This is Crazy over $10/pound!
- Thread starter sstterry
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midTN_Brangusman
Well-known member
$1,000 for a bottle calf. WOW
SmokinM
Well-known member
Wonder if they would like to buy a herd, heck I would sell them the farm and all the equipment too if I can get the same valuation. Somebody is either a whole lot smarter than me or a whole lot dumber than me.
WFfarm
Well-known member
It might be worth selling them once they can stand this year. I've seen the beef type bottle calves going $600-$700 at the local feeder sales lately, but $10/lb is a head scratcher. Maybe baby calves is the new gift to replace baby bunnies for Easter in the suburbs this year.
TexasJerseyMilker
Well-known member
My young Jersey is heavy bred AI for a heifer calf. I thought I'd buy an extra Jersey calf or two to raise on the milk and sell. Now I think I'll just get my 13 year old cow bred also. Cost- $70
It will take the calf away and dry her up, raise on a bottle. Lactation takes too much out of old Jerseys.
I plan to become a cattle magnate
It will take the calf away and dry her up, raise on a bottle. Lactation takes too much out of old Jerseys.
I plan to become a cattle magnate
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MurraysMutts
Well-known member
Lots of babies at 600 and up as of late.
Some crossbred babies will be cheaper. But still 400 plus
Some crossbred babies will be cheaper. But still 400 plus
Hpacres440p
Well-known member
What is the actual purpose of giving that much for a bottle calf? I saw someone say grafting onto heifers that lost one to sell pairs, but that's a big chunk of green to risk.
puzzled in oregon
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I would not want to hand milk the hind quarters on that cow.My young Jersey is heavy bred AI for a heifer calf. I thought I'd buy an extra Jersey calf or two to raise on the milk and sell. Now I think I'll just get my 13 year old cow bred also. Cost- $70
View attachment 42693
View attachment 42694
It will take the calf away and dry her up, raise on a bottle. Lactation takes too much out of old Jerseys.
I plan to become a cattle magnate
MurraysMutts
Well-known member
Math.
When they are selling as 6 wts for 1800 to 2000, I guess the juice is worth the squeeze.
I'm not brave enough to put a pencil to it.
The 2 I bought this year were 400 and 475. The cow is raising them. They will make money.
I was on their FB page, scrolling through posts, and in January they had a 3 day old, Ang X Holstein bull calf that weighed 176 lbs! Could you imagine getting $1700 for a 3 day old calf?!!! IN the post that @sstterry , they said those were beef cross calves too. Man, if they sold like that every where, you'd never wean another calf again!
farmerjan
Well-known member
Angus/hol cross calves here are bringing $6-900 .... and in PA a friend showed me that they had some that brought 9.70 /lb for 100 lb calves...
Yep it is crazy...
Got an old cow, smokey char x, that has been a good one, but her calf is small and she doesn't have much milk... probably going to split them, next time a trailer is going to town... can't justify keeping them since this was going to be her last calf anyway... let someone else deal with the calf at those prices.
Those prices are why so many dairy farmers are breeding half of their herds to beef now.... and why it is nearly impossible to find calves to graft on to nurse cows....
Yep it is crazy...
Got an old cow, smokey char x, that has been a good one, but her calf is small and she doesn't have much milk... probably going to split them, next time a trailer is going to town... can't justify keeping them since this was going to be her last calf anyway... let someone else deal with the calf at those prices.
Those prices are why so many dairy farmers are breeding half of their herds to beef now.... and why it is nearly impossible to find calves to graft on to nurse cows....
TexasJerseyMilker
Well-known member
Puzzled in Oregon said "I would not want to hand milk the hind quarters on that cow."
In 2016 while I was in Oregon a forest fire burned onto the Texas ranch and the cowboys evacuated all our cattle and horses across the river to the auction yard. She had a big steer calf on her which was taken away and sold. She stayed in a filthy auction pen with open teats leaking milk and big beef cows beating her up. Cowboys don't know anything about dairy cows. I came back about a week later she was back on the ranch burning up septic with fever and mastitis in all 4 quarters. I saved her with Baytril shots and good nursing care but she lost her two back quarters. She could still raise calves on those front two.
In 2016 while I was in Oregon a forest fire burned onto the Texas ranch and the cowboys evacuated all our cattle and horses across the river to the auction yard. She had a big steer calf on her which was taken away and sold. She stayed in a filthy auction pen with open teats leaking milk and big beef cows beating her up. Cowboys don't know anything about dairy cows. I came back about a week later she was back on the ranch burning up septic with fever and mastitis in all 4 quarters. I saved her with Baytril shots and good nursing care but she lost her two back quarters. She could still raise calves on those front two.
Sexed semen and embryos are a big factor! No need to have 50 percent of your calf crop as a loss of profit.
That and the ever decreasing number of dairy's are effecting the price. Dairy calf prices always spike in the spring as demand increases.
MurraysMutts
Well-known member
Watched a 140lb newborn charolais calf bring over 700 bucks yesterday.
Still had an umbilical! Bless his mamas heart...
Still had an umbilical! Bless his mamas heart...
Texas G@l
Well-known member
I was talking to a friend who's daughter and son in law dairy around the Stephenville area. They're
selling 2 day old bull calves for $800 a head!!! A guy comes by every other day to pick them up. That totally blows my mind.
selling 2 day old bull calves for $800 a head!!! A guy comes by every other day to pick them up. That totally blows my mind.
bird dog
Well-known member
Are the calves AI'd beef on dairy?
Texas G@l
Well-known member
For the most part but the guy is paying that for ALL bull calves. I can't wrap my head around those prices!
Dave
Well-known member
That really makes no sense to me when I see 500 pound Holstein steers bring less than that.
Texas G@l
Well-known member
Right?! If I didn't know the guy forever, I would have waved the BS Flag. Baby calves brought $200- $825 at the local sale this week.
farmerjan
Well-known member
Holstein bull calves here are bringing $5/lb and more, for the ones that are 85 lbs and bigger... about 2 months ago, I sold a 120 lb holstein bull calf I got off a dairy, their hutches were full, and they are 2 hours from the stockyard and won't go that far for 1 or 2 calves, which I understand..... along with a set of twin bulls that weighed about 60 lbs each... got just shy of $600 for the 120 lb calf, made a little, and KEPT the twins... they are on 1x a day milk, now and eating grain and all... might weigh over 100 lbs now but they will not bring those prices as they are "started calves" , they want "new" bottle calves for those prices... why, I am not sure, since the veal market fell apart several years ago... but this set of twins will make me money as feeders and they are not costing much to raise, and I have no purchase cost in them.
One of the dairies I test for breeds about 1/3 of his cows to beef... does not use sexed semen much, so gets some holstein bulls and some black calves male and female... and there is someone that comes once a week and gets all they have... paying upwards of $6-800 A CALF.... goes to 3 or 4 farms and gets them right off the farm... of course the calves have a better chance because they are not exposed to soo many germs and pathogens by going to the stockyards....
I can remember when you could not get near as much for a hol x angus(black) calf as you could for a straight hol bull calf... and buying bull calves off the dairy for $25-50 a piece... Holstein feeder steers; at 400-500 lbs, you would be very happy with getting $.50-.75 /lb..... now they are in the $2.00/lb range.
One of the dairies I test for breeds about 1/3 of his cows to beef... does not use sexed semen much, so gets some holstein bulls and some black calves male and female... and there is someone that comes once a week and gets all they have... paying upwards of $6-800 A CALF.... goes to 3 or 4 farms and gets them right off the farm... of course the calves have a better chance because they are not exposed to soo many germs and pathogens by going to the stockyards....
I can remember when you could not get near as much for a hol x angus(black) calf as you could for a straight hol bull calf... and buying bull calves off the dairy for $25-50 a piece... Holstein feeder steers; at 400-500 lbs, you would be very happy with getting $.50-.75 /lb..... now they are in the $2.00/lb range.
