Starting a sucker herd

[Tom19]

I am planning to start a small suckler herd 10-20 cattle, I know that money is limited in this system but it is more of a hobby hopefully to breed high quality commercial cattle. The question I have is where would you start,what animal would you choose to start your herd.
Would you choose well bred heifers from a suckler herd or dairy cross heifers
Thank you

 

[beefandsleep]

What sort of ground are you on, are you planning to out winter?
Whatever the system I would avoid dairy blood to be honest.
Something that milks well, a blend of British and continental breeds and a continental bull unless you want to go for the Angus premium.
[emoji897]

 

[Northeastfarmer]

You must be nuttier than squirrel turd

 

[beefandsleep]

You must be nuttier than squirrel turd

Like you yourself ?

 

[Tom19]

Good flat land,Cattle are housed during the winter.It will be all ai no stock bull

 

[Beames]

I did the same 3 years ago and everyone told me I was crazy but I now have a herd of 60 pedigree Angus cows. Do you own the ground or renting?

 

[Tom19]

It would be fancy cattle I would be looking at the Belgian blue and limousine crosses

 

[Tom19]

I did the same 3 years ago and everyone told me I was crazy but I now have a herd of 60 pedigree Angus cows. Do you own the ground or renting?

100 acres owned

 

[Northeastfarmer]

It would be fancy cattle I would be looking at the Belgian blue and limousine crosses

If you want to breed showy type calves I’d Personally be keeping blue x limmy cows, black ones...then ai them to a good limmy bull

 

[beefandsleep]

If all AI I would be for Autumn calving and Simi cows to the Charolais but a bit high in-put for my liking.
Northeast farmer won’t agree with me but I vote for spring calving stabiliser cows with an Angus or limo bull natural service cos that’s what I’m doing, not brave enough to buy a Charolais yet. I’ve tried blue cross cows and the calves are great but the cows are trouble in my limited experience.

 

[JP1]

Hi Tom. Where in the Country are you and what do you want to sell? If it's stores, I'd say weight still pays and a Charolais bull over a maternal Continental cow like a Salers would be the way forward.

Or pure Simmental cows with a Limmie or Blue bull for finishers ?

 

[Tom19]

If you want to breed showy type calves I’d Personally be keeping blue x limmy cows, black ones...then ai them to a good limmy bull

Would you say staring with good commercial limo heifers and then breeding to a blue to eventually breed the cow you want or invest the little more to start with the blue x limo heifers if that makes sense

 

[Limcrazy]

If your needing to ask the question and not intending to be with every cow at calving I'd say avoid anything with blue breeding in it you will need a lot of expertise in intervening at calving or your calving losses will make it an expensive hobby. Sim/lims or luings or saler/charlais might at least be able to calve themselves. Even pure lims would work well.

 

[DB67]

Do you want to sell calves at 8 months or fatten them?

limmy x cow with char calves if selling store. Go to a breeding sales in Kirkby, Carlisle or Stirling and you’ll get good 3/4 lims with Lim calves at foot. You can then ai them to whatever takes your fancy.

 

[John Chance]

Get some Salers heifers (Castle Douglas in Autumn or off farm now). AI them all to a Salers first time. Keep the heifer calves. AI cows twice to a Charolais. Weigh all calves. Pick out the best cows (lowest birthweights / highest 200 day weights) and put enough of them back to Salers AI to replace or expand your herd.

 

[Cowslip]

We have south Devon cows and put a saler over heifers and lim on the rest, milk well and do on poor grass no creep, calves look like pure lims, they sell very well as stores and fatten easily, also very easy and quiet to handle.

 

[Old Spot]

Ok, I will stick my head above the parapet, I started a suckler herd 4 years ago Stabiliser.
we always had a few rare breeds about.
they are a pleasure, easy care, calve on their own, calves grow like weeds, selling my first batch this spring direct to a butcher
he wants them 500-550kg they are gone so quickly good price and excellent feed back on KO and from customers who love it. 70 cows at moment on herbal leys
good maternal line breed pure or then use a terminal sire
good profitable breed IMHO

 

[delilah]

You must be nuttier than squirrel turd

It's 100 acres of good land, owned, with buildings.
Presumably with some element of taxpayer support.
Like the man said, it's a hobby.
Hobbies aren't meant to make sense, that's what defines a hobby.

 

[John Chance]

The basic breeding choice is maternal beef cows (Devons, Shorthorns, Stabilisers, Salers, Sims, etc) or dairy cross cows. First lot can be self replacing, high health, possibly with EBVs, more expensive to buy; dairy crosses can be a bit hit and miss, rarely high health, can be bred to a maternal beef breed bull for replacements, cheaper to buy.

 

[Al R]

A friend had a herd of pedigree herefords but now it’s mostly Hereford x lim, fantastic cows/calves and not too big when cows, easy calving etc - one of the best herds I’ve seen and if I had cattle it would be them!!
I don’t know much about Angus but I’d say Hereford x lim x Angus would be a good animal.