Good Calf bad Calf

shy_boy

hey lads, i was the mart today and prices still seem to be very high for heifer calves y is this
Do you guys think that this price will get higher or lower come spring ??alot of fR bulls are around 100-150
what would be the difference if i bought them now instead of spring and feed them milk replacer and put them out on abit of grass over the winter ??

Farmer Pudsey

shy_boy wrote: »

hey lads, i was the mart today and prices still seem to be very high for heifer calves y is this
Do you guys think that this price will get higher or lower come spring ??alot of fR bulls are around 100-150
what would be the difference if i bought them now instead of spring and feed them milk replacer and put them out on abit of grass over the winter ??

You may find it hard to get small calves to grass during the winter. However if you can source good quality BF type calves and rear them well over the winter this will not be that more expensive than rearing in the spring the advantage is that you will have a calf that can go out to grass in early spring and make use of it. If done right these calves could be easily around 400kgs live weight the following Christmass. The biggest issue this time of year is that a lot of winter milking cows have a fari bit of holstein blood in them

shy_boy

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

You may find it hard to get small calves to grass during the winter. However if you can source good quality BF type calves and rear them well over the winter this will not be that more expensive than rearing in the spring the advantage is that you will have a calf that can go out to grass in early spring and make use of it. If done right these calves could be easily around 400kgs live weight the following Christmass. The biggest issue this time of year is that a lot of winter milking cows have a fari bit of holstein blood in them

thanks farmer pudsey, do know what kind of prices there will be in spring for calves?

simx

shy_boy wrote: »

thanks farmer pudsey, do know what kind of prices there will be in spring for calves?

if people could see that far into future everyone would be wealthy, depends on what calves youre talking about,freasin/cont. bulls/heifers etc but i presume you mean freasin heifers? theres a lot of factors that prices will depend on,i reckon they will be dear enough

shy_boy

simx wrote: »

if people could see that far into future everyone would be wealthy, depends on what calves youre talking about,freasin/cont. bulls/heifers etc but i presume you mean freasin heifers? theres a lot of factors that prices will depend on,i reckon they will be dear enough

ye fr /AA /OR HEX heifers or even a few fr bull calves if at the right price im only starting out and am trying to build up a herd so any advice AT ALL would be much apprciated

simx

shy_boy wrote: »

ye fr /AA /OR HEX heifers or even a few fr bull calves if at the right price im only starting out and am trying to build up a herd so any advice AT ALL would be much apprciated

would you consider buying some small weanlings now? less work and quicker return, was in a mart couple weeks ago 230kg fr bulls nice square types no bellys etc. 325e sorry i didnt throw another bid on

Farmer Pudsey

shy_boy wrote: »

ye fr /AA /OR HEX heifers or even a few fr bull calves if at the right price im only starting out and am trying to build up a herd so any advice AT ALL would be much apprciated

I go the weanling route as well bucket fed weanlings are a reasonable way to enter the sector at present. There are alot of Fresian weanlings in the 220-280kg mark that will be bought for small money making a profit at farming:eek: is a different matter.

Mac Taylor

As per the previous 2 posters, I would go down the weanling road aswell. At the moment the lighter weanlings are there to be had at reasonable money.

Alot less work aswell than trying to rear calves.

dzer2

Rearing calves is a major job if you are just starting out. You need to vacinate them assoon as they arrive then get them to drink after feeding you need time to watchthem for a while. You need to make sure they are not sucking one anothers navels if a calves ears are down runny eyes snotty noses and sscours have to be looked after straight away. You need to check them thouroghly at mid day until they are 10 weeks old. The milk needs to be mixed properly and and not let the calves drink too much. Its a steep learning curve and could be costly.

shy_boy

simx wrote: »

would you consider buying some small weanlings now? less work and quicker return, was in a mart couple weeks ago 230kg fr bulls nice square types no bellys etc. 325e sorry i didnt throw another bid on

if i was to get them at weanlings would i need to get them casterated ? Did you see any heifer weanlings if so what price ? thanks

bbam

simx wrote: »

would you consider buying some small weanlings now? less work and quicker return, was in a mart couple weeks ago 230kg fr bulls nice square types no bellys etc. 325e sorry i didnt throw another bid on

Was looking on DD yesterday as there were five BF bulls, April 12, advertised at €225. Surely mispriced !

OP I think it's an equard time of year for sucks. When they are weaned they'll be hanging round housed consuming hay/silage which adds to their cost. I'd rather buy them maybe 10 weeks before your grass will be ready. That way they go straight to grass when weaned and thrive well, also sucks hanging round houses are very susceptible to all sorts of ailments.

dzer2

bbam wrote: »

Was looking on DD yesterday as there were five BF bulls, April 12, advertised at €225. Surely mispriced !

OP I think it's an equard time of year for sucks. When they are weaned they'll be hanging round housed consuming hay/silage which adds to their cost. I'd rather buy them maybe 10 weeks before your grass will be ready. That way they go straight to grass when weaned and thrive well, also sucks hanging round houses are very susceptible to all sorts of ailments.

Was having a look myself fr weanlings are roughly 1.5 euro a kg with bigger ones a little over 2 per kg. They would be a better buy than calves at present

shy_boy

dzer2 wrote: »

Was having a look myself fr weanlings are roughly 1.5 euro a kg with bigger ones a little over 2 per kg. They would be a better buy than calves at present

1.5 euro kg and bigger ones a little over 2 per kg, how do you make this out?

dzer2

shy_boy wrote: »

1.5 euro kg and bigger ones a little over 2 per kg, how do you make this out?

Mart and dealers around here.:cool:

Good loser

shy_boy wrote: »

1.5 euro kg and bigger ones a little over 2 per kg, how do you make this out?

Divide price by weight in kgs. €400 for 200 kgs = €2 per kg.