It’s the time of year where dairy beef producers identify and group steers and heifers for either an indoor or outdoor finish. Teagasc Dairy Beef Research Officer, Dr. Nicky Byrne provides a step-by-step guide to identifying the most appropriate animals for each route.

Dr. Byrne explains how assessing the body condition score (BCS) of early and late-maturing dairy beef cattle is crucial to achieving carcasses that meet market specifications.

“Body condition scoring during the second grazing season will allow you to forward plan and target cattle to different management groups. Also, by getting some cattle drafted by the end of that second grazing season, we can avail of seasonality in terms of higher prices, take pressure off farm buildings and finishing facilities as well as feed stocks on the farm,” Dr. Byrne explained.

Animals with a higher body condition score may be ideal candidates for finishing off grass late in the summer or with supplementation of concentrates alongside high-quality pasture. Late maturing animals may be more suited to an indoor finishing period.

Dr. Byrne, a Dairy Beef Research Officer, also advised farmers to examine the Commercial Beef Value of their dairy beef animals, noting that will allow for the targeting of supplementary feed to more feed efficiency animals, thus increasing the percentage of cattle reaching the desired weight, conformation and fatness – often avoiding the need for a costly second winter indoors.

The video below provides detailed guidance on how to assess key anatomical points, such as the rib cage, loin, rump and tailhead for both fat and meat cover. Proper handling of the animals is essential to obtain an accurate condition score, which is a valuable management tool.

“There are a couple of key areas on an animal that we need to assess, and we are assessing the animal for both fat and meat cover, so really we have to handle the animal to get a true reflection,” Dr. Byrne explained.

For full insights, watch the full video below:

For more tips and advice on dairy beef finishing, visit the DairyBeef 500 webpage here.

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