Poultry Talk Ontario (pto.ca)

Wondering if anyone can tell me the answer to my problem. This year the hay I got isn't the best and the horses are wasting so much. I wondered if I got a beef calf, weaned of course, if it would eat up the coarser bits of hay the horses don't like. Come next year I could sell the calf. Would this make any sense?

Though it might solve some of the waste hay problem, a calf of that age would also need some grain during the winter as well as since it’s growing and needs extra nutrition…

Would it be better to buy an older calf

Yeah older or buy one to finish for the freezer for yourself but also be aware of tagging and registration requirements for tracking of beef cattle. You may be better off just composting the hay your horse wont eat or throwing it in with your chickens for warmth in the winter if you do not want to bother with all the registration/tagging etc.

Several people I know rond here that raise beef cattle raise a Jersey bull calf for themselves because the flavour is better. I think @windwalkingwolf did that.

Poor waste hay especially if it’s trampled, won’t be enough for any young beef animal if you need it to grow and finish out in a reasonable time, even a Jersey steer. In the winter there is no good pasture to supplement the bad hay so they won’t have sufficient nutrition unless you supplement it.
So, I agree with others that composting the waste hay would be a the best option. And it’s no fun chasing a steer around when you want to catch it lol!

Grass fed beef . Hmmm I sure one of the fast food places would pay you top dollar for the carcass , he said tongue in cheek. Lol

Jerseys and Highlands can live ok off of crap hay. If it's really old or weathered, a vitamin premix to sprinkle on their feed would be good. However, it's unlikely you would be able to sell the steer on the hoof for anything more than peanuts, and would be better off to send to the abattoir and put it in your own freezer. You could sell the meat off farm, but if you eat beef like we do, one little rawboned steer won't last as long as you'd think
Jerseys take about 2 years to hit full size, which is a lot of hay, water, and . The crappier the hay, the more they have to eat to meet their needs, and the more there is. You can't fork up cow dookie like horse dookie: It's much messier and needs to be shoveled or scraped out. Don't feed them indoors... piles up fast.
The upside (besides not wasting hay) is that there's a depth to the flavour of the meat that is difficult to describe, except for YUM lol. I am hooked.
If you decide to go this route, The best thing to do is get them young and tame them down. The more you can handle them, the easier it will be.

Well I thank everyone for their insight. I think I will do without a beef calf. Rules and regulations, No thanks. Chasing a loose cow again No thanks!!!

Smart girl , Gayle