Belgium Blue

Waternotsoda

What are Belgium blue from friesian like to finish? Do the grade R

jaymla627

Waternotsoda wrote: »

What are Belgium blue from friesian like to finish? Do the grade R

Mostly would all come into r grade even of ropey enough cows, if you where using the real easy calving blues like new pole heartthrob you would of 40 odd percent not making the grade

Waternotsoda

I take it meal bill would be higher for blues?

Cavanjack

Blue out of a Holstein can be a huxr to get fat cover on.SYing that I Killed a big tall lad a few weeks ago at 450kg about 32 months. Plenty of meal in him. Was 3= for fat

kk.man

IMO They are easier finish in summer. Whatever it is about a bit of sun on their backs they take less meal.

patsy_mccabe

kk.man wrote: »

IMO They are easier finish in summer. Whatever it is about a bit of sun on their backs they take less meal.

They are so lean, they have no subcutaneous fat. They loose more heat in the cold weather months. Maybe that's it.

squinn2912

Are there many bb bulls you’d confidently use on heifers (suckler heifers)

CloughCasey1

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

They are so lean, they have no subcutaneous fat. They loose more heat in the cold weather months. Maybe that's it.

I've one gone overage here. Will test that theory next week. Had a SIX who was a week older go last week kill out at R- 5- no 8c + 10c cut for weight + 24c cut for fat. They both on farm same length of time and would have got the same feeding.

Also sent another one 2 weeks ago just under weight limit and under 30 mts r- 3-

memorystick

They’re not thought a lot of in America or Canada

bogman_bass

squinn2912 wrote: »

Are there many bb bulls you’d confidently use on heifers (suckler heifers)

Personally, no. But if you were to go down that route SRI if you could get any strays of his.

Lady Haywire

squinn2912 wrote: »

Are there many bb bulls you’d confidently use on heifers (suckler heifers)

BZC perhaps. Would need to have height to the heifer though, noticed calves can be a bit butty.

CloughCasey1

CloughCasey1 wrote: »

I've one gone overage here. Will test that theory next week. Had a SIX who was a week older go last week kill out at R- 5- no 8c + 10c cut for weight + 24c cut for fat. They both on farm same length of time and would have got the same feeding.

Also sent another one 2 weeks ago just under weight limit and under 30 mts r- 3-

Bbx went r= 3- 441kg 33mts

squinn2912

CloughCasey1 wrote: »

Bbx went r= 3- 441kg 33mts

Could you have started him on finisher ration earlier to get him ready underage?

Anto_Meath

I like BB and they feed well on my farm, I would defiantly have them ahead of SM as I am constantly getting disappointed with any of these I buy, SM's never grade like I think they should. But what I find with BB's is they are very dear as sucks as they look flashy in the mart with their bellies full of cows milk, you would rarely see a BB calf bull or heifer making less than €300 around us, with good ones making over €500 at times. They are a nice quite bred of animal to work with.

squinn2912

Anto_Meath wrote: »

I like BB and they feed well on my farm, I would defiantly have them ahead of SM as I am constantly getting disappointed with any of these I buy, SM's never grade like I think they should. But what I find with BB's is they are very dear as sucks as they look flashy in the mart with their bellies full of cows milk, you would rarely see a BB calf bull or heifer making less than €300 around us, with good ones making over €500 at times. They are a nice quite bred of animal to work with.

We got a Charolais bull in 1998 after having gone ai for years with the dairy herd. I remember checking cattle with my dad one evening and he forlornly said he’d miss the bb cattle about. They’re very likeable. But they don’t winter great and they’re dear bought. I don’t think you get value for money compared to the lim or Charolais. But they make a nice wee cow with a bit of style

Anto_Meath

squinn2912 wrote: »

We got a Charolais bull in 1998 after having gone ai for years with the dairy herd. I remember checking cattle with my dad one evening and he forlornly said he’d miss the bb cattle about. They’re very likeable. But they don’t winter great and they’re dear bought. I don’t think you get value for money compared to the lim or Charolais. But they make a nice wee cow with a bit of style

Yes they make great cows, good mothers with plenty of milk and can put good style into a calf. They do hate concrete alright, it tends to be hard on their feet. I find you can pick up a BBX's fairly reasonable as stores especially in the spring when they come out of sheds a bit raggy looking.

squinn2912

Anto_Meath wrote: »

Yes they make great cows, good mothers with plenty of milk and can put good style into a calf. They do hate concrete alright, it tends to be hard on their feet. I find you can pick up a BBX's fairly reasonable as stores especially in the spring when they come out of sheds a bit raggy looking.

A bit of blue in the cows is great and they often have that nice roany shorthorn look that we all love. Good way to kind of skip forward a generation of shape if there’s a fair bit of friesian in the breeding.
I think if they take a chill or any kind of setback they seem to be slow at recovering compared to lim/char.
Bull finisher I know didn’t like them at all but I think they’d be better squeezed and out on grass

CloughCasey1

squinn2912 wrote: »

Could you have started him on finisher ration earlier to get him ready underage?

What bubble have you being living in kid

bogman_bass

squinn2912 wrote: »

We got a Charolais bull in 1998 after having gone ai for years with the dairy herd. I remember checking cattle with my dad one evening and he forlornly said he’d miss the bb cattle about. They’re very likeable. But they don’t winter great and they’re dear bought. I don’t think you get value for money compared to the lim or Charolais. But they make a nice wee cow with a bit of style

I’d pick a blue over a CH any day. Fine if you are selling in the ring because the market is still obsessed with colour but I would never bid on one myself. Why pay €50-€100 for the colour of the coat?

Albert Johnson

bogman_bass wrote: »

I’d pick a blue over a CH any day. Fine if you are selling in the ring because the market is still obsessed with colour but I would never bid on one myself. Why pay €50-€100 for the colour of the coat?

I agree to a point that there may be better value in Blue weanlings compared to similar CHx types for the purchaser. However for the weanling producer Blue's are very specialized imo, there's usually no great interest in an average Blue calf where as the farmer will still buy an average CHx or LMx calf.

Blue's were a big thing locally about 10 year's ago but there very rare nowadays and there has to be some reason for it. If you go into any weanling sale locally in the autumn it's nearly a 50/50 split between CHx and LMx and anything else is a poor second unless top quality. Unless you've all good cow's consistently producing top quality weanlings then you'd be better off with a LM or easy calving CH bull imo.

That's not say that there isn't place for lads to produce them and some of the finest most even bunch of weanlings I've ever seen have been Blues out of cross bred cow's. However they haven't the same widespread appeal as CHx and LMx and that means a lot to anyone selling average type cattle through the live ring.

bogman_bass

I suppose that’s my point. Weanling buyers are very blinkered.

For me the blue out of a Whitehead cow is the most reliable bullock to finish off grass.
The BBxFr cow is the best cow going IMO.
But i’m Finishing my own stock so I don’t have to worry about how they look. Colour isn’t an economic trait for me.

squinn2912

CloughCasey1 wrote: »

What bubble have you being living in kid

None, granda. Reason I ask is because that’s how our bulls ended up too big and heavy last year. Squeezing this year’s boys