bull.

Getting cover is as much to genetics as to food.
When I took over herd from old man I looked at the cows condition when they came in at autumn.
Some cows were fat as butter, others thin and boney.
All ate same grass. So some convert it better. I culled all poor cows and kept heifers off the fat ones.

Bulls took off mothers at about 7-8 months at end of summer.
Put on rolled barley with bit of protein mixed in. Once onto it then kept ad lib.
Same with clean straw to eat.

That's it. No fancy feeder wagon multi ingredient stuff.

How do you find the blonde? I’m mainly a lim man but find them a bit wild. So I really fancy buying a blonde bull or two, I think they’ve came a long way from years ago! What grades, kill out % do you get and what age roughly?

 

[Anymulewilldo]

How do you find the blonde? I’m mainly a lim man but find them a bit wild. So I really fancy buying a blonde bull or two, I think they’ve came a long way from years ago! What grades, kill out % do you get and what age roughly?

From experience the blonde will make your Limos seem quiet!

Our blonde cross bulls never just weighed as heavy as the limos. Very stylish calves but the weight for age just wasn’t there. But it’s 15 years since we went all Limo and I have been weighing up our local blonde mans bulls this last couple of years. Next time I want a change I might just try one again

 

[deleted user 837354]

Blues, limo and blondes crossed cows.
All back to limo or blonde bull.

Getting cover is as much to genetics as to food.
When I took over herd from old man I looked at the cows condition when they came in at autumn.
Some cows were fat as butter, others thin and boney.
All ate same grass. So some convert it better. I culled all poor cows and kept heifers off the fat ones.

Bulls took off mothers at about 7-8 months at end of summer.
Put on rolled barley with bit of protein mixed in. Once onto it then kept ad lib.
Same with clean straw to eat.

That's it. No fancy feeder wagon multi ingredient stuff.

Can we see some pictures of your setup and stock please? Sounds delicious. I find beef production really interesting but the only experience I have of it is in 12 month barley beef.

 

[FarmerDanny1989]

From experience the blonde will make your Limos seem quiet!

Our blonde cross bulls never just weighed as heavy as the limos. Very stylish calves but the weight for age just wasn’t there. But it’s 15 years since we went all Limo and I have been weighing up our local blonde mans bulls this last couple of years. Next time I want a change I might just try one again

I’m glad to hear that the amount of good cows Iv culled including 3 stock bulls due to being wild sickens me but I can’t take the risk so needs to be done. What breeders have you close by, there’s none really up in Scotland.

 

[czechmate]

Blues, limo and blondes crossed cows.
All back to limo or blonde bull.

Getting cover is as much to genetics as to food.
When I took over herd from old man I looked at the cows condition when they came in at autumn.
Some cows were fat as butter, others thin and boney.
All ate same grass. So some convert it better. I culled all poor cows and kept heifers off the fat ones.

Bulls took off mothers at about 7-8 months at end of summer.
Put on rolled barley with bit of protein mixed in. Once onto it then kept ad lib.
Same with clean straw to eat.

That's it. No fancy feeder wagon multi ingredient stuff.

are you creep feeding them with the cows?

 

[Hfd Cattle]

Is there a demand for young fattening bulls? Iv always cut mine a few days old but fancy trying to leave a few whole. I sell 50% of mine 10/11 months and the rest I finish at home. Usually get U/R grades. What grades would you get with bulls? Most are lim/blue/AA few shorthorn cows, all sired by blue/lim few char.

Huge demand around here for young fattening bulls atm. Seems like the optimum age for selling in Hfd is 8 to 12 mths.
Get them to about 380 to 420 kilo and the buyers are going mad for them . Have sold 48 in the last couple of months (not all in market ) and they have returned good money . Even the tailenders last Thurs ave 920 and the year were not the prettiest .

 

[d williams]

Huge demand around here for young fattening bulls atm. Seems like the optimum age for selling in Hfd is 8 to 12 mths.
Get them to about 380 to 420 kilo and the buyers are going mad for them . Have sold 48 in the last couple of months (not all in market ) and they have returned good money . Even the tailenders last Thurs ave 920 and the year were not the prettiest .

is that on a normal market day or monthly sale I have a few I may try was going to cut them to graze but prices are good so cash I think

 

[czechmate]

With the current price of cereal, I am surprised fattening is a popular idea at the moment
with c-19, our carcass price is the lowest for many years here, with the highest ever grain price, it’s not making a good mix

 

[d williams]

With the current price of cereal, I am surprised fattening is a popular idea at the moment
with c-19, our carcass price is the lowest for many years here, with the highest ever grain price, it’s not making a good mix

Don’t a lot of your bulls in France get exported also ?
A friend who moved there to farm said all his went to Italy to be finished

 

[Aspiring Peasants]

There seems to be a two tier market for bulls. Up here there is a strong demand for heavy bulls. Friend of mine had one at £2017 through the ring at Darlo last week. Weighed 825 kg and would be more than 16 months