farmerjan
Super Self-Sufficient
Was an interesting post @CrealCritter .... There are a few things that don't really pertain to the small farmer... and the size is one of them. I would rather have a shorter legged animal than a tall one... an old farmer said to me one time is you can't eat the air under their belly... meaning that alot of leg is of no real benefit... for selling animals in the competitive feeder market they need to have a certain amount of height... but I will take a short animal over a tall one most anytime... also less reach down to grass...
Better to have a little more "finish" (fat) than not enough, on an animal you are going to kill...
But it is what I try to tell people all the time when growing out an animal of ANY SIZE/HEIGHT... you HAVE to grow frame first... then they will put on the muscle, then the fat cover... and some of the fat cover will come with more age naturally...
It is harder with short animals to tell a good body if you don't observe from a distance as all you do is look down... not "at"... and animals such as the double hair breeds... Galloways of all colors, Highlands are the 2 most common, there are a few others that have thick coats but not as much. You have to have "hands on" to actually feel if the animal is finished with enough body, muscle and fat, to make a good kill animal..
And it is important to have a breed that finishes out faster than takes longer. One dairy breed that grows slow is a Brown Swiss... and the steer calves take a long time to grow size, then muscle, then fat. I do not like to finish them. I also find they do not marble well, and so the meat will be tougher...
Better to have a little more "finish" (fat) than not enough, on an animal you are going to kill...
But it is what I try to tell people all the time when growing out an animal of ANY SIZE/HEIGHT... you HAVE to grow frame first... then they will put on the muscle, then the fat cover... and some of the fat cover will come with more age naturally...
It is harder with short animals to tell a good body if you don't observe from a distance as all you do is look down... not "at"... and animals such as the double hair breeds... Galloways of all colors, Highlands are the 2 most common, there are a few others that have thick coats but not as much. You have to have "hands on" to actually feel if the animal is finished with enough body, muscle and fat, to make a good kill animal..
And it is important to have a breed that finishes out faster than takes longer. One dairy breed that grows slow is a Brown Swiss... and the steer calves take a long time to grow size, then muscle, then fat. I do not like to finish them. I also find they do not marble well, and so the meat will be tougher...
" breeding has happened. Same with Nubians -- they were originally a much stockier breed....dual purpose milk/meat.
Ya need some clearance under there.
