Chuck Part II, or OD #2

We recently got OD#2, our grass-fed beef steer back from the meat locker. Our second steer was about a month older than our first and almost completely grass fed and 100% hormone and anti-biotic free. Both ODs were mostly black angus.

OD #2's hanging weight was one pound less than OD #1, and his take-home weight was 24 pounds more. We have to consider the take-home weight the same, though, because our weighing process is far from official. There was some variation in pounds of each cut received, but nothing very significant.

What have we learned from these two steers?

It wasn't hard for us to raise a grass-fed steer since we had pasture to spare and already make hay for our main herd. The most difficult part is raising mostly corn-fed animals with a single grass-fed animal. We had to pick Chuck early enough to get him and his mom separated from the regular, corn-eating herd and onto pasture. After weaning, we had to choose an animal of similar size for companionship. Usually we have a cull-cow available, but at times we did not, which meant taking a calf from our background herd, gradually changing its diet to match Chuck's, then gradually changing it back before selling. It'd be easier to have at least two grass-fed animals from the get-go.

It's hard to say if OD#2 required more labor. We certainly had him around longer, but when he was on grass, we just had to make sure he looked healthy. Unlike the rest of the herd, we didn't have to carry buckets of corn around and didn't have to run him through the chute to administer vaccines. We do feel fortunate that he didn't have health problems, unlike OD#1. If health problems had arisen and we were forced to administer medication, our main marketing niche would evaporate. Again, it would be nice to have more than one grass-fed animal, so if this scenario plays out, we could simply shunt the animal into our regular herd.

We haven't done any taste tests yet, but so far OD#1 and OD#2 have dressed out almost identically, as outlined above.