How old is a 500 pound calf?

At 6-9 months of age the calves are weaned off their dams and placed in a field or pen with other calves of a similar age and weight. Most calves will weigh 500-700 lbs at weaning.

What is a 500 lb calf worth?

The long-term average is roughly 55 cents per pound of gain. For example, if the price of a 500-pound calf is $1.40 per pound and the price of a 600-pound calf is $1.26, the value of those 100 pounds of gain is $56 or 56 cents per pound.

How much is a 500-pound cow?

A 500-pound calf would cost about $700. Bred heifers cost a little more than 1.5 times the cost of a heifer. A bred heifer would cost about $1,300 to purchase. Full-grown cows can cost as much as $4,000 to $5,000 per cow.

How old are calves when they go to market?

Once cattle reach market weight (typically 1,200 to 1,400 pounds at 18 to 22 months of age), they are sent to a packing plant (also called a processing facility), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspectors are stationed in all federally-inspected packing plants and oversee the implantation of safety, ...

What is the best weight to sale calves?

Most cow-calf producers can add weight to 300-pound and 400-pound feeder calves without incurring significant costs, since these calves are nursing and grazing on pasture. Some producers can add weight to 500-pound feeder calves without spending more than the gain in value.

Castrating a 750 pound Bull

Can you butcher a 7 year old cow?

While it is undeniable that meat gets tougher as an animal ages, Danforth says it is possible to get flavorful and tender meat from an older animal.

How long do you raise a cow before slaughter?

These are called “finishing” cattle, and they are fed and taken care of until they reach around 1000-1200 pounds, which is usually around 18 months old. Once they reach their target weight, they are considered “finished.”

How much can I sell a calf for?

Calves are assumed to be weaned and sold at an average weight of 550 lbs. In the fourth quarter of 2020, steers in this weight range were selling for prices in the upper $130's and heifers in the low $120's, on a state average basis.

How much does it cost to raise a calf to slaughter?

If you retain ownership of the calves and they are the type of calf that can go through a growing period during the winter and grass pasture in the spring and summer, then to a short feedlot phase and the total cost after weaning to slaughter is about $520, then the total cost is $905 per head (using cow cost to ...

What is the best age to sell cattle?

Age at slaughter “typically” can be from 12 to 22 months of age for the high quality grade market. The reason for the range in age is that some calves are weaned and go directly to a feeding facility and are finished for slaughter.

Do bulls or steers grow faster?

Numerous studies have shown that under good growing conditions with regard to nutrition and other aspects of the environment, bulls grow about 10-20% faster than steers (reviewed by Field 1971 ; Seidemen et al.

How much does a 2 year old calf weigh?

The 2-year-old weighed 1,082 pounds (4.9), 3-year-olds 1,184 (5), 4-year-olds 1,255 (5), 5-year-olds 1,279 (5.1), 6-year-olds 1,301 (5.2) and the 7-year-olds 1,304 (5.2). One should note that cows keep growing until they reach 7 years of age in this data set.

How much does a 2 year old steer weigh?

With that foundation of our genuine heartfelt thanks to them, I'll go on to explain how the process unfolds. Lets assume an average sized two year olds steers weighs approximately 1,000 lbs; that weight is called the “live weight”.

How long does it take a steer to reach 800 lbs?

ADG it takes 100 days to reach 800 lb.

How many cows do you need to make a living?

Usually 2 or more. A cow usually has some fool to feed her, and they make a very comfortable living. Most of the time they get a job with water, an occasional conjugal visit, and plenty of grass and usually some shelter.

Is it profitable to raise cattle?

Beef cattle are generally the most profitable and easiest livestock to raise for profit. Beef cattle simply require good pasture, supplemental hay during the winter, fresh water, vaccinations and plenty of room to roam. You can buy calves from dairy farms inexpensively to start raising beef cattle.

How many cows can one person manage?

Combining current national average levels of labour efficiency with maintaining a reasonable working week of 50 hours per week over 48 weeks would mean that one person can effectively manage 60 cows.

Is it cheaper to raise your own beef?

Price-While the cost of feed can be a lot up front, the cost of natural grass fed beef is much cheaper to raise than to buy in the store.

How many cows can you have on 10 acres?

You may have heard a rule-of-thumb is that it takes 1.5 to 2 acres to feed a cow calf pair for 12 months. That means we should be able to have 10 to 13 cows. Let's see how this rule-of-thumb holds up. It looks like our rule-of-thumb held up pretty good, 11 cows on 20 acres, is 1.8 acres per cow.

How long will a round bale last a cow?

Thirty-six pounds of hay is close to one small square bale of hay per day, taking into consideration some waste. Conversely, feeding one large round bale of hay, to two or three steers or cows will last a few weeks.

Does bull taste different to cow?

It is not bad, just different in taste, texture, and color. Beef from the bull is lean with less marbling, whereas the beef flavor has a lot to do with marbling. That's what makes it slightly different, also the meat of a young and older bull tastes different.

Why are bulls not used for meat?

Bulls are usually not used for meat. Bulls are not castrated because they have desired traits that producers want to use for breeding. Typically, a sire will produce more calves in its lifetime than a cow, according to Extension Beef Cattle Breeding Specialist John L. Evans, Ph.

What cattle has the best meat?

Angus Cattle

Angus beef has become all the rage in recent years thanks to its well-marbled meat, which typically earns Prime or Choice grades from the USDA and is usually the highest-quality meat available in grocery stores.