Really suprised today ! - Meat from my elderly heifer !

John C · Post by **John C** » Wed Nov 28, 2007 4:43 pm

I've now had two dexters slaughtered in my short time of keeping this breed

The first one I sent in the September before last. He was an under 30 month non short entire bull and when hanging in two halves weighed 220 kgs.

Yesterday I took a non short fat not very big heifer for over thirty month slaughter ( she was three and half years old) expecting in my own mind to get a round 150 or so kilos of not very good meat.

I've phoned up the large commercial abbatoir that I took her to today and had a very large suprise. First of all the carcasse weighs 224 kilos and secondly they have described it as being of top quality. They said that if they were exporting it, that they would have had to have trimmed a bit of fat off it but that it would have been sold as top of the range.

I know next to nothing about this game but now I realise that I know even less.

Jo Kemp · Post by **Jo Kemp** » Wed Nov 28, 2007 6:25 pm

I think we did say the older animal prodiced the best carcase and the best flavoured meat ... also the tenderest as long as it hangs for 3 weeks in our view
Well done though - I think it is really difficult to gauge when they are ready
Jo

Peter thornton · Post by **Peter thornton** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 10:54 am

The fact is that most heifers are worth more dead than alive!

This is a huge opportunity for the Society to increase the standard of our breed.

I hope that the Steering Committee are considering taking a different attitude towards late registrations of birth notified heifers. We should (in my opinion) encourage breeders to wait until a heifer is 12 months (possibly 18 months) old before making the decision as to breeding suitability.

I will now not sell a heifer for less than she is worth as meat. If we all took this view then we would see the price of good heifers getting back to a reasonable return.

Most of our keepers are amallholders and many find it difficult to kill an animal when it has been registered and named.

John C · Post by **John C** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 2:13 pm

Our two cows were named Satan and Mrs satan by our grown up kids. Mrs Satan ( the one with the horns) was the one that went on Tuesday. So our cows were named but I had no problem carting her off.

Sylvia · Post by **Sylvia** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 4:55 pm

Well, Peter, just tell me where I can sell my heifers (and steers) for meat and I will take your advice.

Peter thornton · Post by **Peter thornton** » Thu Nov 29, 2007 8:04 pm

Now that's a very good point! But if we don't have an ultimate market for meat then everything else collapses behind it. We all know that you can't drive a Dexter to the local auction mart and expect anything like a reasonable price.
There is a finite market for Dexter Beef and I don't think any of us really know what the limit is. Some would say that the market is a lot bigger than we have at present but what really matters is the local market for you. We should all limit our breeding to what we can sell. Either to end users or to dealers or marts.
I produce between 3 and 4 animals per year and have no problem selling these. I'd like to have a much bigger herd but one of the reasons I don't is that I simply don't have time to market the increased number of carcases that this would produce.
One of the "enviable" tasks of our steering group is to take a view about the future of the Dexter breed - looking forward perhaps 10-20 years and to build/rebuild a Society which best services the members in this market.
But, recognising that the dairy days are over, it all depends upon the market for Dexter Beef. And if there's no market for the beef then there's certainly no market for the heifers!

Martin · Post by **Martin** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 10:20 am

One of the things that has been suggested is that a register of those requiring 'store' animals be set up giving an outlet for those with stock for sale. There are more members now that have built up a customer base for Dexter beef and with co operation with those with stock for sale could resolve the issue of surpluses.
Once relationships have been formed this would allow those that wished, to increace the number of cows kept as they would have an established outlet for their surplus animals.
I believe the demand for locally produced traditional beef will increace and give a brighter future for those that have the determination to go out and grab a slice of that market.

Martin. Medway Valley Dexters.

John C · Post by **John C** » Fri Nov 30, 2007 7:21 pm

As someone who has only got 5 acres available, I wish that I'd known about this site before i'd purchased my first cattle. I bought two heifers ( Mrs Satan and Satan ) locally and then later had to go to the trouble of buying a bull to serve them. Knowing what I do now, I would have simply bought a couple of young bullocks from one of the adverts on here. I may very well do this in the future when I've managed to untangle myself from the remaining female from my first purchase and disposed of her two entire male sons that represent two crops from her.

John C · Post by **John C** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 9:16 am

I collected the beef yesterday and it literally is melt in the mouth stuff. My three and a half year old heifer is going to be fantastic to eat and knocks the 29month old bull that I put into the freezer just over 12 months ago into a top hat.

The obvious message is, don't mess about trying to sell or breed from your substandard heifers ! Eat them. :D :D :D

Peter thornton · Post by **Peter thornton** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 9:34 am

And let's all work together to achieve decent prices from the decent heifers that are left!

Broomcroft · Post by **Broomcroft** » Tue Dec 18, 2007 2:14 pm

Meat that special should be £12/kg average I think. I've just done our first bull and he is just yummy. He was 27 months and had loads of cover. Really looking forward to the first heifer next year.

Edited By Broomcroft on 1197983760