price a cow to butcher??

[rhonda]

For the second year my cow has had a calf with contracted tendons. This year a heifer that didn't make it. Last year a bull --he did good after a few days. I am going to try to sell her as a cow for butcher but am not sure how to price her. She also has a bad udder. Any suggestions?? Rhonda

[rezzfullacres]

How old?? Are you going to price her live weight or hanging weight? Are you going to bring her to the processor and deliver the meat or is the customer going to have to do it? is it USDA or custom exempt processing?? Lots of questions to answer before you can price it out....

[rhonda]

She is 7 yr. old. I thought I would try to sell her at home and alive to someone that would take her to butcher. I can't eat her and thought what I can get would go towards replacing her..I intend on telling them she is for butcher.

[goldshaftdexters]

When we sell "on the hoof" for butchering we normally charge per kg what the sale yards are currently bringing. That way it is fair for all involved. You save on yard fees, the cow is normally taken straight to the abattoir so also misses the stress of the sale yards etc.
I hope this helps.

[rezzfullacres]

At that age she is not considered a prime animal and will not command the best price. Find out what the utility/canner grade of cattle are selling for around you and price her accordingly. Around here that is about $0.83 per lb, on the hoof, in contrast a prime steer is bringing about $1.65,(last week the range was 0.19 (old holstein) to 0.98 (older black cow still looked decent) per 100 for canners), Dexter cattle, around here, do not do well at the livestock markets they are heavily penalized for thier smaller stature..Check into your state regulations, it may pay you to have the animal slaughtered so you can split it up amoung several people and than you can charge for the hanging weight...Beef prices right now are very very high on the open market, selling one for beef is still not the easiest thing to do as many people do not have that much cash to lay out for a whole cow but split 2 or 4 ways it is very doable for most people and you get to maximize your profits...

[rhonda]

Thanks.. that is a good idea!

[kansasdexters]

Hi Rhonda,

When we have an older cow (or bull) that we want to cull from the herd, we try to make sure they are properly fattened on grass before we process them. It makes a big difference in the quality of the meat that the animal will yield. Animals that are properly fattened will have a layer of fat on the outside of their carcass which allows for that carcass to hang for 14 to 21 days and be "dry aged". With older animals, we have our custom processor cut the carcass in the following manner: Whole tenderloin roasts, 3/4" thick sirloin steaks, 3/4" thick ribeye steaks, the chuck is cut into mock tenderloin steaks, flat iron steaks and ranch steaks, the remainder of the carcass is prepared as lean ground beef. Because the animal is more than 30 months old, the processor does not save any of the organ meats or the oxtail (variety meats).

When we sell this meat, we let our customers know that it is "cull cow" and that it is specially discount priced for that reason. Since it goes through exactly the same finishing, inspection, and custom processing as our younger beef, the quality of the meat is very good. We always take a portion of it for our own family to try it and to make sure that it is delicious. That way we can guarantee what we sell.

If you choose to process the animal and then sell a portion of it, you will incur expenses (typically around $300 for processing and packaging) and it will take time and effort on your part to market, sell, and deliver the meat. If it's not worth your time and effort to do this, then you may want to consider just selling the cow as a cull cow at your local sale barn. You won't get much for her, but you won't have to do much either.

Patti

[rhonda]

I don't know Patti---you made me hungry for a steak! Maybe I can eat her!! Thanks for the info! Rhonda

[midhilldexters]

Rhonda, when you think about it, even if you put her into all ground beef and sold it for only $3 a pound you will get decent money for her. If she is say 800 Lbs and she hangs at 350-400 then you could get $1200 for her less butcher costs. So don't give her away to cheap.

Carol K

[kansasdexters]

Carol,

If the hanging weight is 400 lbs, then the actual meat yielded from the carcass will be about 60% of that weight: 0.6 x 400 lb = 240 lb. If all the meat is ground and sold for $3 per lb, then you could expect to get $3/lb x 240 lb = $720. If you subtract the cost of processing ($300), then the value of the cull cow is $720 - $300 = $420, and that is about what you might get if you took the cow to the sale barn. For a cow that weighs 800 lb on the hoof, that's $0.53/lb live weight.

Patti