# How to know when a Holstein steer is ready to be processed?



## sassafras manor (Dec 5, 2009)

We have a couple of nice looking Holstein steers that were born in April of 2010 that I am wondering when they will be ready for the freezer. We have raised Angus in the past for the freezer on grass until they were right at 2 years old with great success. Once they are about 45 days out we start to ramp them up to 1/5 bushel of grain 2x a day but they already look good and full at that point. With these 2 they have a really nice frame built and their ribs are well covered but yiou can still see their hips. I was wondering if there wee signs I should be looking for to determine when to move them onto feed or just wait until early next spring as they approach their 2nd birthday.
Thanks - Matt


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## allenslabs (Feb 6, 2005)

You simply walk out into the pasture and ask them if they are ready. The first one that starts jumping up and down and acts excited....there's your winner!...........:hysterical:

Sorry. I had to. LOL! 

Seriously though, when we decide to get one shipped off, we shoot for around 800lbs for our beef calves as that is what works for us. Some wait a lot longer. I've read on here where some wait till they are closer to 2 and others around 18 months. Hope that helps????


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## olivehill (Aug 17, 2009)

I don't think you're going to get them to where you _can't_ see their hips. They're holsteins, the epitome of dairy animals. They're going to retain that dairy topline no matter how much you feed them.


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## rancher1913 (Dec 5, 2008)

if you want the good cuts of meat ship them before they are 2, otherwise all the spine and head go down the tubes due to the risk of mad cow. remember to get your appointment now for when you want it, our lockers are usually two months out and with hunting season getting close they will be booked for 4 or 5 months out.


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## sassafras manor (Dec 5, 2009)

Yeah I thought about asking them who wanted to go first but figured that would only lead to an arguement like it does with the kids!

I know when we finished Angus, we would watch their tail head to see when fat would accumulate around the base of it and when their rear end was full and round. I was not sure if a Holstein would have the same characteristics from behind or not. I know the topline of their back is a few inches over 52" tall simply because that is the height of my top stand of barbed wire. I just thought that if they were close, I might try to set an appointment with the processor for late fall after harvest but yet I do not want to take them intoo soon.
Thanks - Matt


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## sassafras manor (Dec 5, 2009)

Maybe if any of you had side and rear pictures of finished dairy steers if might help me out a bit. Thanks -Matt


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## Brady (Jun 23, 2011)

I asked the same question to a rancher. She said, "When I look at it and the first thing I think is "Yum!", it's ready."


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## Slev (Nov 29, 2003)

..when the [email protected] thing jumps the fence, ...a second time...!


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## sassafras manor (Dec 5, 2009)

They are getting pretty feisty as it is....they were raised as bottle calves and tend to forget that they are considerably larger now than when they were on the bottle. We have been lucky in the sense that we have not had one pressure the fence but we have new fencing with the top strand at 52" plus a hot wire on the inside to help with the goats.


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## KIT.S (Oct 8, 2008)

Can one tape a cow like a pig? Is there a formula for figuring the weight of a cow other than having it stand on your foot?
We're planning on "veal" at around 350 pounds by Christmas, but these are our first calves, so wondered what 350 pounds looks like.
Kit


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## stifflej (Aug 11, 2008)

I would also love to see some pics of finished Holsteins, i have 2 on pasture now, hoping to have them ready next spring/summer, but not sure what to look for either. Some pics with a description of what to look for would be great advice from those who raise many of them. Thanks.


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## oregon woodsmok (Dec 19, 2010)

Somewhere between 2-3 years of age.

He won't put on much meat until his bones stop growing and a Holstein is _really_ big.

The meat I've had from Holsteins was really lovely. Very fine grained and a great flavor.


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## KnowOneSpecial (Sep 12, 2010)

I' in the same boat. My steer was born in mid April .2010. He's my first I've raised, so I don' t know when to send him in.I was going to send him in late Oct. Or early Nov.


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## bantams (Sep 7, 2003)

Here's a thread I started several years ago about when to butcher a Milking Shorthorn (similar to a Holstein). Hope it helps!

We had him slaughtered in November at 2 years, 3 months, and 1500#, completely grass-fed.


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## sassafras manor (Dec 5, 2009)

Bantams - thanks for the link to the thread from the past, it was exactly what I was looking for. Based on those pics we still have some time ahead of us to fill out the brisket otherwise we are pretty close. I think we will wait until next spring as they approach 2 years old.
Thanks again - Matt


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## francismilker (Jan 12, 2006)

My butcher says a dairy steer never "finishes". He just keeps growing. The feed bill and the freezer level dictates when we send one to the processor.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

I've heard in CA their are feedlots which grow out nothing by Holstein steers. Almost all come out as USDA choice or prime.


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

> I've heard in CA their are feedlots which grow out nothing by Holstein steers. Almost all come out as USDA choice or prime.


same in WI

Neighbor used to grow several hundred every year, he says 









We usually do ours at 18 months and then only have to feed them through one winter.


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## mozarkian (Dec 11, 2009)

We butcher anywhere from 800 pounds up, depends on when the freezer says do it! We get there a little quicker because we do feed grain and grass.


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## sassafras manor (Dec 5, 2009)

In your experience, when they are processed at 18 months, what are the raised on grain or grass and are they finished on full feed or supplemental? What is the live weight vs. hanging weight?
Thanks


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

we do not "finish" our steers. They are usually on pasture/hay and some grain (4-6 pounds)till the day the processor arrives.
I didn't tape the last two I did but got around 650 pounds hanging on each.


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## Ken Scharabok (May 11, 2002)

I can't speak from experience, but I suspect your steer will hear (smell) the processor truck arrive, perhaps changing the texture of the meat. If this is the case, can you have the processor stop about a mile down the road, call, you pop the steer when its head is in a feed bucket?

I once took a yearling bull calf to a processor for someone. He absolutely, positively refused to leave the trailer. Had to be roped and pulled off.


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## sammyd (Mar 11, 2007)

I walked the last three right out to the spot the guys wanted for hooking him up to the winch.


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