08/24/2026
Cattle size and feed efficiency. Couple weeks ago I sent in first heifer of the year, she weighed little over 1100 pounds. I couldn't even tell she was missing on the following moves, forage consumption barely changed. Last week I sent in a steer that was little over 1400 pounds, one of bigger ones we've sent. I could tell instantly he was gone the next day by how much forage was left in that days paddock, huge difference with just one animal removed. For a few years now our butcher weights have been increasing, due to being able to finish them out better. I still think most of our cattle are slightly larger framed than ideal for our system and we need to shrink our frame size slightly, I weighed our bull impact when I took him out to the cows and as a 5 year old mature bull he only weighs 1600 pounds, I believe he's frame score 2 to 3, which i believe is perfect for our system. Most of our cows are frame score 4 to 5, impact will create smaller daughters better suited for our system. Smaller cows eat less so you can run more cows per acre and have lower nutritional needs so they can maintain body condition easier. Shrinking our steer frame size will result in smaller market weighs and less beef per steer to sell but will also allow us to graze more steers per acre. I'm certainly not complaining about having a 1400 pound well finished steer to sell but I do think 1200 to 1300 pound steers and 1000 to 1100 pound heifers are the most ideal sized for our operation. They'll eat less, they'll allow us to run more head per acre, they'll finish out better, and they'll finish out earlier.
