Raising a calf?

[Deputy 14]

I know there has to be a cattle guy on here so here's the issue.  Myself and a guy I work with are planning to each buy a calf this coming spring to slaughter next fall, I've never been around cattle so any pointers will be appreciated on what they'll need fed for the best meat and health, what breed of calf should I get, etc. I'm in the dark on caring for them however I do half about two acres of fenced ground with plenty of grass. Anything you can give me would be a big help.

[va wingbone]

Try to find a beef breed (angus, hereford etc.) Stay away from dairy breeds( Holstein,  jersey,  Guernsey etc.) Alot of the dairy breeds get big but most of the time its more bone and muscle (meat).
Find some that are weaned 500-600 lbs bottle feeding is costly and the calf tends to grow alot slower.  Corn fed vs grass fed is a matter of taste some prefer one over the other,  I personally can't tell the difference in taste. Grass and hay are is cheaper but they will gain weight faster on grain.  Slaughter around 1000-1200 lb mark

[jblackburn]

The best chance for good beef will be starting with a breed known for good meat quality.  Typical breeds will be Angus, Hereford, Charolais, Salers . . . . A cross bred animal is also a good choice, it's hard to beat an Angus/Hereford cross, IMO, but an Angus/Charolais cross would be good, too.

Next will be feeding of the animal, no matter what breed you have, if it is fed poorly, the meat will be poor.  I personally prefer grain fed beef, specifically corn, but you can get to slaughter weight on roughages (grass/hay) but it will take longer (less energy dense feed) than grain.  If the animal is much over the 2-3 year old mark at slaughter, your chances of quality beef is diminished.

If you go grain and are feeding free choice (after you have SLOWLY introduced them to the grain to avoid acidosis (aka: founder)), you can expect 90 - 120 days on full feed, depending on the size of the feeder calf you buy. I would recommend buying at least a 750 lb calf.

Here's the math: Target slaughter weight = 1200 lbs; purchase weight is 750 lbs.  120 days of feed = a rate of gain of 3.75 pounds per day.  This is not out of the ballpark on rate of gain, but it is high, so you may actually get 2.5 lbs per day.  2.5 pounds per day @ 120 days on grain is 300 pounds.  So buying a 800-900 pound steer might be better.

If you go grass/hay fed, your time on feed will be much longer, so even though grain is higher, feed cost likely won't be that much lower because you will need to feed HIGH quality hay (e.g.., alfalfa) to get the results you want.

BTW, 2 acres of good grass might be enough for one animal, but not more.

I recommend contacting your local university extension livestock specialist for help,

[Deputy 14]

Thanks for the replies. I'm gonna give it a shot, may be a total disaster but I'm gonna try. The problem here is that there is really no one that raises cattle or farms to ask, one of the perks of living in coal country.

[jblackburn]

I assume by coal country that you are in either VA, WV, or PA. 

The cooperative extension service at one of these land grant universities should be able to help.

VT's extension service - http://www.ext.vt.edu

WVU's extension service -http://ext.wvu.edu

Penn State extension service - http://extension.psu.edu

These universities will have publications that can help you out, and they will have livestock specialists/agents with knowledge to help you out.