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Rearing Calves

jocksie

Hi There,

Bought few calves this year (early March) with the intention of getting the young fella interested. Got plenty of milk and getting meal all summer and plenty of grass and now they are in the shed still getting meal and silage.

Question is when do lads recommend selling them or doing with them? Mainly Heifers, Hereford and Aubrac.

Thanks

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older by the day

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058384172/rearing-calves

This is unusual year as prices for yearlings are very good all year. But most of us who rear a few calves, look at the window between st Patrick's day and may day to sell.

The subsidy hunters and gentleman farmers usually pick up a few for summer grazing. Unless you want to keep them on yourself. Less work than starting all over again with milk

Anto_Meath

@jocksie it kind of depends on how you are set up. If it suits you then you could bring them all the way to the hook as them type of heifers should beef up handy enough. Or as @older by the day said sell them next spring when the summer grazers are out & then reinvest in calves again & get a system going like that. 1 year waiting on a return on your investment isn't to bad, but if you are waiting 2 it's a bit harder, especially the first time.

_Brian

We usually wait until the second spring to start selling them.. once they hit 600kg we move them on to the mart, only small scale so we don't factory…

jocksie

so your bringing them in spring,feeding them for a summer and a winter and put to grass in spring before out the gate??

jocksie

are ye giving yers much meal when they are in the shed for winter??

_Brian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122968884#Comment_122968884

About 1.5kg 16% ration

From testing silage over years it’s average, but not sufficient to grow stock, housing period is too long to grow them so little, they have to be moving on. Last time we weighted there on housing we averaged over 0.8kg per day gain over the year

morphy87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122973046#Comment_122973046

Is that .8 in the shed?or is that over .8 between grass and the shed?

_Brian

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122973343#Comment_122973343

across a full year

For us it would take massive feed to get that per day housed and be expensive. We’re happy and making money bringing them on at that.

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