# finishing a dexter steer



## lakeviewwalker (Jun 26, 2013)

I am going to finish a dexter steer it is about 18 months it has been on pasture and hay till this point. I want to speed up the process And start graining him any advice on amounts and type of feed


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## cfuhrer (Jun 11, 2013)

We raised Holstein steers and they got 6 to 9 pounds of cob/allstock/sweetfeed twice a day.


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## biggkidd (Aug 16, 2012)

From what I have heard from those who finish Dexters you may want to wait another year. The meat doesn't get the marbling until around 27 months. I do not have first hand knowledge of this though. But you should check around and see what others have to say. 

I am curious though when you have a 1000 lb beef butchered how many pounds of beef do you end up with. In general, I know its some different from animal to animal.

Good Luck

Larry 
A World Away


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## G. Seddon (May 16, 2005)

In my experience, the chondro carriers finish a little earlier (~24 months) than the non-carriers (~27-29 months). The processors I've used will charge additional $ if the animal is over 30 months of age.

lakeviewwalker, I don't think you can speed up the process and improve the end product; if you want faster beef, get a commercial Angus X and butcher at 18 months or so. Also, processing fees around here are expensive enough that I think it's better to wait and get the most for your $$$.

I don't stuff them with a lot of corn or special feeds. They are on pasture with other cattle, they get hay and loose minerals, and about 1-2# of unmedicated, 12% stock grain per day, nothing fancy. (One steer that we did some years back was fed a lot of corn for a couple of months and I didn't like the end result at all.)

biggkidd, we just took one big steer in, 29 months old, non-chondro, hanging weight was 600# and what we brought home was 388# (no organ meat and mostly boneless cuts except for some chuck roasts). Unfortunately, I'm unable to get a live weight, but the processor said to multiply hanging weight by 1.67 (which would have made this steer 1002#). I don't know if that's good, bad, or what, but it's what we have.


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## ramiller5675 (Mar 31, 2009)

If I'm remembering it right, your hanging weight is about 60-65% of live weight, and after butchering your meat is about 55-65% of hanging weight. And, a grass-finished steer is usually on the lower end of that range.

So, a 1000 lb. steer will give you about 360-425 lb. of beef.


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## Sarah J (Jun 28, 2003)

We have a 29 month old heifer/cow going to the locker early next week. I am judging her to be only about 500-600# (we have a *really* small cow (her dam) and the bull is right around 900 - 1000#). If I remember I'll post her hanging weight when we get it.

Her "brother" is 13 months old and probably about 400# now. We never castrated him so he's gotten a bit more growth than a steer would. Likely selling him as a breeder rather than saving for beef, but that is giving us a good idea on the growth potential of our very small herd.


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## haypoint (Oct 4, 2006)

Feed plenty of corn to finish him off, 6-10 weeks should gain some marbling and eliminate that gammy flavor.


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## HuskyBoris (Feb 14, 2013)

haypoint said:


> Feed plenty of corn to finish him off, 6-10 weeks should gain some marbling and eliminate that gammy flavor.


pretty much how I have been doing it as well,,I also isolate the animal from the herd (of 6) for the 6-10 weeks.
I was at the sale monday night and 1200 to 1400# seems to be prime and went for 1.15 a lb and up,mine was at 960 and sold for .68 a lb but was more of a have to than want to sale,is it just me or is anyone else skeptical about commercial Angus x's for faster growing?
I just don't care for something that just isn't natural,,,oops,,didn't mean to hijack the thread


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## WJMartin (Nov 2, 2011)

I have a Dexter steer that has a processing date of Nov. 18th., he will be 29 months and about 700 lbs. I have really nice grass and as long as it holds that will be all I feed him, he gets a share of a bucket of cubes every 3 days or so. He will be the 6th that we have finished this way. One of these I fed grain to finish because grass wasn't good quality, drought conditions, was the worse tasting, but I really think that was the processor. 

The biggest difference in the meat I have noticed is the processor. We tried two other places, one I had used for years, the other only once and that was enough, the one we use now, Country Home, is wonderful. The last steer we had to butcher, broken ankle, and the meat is good, steaks are a little tough but not bad considering the condition of the steer, no "gammy flavor". Until we tried Country Home I didn't realize how much difference the processor could make in the tenderness and flavor, we only worried if we were getting "our" meat back.


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