Calf Prices 2015 *** DISCUSSION THREAD

Cavanjack wrote: »

Yeah they probably are worth that now but what if this this time next year the calves I buy now for €150 are only worth €400 or less. If nothing is exported the country will be awash with them and that's all they will make. Wouldn't be much out of them then IMO. I'm sure someone here has good figures as to what it costs to keep a Friesian bull calf for a year.

Reggie. wrote: »

Puds is your man

Allow for a bag of milk powder, 70 kgs calf ration, 200kgs of a good beef ration, bale of straw, 25/head for veterinary, testing and mortality, 50 for grass and a euro/day for first winter period and add in 30 euro for miscellaneous. In my case it comes to about 300 euro. At that you should have a good calf at 12 months.

Now that Reggie is recommending me I have to keep my wits about me he the sharp lad at the calves.

AP2014 wrote: »

Lads, what's the story with with burying dead calves nowadays? Do you have to have proof it was taken away to the knackery? How much does this cost besides the obvious loss of this calf?

Back in the day when we had calves, digging a few holes on the farm a few times a year was all part of the job. If ya had calves now would you get away with taking the shovels out?

not allowed around here anyway, 25 euro disposal cost to knackery if they collect

AP2014 wrote: »

jesus that's not too bad and how much if ya deliver so to speak?

dont know, never delivered them

milkprofit wrote: »

I have 25 u can have for 80 e

just over 3 euro each

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

Allow for a bag of milk powder, 70 kgs calf ration, 200kgs of a good beef ration, bale of straw, 25/head for veterinary, testing and mortality, 50 for grass and a euro/day for first winter period and add in 30 euro for miscellaneous. In my case it comes to about 300 euro. At that you should have a good calf at 12 months.

Now that Reggie is recommending me I have to keep my wits about me he the sharp lad at the calves.

Good man pudsey and that's before you've a few quid for yourself. Add in purchase price and you are better off buying them at a year old when most of the work is done. Or better still buy a meat factory and get farmers to do all the work for nothing or at a loss and deliver them to you where you can process them and make a fortune

Anyone know what fr/ho heifer calves making? Ebi near 200. All munster ai bulls

Milked out wrote: »

Haven't heard but if dams have good records behind them they could range from 350 to 6 or 700 hundred depending on pedigree and age maybe only guessing as hhaven't sold recently

Iv some surplus 1s to sell. Dnt know what to ask for them. No milk recording here. Had a great run of heifers to fr bulls this year

whelan2 wrote: »

i dont know are people feeding over quota milk to calves? Lad who buys my calves said he hasnt had anyone on to him looking for calves to drink the extra milk, he covers a big area.

They are down the south whelan. Well were a while ago anyways

There's a lack of FR calves it seems
‘No glut of black and white bull calves this year’ http://www.agriland.ie/farming-news/no-glut-of-black-and-white-bull-calves-this-year/

PatQfarmer wrote: »

Propoganda...to keep the price up!:cool:

Do you go around wearing tin foil hats too

PatQfarmer wrote: »

Propoganda...to keep the price up!:cool:

No more likly an obersvation. If you recall some of us predicted that when quota's ended that as farmers maxed there cows on the milking platform they would switch back to HE and AA bulls. Calves born this year will not be in the herd until 2017. Many dairy farmers are running quite young herds as they have culled hard over last few years trying to keeb young stock in herd,

As well you will have this and next years heifers to come into the system. It is not so much a floor under fresians rather if he is right I be slow buying coloured calves as they are pricy and will influence amount of beef produced over next few years

Reggie. wrote: »

What ya mean puds?

HE and AA calves are not suitable for export. This means they will be retained in the country. If there is a lot more of them it means that there will be a lot more cattle in the kill from 20 months time on

frazzledhome wrote: »

Sold 20 today
12 fr 147- 60 Ave age 12 days
8 Jex 40-20 same age

Older 3wks fr 90-150
4 wk Her heifer made 300

We're they "proper" black jerseys, or friesany looking kiwi cross types Frazz?

frazzledhome wrote: »

Jet black like AA with horns

Had 20 more out today
Average 10 days all BW fr made 50-110
One black Jex super calf 3 wks old as registered as heifer and had to change card made €100 :)
Lad that bought him rang this pm in a strop saying I declared him as fr. I did no such thing but auctioneer did.

Yer man was horsing I told him to throw up the calf, he said he wouldn't as calf would be returned to me I quickly assured him the calf wasn't coming back here

I know his issue is with the mart but agreed to sort out a discounted fr calf next day I'm there, cause I'm a nice guy I was in good humour when he called

Tell him he can keep the calf for the price that the under bidder was willing to pay!

Farmer Pudsey wrote: »

Are the Fr crosses back from JEX cows or are the Fr. Some JEx come as B&W as well these tend to be better beef animal than the black JEx's.

The problem with calves is that if they get a lot of milk for first 3-4 weeks it can be hard to judge in ring. Swiss reds are the same if well done you nearly think they were Charleys at 3-5 weeks of age,

You're a good man for the tricks FP. Hope you hadn't to learn from experience

restive wrote: »

With the expansion of the dairy herd should there not be a glut of freisan bull calves?

There still on farm drinking overquota milk. They will be appearing in a mart near you soon.

F.D wrote: »

if hex and simx calves stay up at the prices there at at the moment
we will have to think about changing our calf to beef system longterm
been asked up to 420 for the simx and 380 for hex, in reality paying 390 and 360 for 4-5 week old calves
but only 2 years ago we were paying these sort of prices and we got seriously burned last autumn when finishing
the only people that are winning over all are the dairy people selling them first hand (and fair play to them)

Can't see the prices start lying that high for too long l. By the end of march all calves will be on the market as the quotas go. Dairy men won't want to feed them then

AP2014 wrote: »

Calf prices should drop alright, will wealing/yearlings drop though?

Hard to know. The American prospect might keep the price high. Not many cattle out there for slaughter

F.D wrote: »

younger calf prices might drop as they will be a later calf to get out to grass etc
but the calf nearly reared by the dairy man i reckon will still demand a stong price as the work is done rearing him, i even see some guys around me have none bought yet in the hope they will pick them up reared at handy money

They will be nothing cheap but prices will ease a bit. That's my prediction anyway