Any cattlemen out there?

self | 12/3/2013 | TheRhinelander

[bikerman]

If you buy an animal in April, keep in next to your house and plan on killing it in October, your kids and your wife will have made a pet out of it by then, given it a name and they will refuse to eat it. Not only that, they will never forgive you for killing Suzie.

My neighbor had that problem with a big turkey he had, he killed it and prepaired it for thanksgiving but the kids wouldnt eat it. lol

[Harmless Teddy Bear]

My parents would raise rabbits for meat. I had one that was a pet and never could have eaten him. On the other hand the others who were called things like "stew" "sausage" "roast" and "braised" were quite tasty.

I fed them, watered them, cleaned their cages and petted them but they were food not friends.

[Chickensoup]

Any cattlemen out there? I’m thinking about raising one for meat.

I find cattlemen to be a bit tough. Make sure you marinate the meat overnight.

______________________________

You hafta take their boots off.

[Rodamala]

Oh, the farmer and the cowman should be friends.

[Yosemitest]

I've raised cows. I cut meat for a living for three years.

Cows are some of the ORNERIEST, dumbest animals on the face of the earth.
Save your trouble, save your money, and save your time.
Go to the grocery store and buy your beef already cut up.
You'll get a better grade of meat at a cheaper cost, and a lot less trouble.

[Ditter]

We have a Longhorn steer and his name is Meatloaf. :)

[TheThirdRuffian]

Not really in the USA, as of very recently.

In japan, they massage them and hand feed them and do all sorts of silly stuff that makes the cattle very expensive. Turns out all you need to do to get the same effect is free range the waygu somewhere hot and with the right mineral balance in the water and soil. -— conditions found in far west texas and eastern New Mexico.

You should read the Wikipedia article on them — pretty accurate. They have very unique omega 3 fats and are packed with good kind of cholesterol.

[Rodamala]

I know of some fairly large ranches up and down Highway 19... hard to imagine the costs for supplemental hay during droughts... and the stories I have heard of cattle winding up eating mesquite beans and dying. Always got a kick out of seeing the cattle standing on a well pad with the pumpjack pumping away.

[tumblindice]

I’m raising a mastiff and a bulldog and my backyard resembles a feedlot at times.
It’s a good idea not to name your livestock or you may not be able to eat them.

[cornfedcowboy]

I have never heard of “feee range veal.” Ours were always crated up.

[cornfedcowboy]

Get a Blue Heeler if you want him to behave.

[Gennie]

That sounds interesting and will have to check it out. I do know they massage and feed beer to the cows in Japan and have seen the price of that beef for well over $100 a pound. I don’t think I could ever raise a cow for meat anyway, plus we only have an acre so it’s probably not cost effective for us. We’ve bought quarters and halves of local cows before, but I think all of those have been of the milking variety. Would love to buy part of one of those cows, as everything I’ve read is that they seem to have their own grade as far as marbling is concerned.

[Mr. Lucky]

My kids named their last hogs “Bill and Hillary”. Not nearly the attachment to them as to Larry the steer.

[theneanderthal]

Oh yeah. Crashboat Beach, NCO club on top of a cliff overlooking the shoreline. No a\c in those days but constant trade winds.

[TheThirdRuffian]

"as everything I’ve read is that they seem to have their own grade as far as marbling is concerned."

100% true.

[Rebelbase]

“Make sure the animal does not eat wild onions. The meat will stink of onion. that is one reason why animals are sent to a feedlot and then fed grain.”

Gives me an idea for self-seasoned meat. Let them eat garlic and black pepper before slaughter.

[Gennie]

That’s unbelievable. I tried to search on Google to see if there any people who had Waygu cattle nearby, but I only found two or three places. Any suggestions on how I could locate a cow or buy half of one?

[JouleZ]

We raised Scottish Highland cattle. Not the biggest breed but they have the lowest cholesterol of any beef.

We butchered the bull at 3 years and he was 750 lbs. hanging weight. We had enough steaks, roasts, hamburger etc to feed three families for a year. We also boiled his skull and had his hide tanned.

For all the hay, grain pellets and trouble (shots, worming and branding) we could have just bought a side of beef from the store but we needed his “services” for the girls so it worked out.

Good luck and make sure you know the state livestock rules regarding transport....even just to the slaughter house so you don’t get into trouble.

[TheThirdRuffian]

Where are you ? I can get whatever .

[Gennie]

Near Gettysburg, PA. How much does it usually cost to purchase a whole animal and then how much is the processing? We’ve bought quarters and a half before, but of course they were already cut up. Would be good to have an idea so we can start putting money aside again since we’ll be needing to get more beef either way at some point.