When I was a kid I used to be responsible for feeding bottle calves, holsteins mostly. I want to get back into it, I enjoy it and it pencils out from what I see (not a get rich quick thing but profitable). We have jersey beef cross calves locally, wondering if anyone knows how they compare to straight holstein? I would be selling them around 400 lbs. If anyone has a lot of experience ide love to pick your brain on it.

I used to do it every year as a kid. The price of milk replacer has gone up to around a hundred dollars a bag here. Now I just get them started sucking and take them to a neighbor who has milk cows. He raises them and we split the sale price. Pretty slim margin in just raising bottle calves. If they don't get colostrum or have a bad start they tend to not do well or they just die after a week or so.
I am planning on getting a half dozen milk cows in the near future just to raise bum calves. The calves do so much better on a cow verses a bottle.

I bought a few last year for 200 sold em' for $700 plus

Calves are costing a fortune here anyways, Holstien bull calves are 3.00 to 4.00 a lb. Also if for beef, stay away from anything Jersey.

That's the main reason I wanted to get the local week old jersey cross calves, avoid the sales barn and get calves that are off to a good start. I was hoping to do a handful to start then two batches of 40 per batch a year.

Straight Jersey are $75, Jersey beef cross $300 holsteins around the $300 ish but I don't have a local source of straight holsteins, atleast I haven't found one yet.

I know I don't want jerseys, was hoping the cross was equal to straight holstein.

Yes if you can get locals that’s best, remember Jersey’s may not bring as much as Holstein when you want to sell them unless someone has a special market, my question is you say they’re crossed, what are they crossed with? That can change a lot unless things have changed it can be hard to sell the fats so it lowers the calf price.

Around here jerseys don't cost much,but don't bring as much when you go to sell either.i would think800 to 900lbs they would be finished out.alt smaller then Holsteins or beef.i would sooner buy holstein/beef croos 300 to 400lbs when the grass gets green and sell them next fall when they between 6 and 7 hundred lbs

Jersey/charlois or jersey/limousine

You can get them to 1100 pounds on pure shelled corn and pellets, we would get one or two with the Holstein’s, but yes grass would be better for them but if you have nothing but them it wouldn’t be bad to raise them in a group on a self feeder.

It’ll help with frame, I’m surprised the guy doesn’t have calving issues, the charlois cross would be my choice, I just like charlois vs limousine.

I have 20 beef cows and 50 goats, I don't have grass to spare. I would really like to get them started and sell them around 400 lbs in groups large enough to fill a semi when they're finished. Figure if I got 40 calves, lose a few, sort a few dinks off I'll end up with groups of 32 to 33 which should be a potload of finished steers.

Jersey are the stupidest breed alive

Straight Jersey bulls are free in my area
cross are becoming non existent because with nutrition, dairyman can get the high butter fat out of Holstein now
She was paying free to 75$ for cross
I would not pay 300 for a cross

We(my wife) was doing close to 300 on bottles, when we had a contract with a Mc Donalds finisher.

Jersey are the stupidest breed alive

Use a good vaccine program and you will have few losses. Start with a Mod live such as Inforce 3 and revaccinate with a killed such as Bovishield. Then a Black leg vac.

When I was a kid we used to get day old calves from a local dairy for $15 and raise them up to sell at auction. I was about 7 or 8 for my first go.

Raised a few growing up and a couple recently. The prices for day olds has been insane the last year. 4-500 for decent sized holstein bull calves. If all goes well it can be decent but they can die very easily.

Were they jersey/holstein or jersey/beef crosses?

I sold a jersey cross at the sale barn last July weighed in at 885 he bought $2.30 per lb zero grain. You do the math, chu-ching.

[quote=nate]I sold a jersey cross at the sale barn last July weighed in at 885 he bought $2.30 per lb zero grain. You do the math, chu-ching.[/quote
When you do this consistanyly, call me.