Dry Suckler Cows

farmer2018

I have some dry suckler cows to sell angus and hereford, ages varying from 9-12 years. Weights would be from 600 kg to 750kg. Where is the best place to sell them the mart or factory?

Bass Reeves

farmer2018 wrote: »

I have some dry suckler cows to sell angus and hereford, ages varying from 9-12 years. Weights would be from 600 kg to 750kg. Where is the best place to sell them the mart or factory?

We had this discussion on another thread the consensus was the mart

farmer2018

Is the consensus the same for pedigree bulls the mart over the factory?

patsy_mccabe

The problem with selling dry suckler cows is most suckler farmers are not used to dealing with factories. If the cows grade fat 2, you will be penalised big time. A neighbour here went a lame suckler cow to factory and he only got 1100. She was R grade but fat 2. He didn't deal with the factory much, so they took him to the cleaners. She was a smasher, by the way. You'd notice her if passing on the road.
Another neighbour rang the factory on his behalf and only got abuse. Sickening treatment of your customers.

Mac Taylor

patsy_mccabe wrote: »

The problem with selling dry suckler cows is most suckler farmers are not used to dealing with factories. If the cows grade fat 2, you will be penalised big time. A neighbour here went a lame suckler cow to factory and he only got 1100. She was R grade but fat 2. He didn't deal with the factory much, so they took him to the cleaners. She was a smasher, by the way. You'd notice her if passing on the road.
Another neighbour rang the factory on his behalf and only got abuse. Sickening treatment of your customers.

Agree with what you have written accept for one thing.....they don’t see us as their customer......an irritant at best and a complete pain in the whole at worst...this treatment of a companies supplier base is becoming the norm unfortunately as the race to the bottom becomes a sprint....

limerick farmer

I wouldnt agree that the mart is the best place to sell those cows or not our local mart anyway in a normal year the dealers share them out and youll get rode there better than any factory.

Bass Reeves

limerick farmer wrote: »

I wouldnt agree that the mart is the best place to sell those cows or not our local mart anyway in a normal year the dealers share them out and youll get rode there better than any factory.

At present with online if cows have flesh on them you have Northern bidders as well is processor's and dealers bidding against each other. Dealers are struggling to buy the heavier finished cow at present.

Some of the Northern processor's/ buyers will buy cows in 2-3 marts in one day. The

Following morning they collect the cows and get another mart on the way back or there an online buyers picking up cows for them on the way back up.

Rumour is 1-2 Irish processor's have started to do the same

farmer2018

Sold some dry cows yesterday they averaged 1.40kg, I was disappointed with the prices, I think I would have got more at the factory.

farmer2018

limerick farmer wrote: »

I wouldnt agree that the mart is the best place to sell those cows or not our local mart anyway in a normal year the dealers share them out and youll get rode there better than any factory.

I think your correct.

charolais0153

farmer2018 wrote: »

Sold some dry cows yesterday they averaged 1.40kg, I was disappointed with the prices, I think I would have got more at the factory.

Could bring them home then, its auctioneers job to sell and they will pressure you to sell, you'd often make a 90-100 on an animal in 2 or 3 weeks,

Base price

I watched some of the dry cows in Carnaross yesterday and heavy cows were on fire - €1.80 kg

Anto_Meath

There is about 5 good lads in Carnaross for good heavy and they tend to get stuck into one another from time to time, 1 of them in particular is great when he has an order to fill you wouldn't stop him, he is a good auld skin so regular enough you could see €2 /kg for cows. He stands outside and enjoys seeing the lads around the ring get flustered.

tanko

Anto_Meath wrote: »

There is about 5 good lads in Carnaross for good heavy and they tend to get stuck into one another from time to time, 1 of them in particular is great when he has an order to fill you wouldn't stop him, he is a good auld skin so regular enough you could see €2 /kg for cows. He stands outside and enjoys seeing the lads around the ring get flustered.

Is he from Ashbourne/North Dublin?

JeffKenna

farmer2018 wrote: »

I have some dry suckler cows to sell angus and hereford, ages varying from 9-12 years. Weights would be from 600 kg to 750kg. Where is the best place to sell them the mart or factory?

Probably a bit soft but I'd send them to the factory. I don't think they like the experience of the mart and it's a lot more dignified to send them straight there rather than make them do the rounds.

Anto_Meath

tanko wrote: »

Is he from Ashbourne/North Dublin?

He would be from that direction, he is a proud Meath man alright.

josephsoap

Has the northern interest in cull cows subsided here recently?

Like the OP have a few dry cows to cull - would you better taking them directly to slaughter?

TooOldBoots

Some amount of suckler cows on offer at Ennis mart today. Must be up on 500 cows in total, a lot of them young enough too.
Definitely an exodus out of suckling in progress.

Sugarbowl

Is the dry cow price in the mart on the way up again?

TooOldBoots

Sugarbowl wrote: »

Is the dry cow price in the mart on the way up again?

Same as the rest of the year, anything heavy and near fat enough for killing makes great money. Feeder cows are well back

Albert Johnson

TooOldBoots wrote: »

Some amount of suckler cows on offer at Ennis mart today. Must be up on 500 cows in total, a lot of them young enough too.
Definitely an exodus out of suckling in progress.

I don't know if it's a exodus as such. There's a few factors at play that lead to large show's of cull cow's at this time of year. Spring calver's are often scanned around now and empty cows are offloaded, there's only a few marts left until Xmas and we're approaching the end of autumn trading, the bad weather means it's time to either house or sell these cows. Good quality springers are dearer than ever and all types of incalfs are a good trade so lads are replacing culls for the most part.

As for the influx of young culls I always found that a large percentage of suckler's were culled for various reasons before there 3rd calf. Between calf mortality, cow's failing to go back incalf, mastitis, poor milkers ect there's a lot of things that can lead to a cow being culled in first few year's. I'd love to see what the average lifespan of a suckler cow is but I'd be surprised if it was more than 6-7 year's. For every cow that stays producing until she's 15+ there's multiples that were culled before there 5th birthday.

Any reasonably fleshy type cows are a good trade atm but backward store cows are coming back in price daily. There's not much heavy cow's left and anything reasonably fleshy is being bought for immediate slaughter. The bulk of the younger store cow's being showed atm are only suitable for putting back to grass in the spring. Some of the older or poorer cows are also being slaughtered straight away but the money is small. Most cow's locally would have been rearing a calf until sale day and the bad weather of recent weeks is showing on them.

FeelTheBern

Clearance sales of a few herds of sucklers this evening in Kilkenny. Watched some of it. Nice ch/lm cows 4/5 years old calving Feb/Mar bought at 1300. Older cows back 1200 and lower. Very odd cow made 14/1500.

Lad had bunch of SM x heifers off dairy stock - calving at 3 yo in Feb/Mar - Most made about 1200.

Think those fancy sales for 9K you read about have lads on donedeal driven delusional selling stock. Know real nice ones will always sell well but a day out at a mart can be a dose of reality.

Albert Johnson

FeelTheBern wrote: »

Clearance sales of a few herds of sucklers this evening in Kilkenny. Watched some of it. Nice ch/lm cows 4/5 years old calving Feb/Mar bought at 1300. Older cows back 1200 and lower. Very odd cow made 14/1500.

Lad had bunch of SM x heifers off dairy stock - calving at 3 yo in Feb/Mar - Most made about 1200.

Think those fancy sales for 9K you read about have lads on donedeal driven delusional selling stock. Know real nice ones will always sell well but a day out at a mart can be a dose of reality.

Those sort of prices would be run of the mill for a mixed bag as regards quality, age ect. I've found that suckler's in the south are often poorer quality but that's not a hard and fast rule by any means. What would it take to feed those cows from now untill calving in let's say early March? You wouldn't find putting €150 of fodder into those types and haulage/commission on top. Your cow at €1300 is now €1500 and calve her afterwards.

The older cows might be better value imo although they were probably bought to be calved and split afterwards. The calf goes into the suck ring and the cow is dried off and fattened. As for the springer heifer's they were probably showing there dairy ancestry, also the time to sell a springer imo is a month or less off calving. I can never understand lads selling springers as 5-6 months incalf as there neither one thing or another. The man that wants a springer now wants her on the point of calving and anyone not calving until Paddy's day won't buy her until February at the earliest.

As for the 9k type setups there based off a totally different way of working so it's a mute point in a sense.