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The Value of Castration for Calves

Castration of bull calves prior to marketing has long been encouraged by Extension educators and the recommendation is backed by objective research from multiple perspectives. From a health perspective, calves castrated at less than three months old experience lower stress levels, less sickness, and lower rates of death loss (Campbell). From an animal welfare perspective, older calves experience more stress at castration and a longer period of stress-related impacts relative to calves castrated at birth or at branding. Bull calves also show more aggressive behavior while uncastrated, implying greater risks of injury for other animals and for humans. From a beef quality perspective, calves weighing more than 500 pounds at castration generally have carcasses with less marbling and lower tenderness ratings. In addition to potentially missing out on quality grade premiums, from an economic perspective, bull calves castrated past three months of age will weigh 20 pounds less, on average, at slaughter and will take 12 days longer to reach slaughter weight in the feedlot relative to a calf castrated at less than three months of age resulting in a higher cost of gain at the feedlot.

Finally, from a cow-calf operator’s perspective, bull calves are usually discounted at the sale barn relative to steers of the same weight, impacting your bottom line. And that discount typically grows as calf weight increases. Williams, et al. (2012) found that bull calves were discounted an average of $5.77/cwt relative to steer calves at feeder cattle auctions in Oklahoma in 2010.

More recent data indicates a discount for bull calves in the range of $11/cwt to $12/cwt. For a 500-pound calf, that’s a difference in revenue ranging from approximately $30-$60 per head. Those discounts are for bulls and steers of the same weight. What if the bull calf gains at a faster rate than the steer while he is on my ranch? This implies that I can sell more pounds of calf at marketing if the bull and steer are the same age at marketing. That higher weight also implies, however, that the bull’s price will be impacted not only by the bull discount, but also by the price slide for selling into a heavier weight category. How much more would a bull calf have to weigh to make up for those price impacts? Burdine (2021) illustrates that bull calves would have to be 67 to 100 pounds heavier than the steer calf of the same age to account for the bull discount and price slides of $10/cwt or $15/cwt, respectively.

This article was written by Kellie Curry Raper, Oklahoma State University Extension Livestock Marketing Economist.

Montana State University, U.S. Department of Agriculture and Montana Counties Cooperating. MSU Extension is an equal opportunity/affirmative action provider of educational outreach.