# "finishing" a Jersey steer



## PaintedTaz (Jan 24, 2012)

I have (had) two Jersey steer. We took one to the processing plant yesterday and he weighed just over 600 pounds. The folks at the plant said he looked fine, but I think he was very lean in his hip area. 

The pictures that I see of healthy Jersey steer at this age look more filled out in the hip area. How can I put more weight on my steer without just making him fat? Or is that what I want? (I have dewormed as prescribed by my vet)

The steer that we took had a nice round belly, bright clear eyes and was otherwise healthy in all ways. I just hated how boney he looked in the hip area. I know that Jersey never get as bulky as angus breeds but this guy just didn't look great to me...

We live in central NC and as told by some of the local veteran farmers, we took our steer off hay and pasture for the last 30 days prior to taking him to the processing plant. When we got there, they suggested 60 - 90 days off hay. I have no problem with this if I can keep the weight on the steer. We were feeding (pretty much) free choice grain, free choice minerals, free choice water and a very small amount of hay daily.

Can anyone offer any advice? And, please, be kind. We are newbies. This is my husbands project and these are our first cows. In the future we will have belted galloway or angus but these guys were our "starter" stock to see if we could do it. 

The end goal is to raise healthy beef with no steroids, antibiotics and a more "natural" stock of beef to eat. Thanks for your time, consideration and advice! :cow:


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## kycrawler (Sep 18, 2011)

600 lbs is just about when his frame shoule be done growing . Now is when you should be pouring the feed to them when they hit 1000-1200 they look pretty well filled out takes about 2.5 years sometimes 3


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## springvalley (Jun 23, 2009)

kycrawler said:


> 600 lbs is just about when his frame shoule be done growing . Now is when you should be pouring the feed to them when they hit 1000-1200 they look pretty well filled out takes about 2.5 years sometimes 3


Going to take a lot of grain to get a jersey steer to 1000-1200 pounds. Yes you will have more meat and a lot more fat. I have been feeding mine out on less grain, and I kinda like it. You did about all you could do with your steer, other than keeping it a bit longer. Jerseys are just going to be boney in the hip area unless you pour the grain to him. Just enjoy your lean tasty jersey meat, and wait for the next one. > Thanks Marc


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## kycrawler (Sep 18, 2011)

I feed them silage , soyhull pellets and ddg pellets and free choice hay till the holstiens hit about 1200 and about 900 on the jerseys then finish them on grain and hay . At finishing time a jersey steer will eat 20 lb of grain a day but i have found the silage and ddg /soyhull pellets dont taste as good as finished on grass and grain or hay and grain


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## Callieslamb (Feb 27, 2007)

We don't bother with a formal finishing. We just feed them an extra gallon of corn 2x a day for a couple of months along with a gallon of grain each day. I can't imagine trying to afford feeding a steer ONLY grain and no hay. I thought their digestive system needed the roughage to function properly.

We took one in at about 1000 lbs. at about 17 months. Another at 800 lbs at 14 months. The only difference I noticed was that the steaks are smaller on the 800 lb one. We are shipping another one tomorrow - he will only be about 700 lbs. He's getting to rough for me to be out in the corral with him so he has to go. We don't like shipping them that small, but sometimes fate sticks it's foot in there.


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## francismilker (Jan 12, 2006)

I do it similiar to callieslamb. I let them grow on milk and grass until the freezer starts looking empty and then I pen one of the jersey steers and feed grain for a month or two. I love jersey meat. The hamburger is so lean you don't hardly need to drain off any excess grease.


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## Izitmidnight (Oct 22, 2011)

All our beef for the house was grass fed.


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## DroppedAtBirth (Sep 23, 2010)

Great Uncle (82 years old and raising cattle his whole life) has me finishing my jersey/angus cross on an alfalfa triticale mix he picked up. I can let you know how he turns out if you like. He'll be going to "freezer camp" before too much longer.


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I have been raising Jersey steers for many years now. And the last 4 months I joust feed grain. I have built then up and start at about a year old just having them eat as much of a brian mixture they want. It is a homemade recipe that a friend made up for horses~!!!
And those last 4 months because shipping them off to get butchered. One steer with consume over 400 pounds of that grain mixture.
And but he time these steers are around 16 months old that is about the time I get too hungry to let them get any fatter, LOL, and they are between 900 and 1,000 pounds. 
And will yield between 400 and 450 pounds of the most tender and sweatiest meat that you will even eat. YUM.


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## momofseven (Oct 10, 2008)

we just had ours done in Nov. He was milk and grass fed up until the month before hi "date" then he was fed 4# of an organic grain a day, plus kept on the grass. He was 750-800 # hanging wieght (at 17 mos.), and the guy who did it said that he was absolurly perfect... excellent balance of meat to fat ratio. He finished 410# of really great meat.  He was on his mama until about 4 mos.


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## francismilker (Jan 12, 2006)

Good thread from a few days ago.


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## Wanda (Dec 19, 2002)

francismilker said:


> Good thread from a few days ago.



Days or years???????????


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## francismilker (Jan 12, 2006)

Wanda said:


> Days or years???????????


1064 days to be exact!!!!!
(give or take a few minutes.) :sing:


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## bja105 (Aug 25, 2009)

I am glad you dug it up.


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## Alaska (Jun 16, 2012)

WE just got our 3rd steer back from the butcher that has been finished on alfalfa (chaffhaye) for 2 months. Very happy and receiving great reviews from customers. Its not a cheap option but we are happy with results. Consistancy in the flavor is what we have been going for. 
Our pastures have a lot of different grasses, weeds and browse


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## Frosted Mini's (Nov 29, 2012)

Alaska said:


> WE just got our 3rd steer back from the butcher that has been finished on alfalfa (chaffhaye) for 2 months. Very happy and receiving great reviews from customers. Its not a cheap option but we are happy with results. Consistancy in the flavor is what we have been going for.
> Our pastures have a lot of different grasses, weeds and browse


Does it have to be chaffhaye, or do other sources of great quality alfalfa work as well? What kind of steers do you have? Are they free-choice fed on the alfalfa for those two months?


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