Fleckvieh Worth a gamble?

Madisonmenece

Was thinking about adding some Fleckvieh to our herd, being quoted 2.5k per in calf animal which seems Madness to be honest. Would only purchase a small number.

Also there seems a few company's importing, there must be a good risk of landing a yoke. Has anyone else bought imported fleckvieh and was it a success? Are there some companies landing better stock than others?

Currently hol/fr herd breeding slightly more toward fr the last few years on low input system.

Mooooo

Tbh I wouldn't bother. Figures they'll quote to you on output will be from cows or crosses being fed a serious amount of feed. Have 5 milking here, hol/ fr are giving out the same amount of milk but eating less the fleck are 50 to 100kgs heavier. Also gestation lengths are long enough with them which could lead to harder calving. Try a few if you want but wouldn't be paying 2.5k for em
Edit 5 crosses milking

Madisonmenece

Jjameson wrote: »

There’s a new large scale enterprise started near here, all imported from Germany. They look well from a beef farmers point of view .

I suppose the higher bull calf is attractive but more so would be improved fertility and additional lactations. We averaged 622kg of solids on approx 600 kg of meal, not sure they will do the same and at the high investment cost they would want too

jaymla627

Madisonmenece wrote: »

Was thinking about adding some Fleckvieh to our herd, being quoted 2.5k per in calf animal which seems Madness to be honest. Would only purchase a small number.

Also there seems a few company's importing, there must be a good risk of landing a yoke. Has anyone else bought imported fleckvieh and was it a success? Are there some companies landing better stock than others?

Currently hol/fr herd breeding slightly more toward fr the last few years on low input system.

Factor in that imported animals if and when you go to cull them are basically worthless as most factories won’t even entertain killing them and you’ll be begging to get them into ones that will at a severely reduced price, got stung here with a imported fleck bull with the seller swearing that you”d get him into a local factory no bother, was lies as said factory only killed foreign imported animals one day a year

Freejin

Madisonmenece wrote: »

I suppose the higher bull calf is attractive but more so would be improved fertility and additional lactations. We averaged 622kg of solids on approx 600 kg of meal, not sure they will do the same and at the high investment cost they would want too

Don't know much about Fleckvieh, but with that type of performance, I can't see how they would add anything to your system overall!

Timmaay

Short answer, don't bother.

mahoney_j

jaymla627 wrote: »

Factor in that imported animals if and when you go to cull them are basically worthless as most factories won’t even entertain killing them and you’ll be begging to get them into ones that will at a severely reduced price, got stung here with a imported fleck bull with the seller swearing that you”d get him into a local factory no bother, was lies as said factory only killed foreign imported animals one day a year

If you told him the bull was wicked you’d get him killed no bother

Sacrolyte

Freejin wrote: »

Don't know much about Fleckvieh, but with that type of performance, I can't see how they would add anything to your system overall!

Plus one on this. Keep doing what your at. If your that itchy buy a goldfish.

Tonynewholland

mahoney_j wrote: »

If you told him the bull was wicked you’d get him killed no bother

When they see the red card you’d be told where to go with your animal

mahoney_j

Tonynewholland wrote: »

When they see the red card you’d be told where to go with your animal

I know of 2 bulls killed when this was said one a uk Fr bull and another Austria. Fleck,neither bull was cross as regards price no idea but I’d say a penalty

Tonynewholland

mahoney_j wrote: »

I know of 2 bulls killed when this was said one a uk Fr bull and another Austria. Fleck,neither bull was cross as regards price no idea but I’d say a penalty

Maybe just the factory near me so. I had bring a cow home again once.

visatorro

Jjameson wrote:

There’s a new large scale enterprise started near here, all imported from Germany. They look well from a beef farmers point of view .

Thats what I thought when I seen a couple of them. You see them referred to as simmental as well. Around 15 years ago if you hadn't a herd of montys ,rotbunts, Swedish Red or normonde you were at nothing. Jersey was considered a different type of cross. Maybe these yokes will be different but I'll let someone else pay the big bucks to find out!

Madisonmenece

I think I'd prefer to hold off or maybe invest in quality Irish bred stock with real figures attached.

greysides

There are disease implications to importing too. At least at the moment, it should be the vector-free season for Bluetongue. Apart from currently exotic disease, there is also the risk of new strains of existing diseases (IBR, Mortellaro, mastitis. etc.)

weatherbyfoxer

reared 10 pure bred fleck bull calves here to beef thinking they would be miles ahead of the fr x aa and he...never again..harder finished than any beef crosses out of friesian cows and all graded O=...definitely look the business in for the daily man selling and will make continental calf money in the ring but wouldnt be expecting repeat customers for them..imho

patsy_mccabe

Why not just try a few ai straws first. No outlay, no risk of introducing disease.

Castlekeeper

visatorro wrote: »

Thats what I thought when I seen a couple of them. You see them referred to as simmental as well. Around 15 years ago if you hadn't a herd of montys ,rotbunts, Swedish Red or normonde you were at nothing. Jersey was considered a different type of cross. Maybe these yokes will be different but I'll let someone else pay the big bucks to find out!

I'd put any if those breeds ahead of the Fleckvieh, and when used for cross breeding, ahead of the muck being sold then by Munster and Progressive.
Fleckvieh only good for carrying bells and yodelling in the mountains!

GrasstoMilk

Madisonmenece wrote: »

I suppose the higher bull calf is attractive but more so would be improved fertility and additional lactations. We averaged 622kg of solids on approx 600 kg of meal, not sure they will do the same and at the high investment cost they would want too

622 kg solids from 600kg concentrate? Nothing else only grass?

funkey_monkey

There was a fella on ETTG a few weeks ago who was working with them.
Maybe look it up on the RTE Player.

Morris Moss

GrasstoMilk wrote: »

622 kg solids from 600kg concentrate? Nothing else only grass?

Would have to be on a TMR you'd think.

charolais0153

Morris Moss wrote: »

Would have to be on a TMR you'd think.

Never let the truth get in the way of a good story

Dakota Dan

They are definitely hyped up, the majority are bred to extreme Holstein cows and fed TMR, when they are crossed with Irish cows you won’t be getting the same animal.