Beef Cattle Science Quiz 1

1973

In what year did the United States have the most cattle?

around 138 million

What was the number of cattle in the United States in 1973?

87,157,400

As of last year, what was the number of cattle in the United States?

28,223,000

As of 2025, how many head of beef cattle are there in the United States?

increase

In the last 45 years, we have seen an _____ in cow size

600-850 pounds

What should the carcass weight (dressed weight) be around for a moderately framed calf?

corn prices

calf prices will always be connected to:

negative

What type of relationship do corn and calf prices have?

increase

When corn prices decrease, calf prices:

decrease

When corn prices increase, calf prices:

feedlots cannot afford to pay really high prices for corn and really high prices for calves

What is the reason for the inverse relationship that corn and calf prices have?

average carcass weight increased (genetics or feed), feedlot turnover increased, slaughter age decreased, genetically heavier cattle at a given age

What are the reasons for an increase in pounds, but a decrease in numbers for the beef cattle industry?

1. Texas

2. Nebraska

3. Kansas

4. California

5. Oklahoma

What are the top five states for cattle?

around 1 million

How many head of cattle does Mississippi have?

1. Texas

2. Oklahoma

3. Missouri

4. Nebraska

5. South Dakota

What are the top five states for beef cattle?

Seedstock and Commercial Cow-Calf

What are two of the different segments of the beef cattle industry?

Seedstock

purebred or registered breeders

• sell genetics

  • breeding animals

  • semen

  • embryos

Commercial Cow-Calf

maintain cow herds

raise calves from birth to weaning (6-9 months)

cow expected to produce 1 calf per year

calves are primary source of income

calve late winter or early spring

• majority (Feb, March, and April)

• complement forages