Bottle Calves For Sale In Nc Craigslist (2024)

FAQs

What is the market price for bottle calves? ›

Calf prices continue to surge to new heights, with reports of newborn beef-cross bottle calves fetching upward of $1,000/head commonplace throughout the United States. Dairy heifer calves, too, have seen substantial gains in recent months, averaging in the neighborhood of $300-400/head.

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Stocker steers tend to bring more at the market. They go through less stress than bull calves because they have already gone through the stressful process of castration. Less stress means they will adapt quickly and begin to eat and graze for a better weight gain.

Calves are assumed to be weaned and sold at an average weight of 550 lbs. In the fourth quarter of 2023, steers in this weight range were selling for prices in the $230's per cwt and heifers in the $200's, on a state average basis.

The best time to sell calves is when the market is high. Traditionally, February and March are the best times of the year. During this time, wheat and oats are readily available for grazing and growing calves.

An orphan calf can thrive on a bottle. Producers may find that selling bottle calves as yearlings is a more profitable system than selling as calves as they generally are behind their peers in growth the first 6-8 months.

The cost of the calf will generally be based on its weight. The unit of measurement used to put prices on cows is CWT which stands for 100 pounds. For a beef cow, CWT is between $135 and $165. It is an average of $140 per 100 pounds.

Quality Beef Calves: 300.00 to 550.00. Light & Poor Quality Calves: 50.00 & down. Beef Steers: Under 400 lbs: 150.00-205.00; 400 to 600 lbs: 140.00-192.50; 600 to 800 lbs: 140.00-182.50; Over 800 lbs: 125.00-151.00.

But if you take the animal from 600 to 750, that is the most valuable gain in the feeder cattle complex.

The weaning program should last 45 days before calves are moved and sold, Banta said. He also recommends that on weaning day only the cow and calves are separated.

How do you sell calves? ›

Auctions are the traditional way of selling livestock. Most auction markets hold their sales on a particular day of the week.

The beef cattle outlook is positive in 2024. Tight supplies and stable consumer demand are expected to push cattle prices higher in the year ahead. Risks to the outlook come from the demand side in the form of U.S. consumers uninterested or unable to continue to pay for higher-priced beef.

Why You Should Consider a Bottle Calf: Bottle feeding is a great way to start your own herd. It is an excellent way to obtain your own non-GMO, organic, pastured beef (on the cheap) Bottle calves will not only become future milk and beef cows, they will also be your companions and friends.

What breed of cattle is most profitable? Angus: This is the most popular breed of beef cattle. Their meat quality is excellent and they provide 50 percent of their weight in the meat.

Whole milk can be used to feed baby calves. Calves should be fed daily approximately 10% of their body weight (1 quart of milk weighs 2 pounds). For example, a Holstein calf weighing 90 pounds at birth would be fed 4.5 quarts (9 pints) of milk daily or 2.25 quarts per feeding when fed twice daily.

The new Eco-scheme under Agricultural Practice 2 “Extensive Livestock Production” will promote traditional grassland farming practices at a minimum stocking rate (Livestock Unit per Hectare) of 0.10LU/ha and maximum stocking rate of 1.4LU/ha (or 1.2LU/ha under the enhanced option).

Bottle calves can give you a great profit margin, especially if you consider raising them with alternative/less expensive methods. You can easily raise some pasture if you have land, and provided you have a tractor, you can rent a no disk planter and plant winter rye or wheat to feed your calves on over the winter.