Market Cattle Evaluation - Exam 3

what is the anatomy of the cow

A. tail head
B. rump
C. loin
D. back
E. heart girth
F. crest
G. poll
H. muzzle
I. dewlap
J. point of shoulder
K. brisket
L. forearm
M. sheath/navel
N.rearflank
O. hock
P. pastern
Q. dew claw
R. cannon bone
S. switch
T. stifle joint
U. pin
V. quarter
W.hock
X.rib

what are market cattle sold for

beef production

what are priority traits for market cattle

1. muscle: meat

2. fat (finish): eating differences

3. balance: quality of body parts

4. growth: cattle are fed to an end composition

what are 4 muscle indicators on a beef cow

1. forearm

2. loin

3. rump

4. stifle

when looking at the top of a cow (from the back) what determines good muscling degree

a grooved or butterfly top

when looking at the back of a cow what determines good muscling degree

• very think muscled in the rump

• wide stance

what are 7 fat indicators of beef cattle

1. shoulders

2. over the ribs

3. topline

4. tail head

5. flank/underline

6. brisket

7. udder

what does a healthy amount of fat look like in the shoulders?

even mix of indentations and smoothness

what does a healthy amount of fat look like in the ribs?

some smoothness over ribs but can still feel them if you press on the animal

how to evaluate the degree of finish from the top line

how to evaluate the degree of finish from the flanks

how to evaluate a cow’s fat from it’s tail head

how to evaluate a cow’s fat from it’s brisket

how to evaluate a cow’s fat from it’s udder

what are indicators of good cow structure

• move with ease

• long steps

• strong pasterns

• big feet

• top line stays straight when on the move

• level rump

what do weak pasterns look like

poor heel depth

what do excellent pasterns look like

what does a sickle-hocked leg look like

bent very inwards

what does a post-legged cow look like

straight line down

what does a good cow leg look like

slightly bent at the knee

what does a buck-kneed cow look like

knee angle pushed forward

what does a calf-kneed cow look like

knee angle pushed backward

what does a correct knee angle look like

leg is straight down and hoof is slightly bent forward

what does a correct knee angle look like from the front

toes slightly outward

what does a splay-footed cow look like

legs go in at knees and out at the toes

what does a pigeon-toed cow look like

legs go out at the knees and in at the toes

what does a good vs poor top-line look like

• good: long and straight

• poor: weak topped

what does a good vs. bad rump look like

• good: long and level

• bad: short and steep (ski slope)

what are characteristics of a well balanced cow

• good length of body

• smooth shoulder

• good weight in quarter

• good base width between feet

• clean necked

what are characteristics of an unbalanced alert

• short bodied

• heavy fronted

• shallow rear flank

• short and light in the rump

what are 5 ways to grade slaughter cattle

1. prime

2. choice

3. select

4. standard

5. utility

what are the different yield grades of cattle

yield grade 1 (more lean/heavy muscled) - yield grade 5 (more fat)

what are replacement heifers

a young cow that has not yet calved but is selected to enter the breeding group to replace older culled (have given birth) cows

what are the top 3 priorities in breeding cattle

1. soundness and structure

2. capacity or volume

3. balance

what does good structure look like in breeding cattle

set shoulders with smoothness

what makes a breeding cow have good volume or capacity

when a cow has a deep shape, wide rib shape, and uniform depth

what makes a cow well balanced

• striaght top-line

• long, clean neck

• proportional front, middle, and rear thirds

what makes a cow look feminine

• long, clean neck

• narrow muzzle

• clean angular muscle

• less beefy dewlap

what makes a cow look masculine

• thick neck

• coarse head

• thick and coarse shoulder

what do cows with a BCS 1 look like

• severely emaciated

• ribs and bones visible

• usually diseased

what do cows with a BCS 3 look like

• thin

• no fat on ribs or brisket

• backbone visible

• some muscle depletion in hind quarters

what do cows with a BCS 5 look like

• moderate to thin

• last 2 ribs can be seen

• little fat in brisket and ribs

• spinous processes are smooth and harder to identify

what do cows with a BCS 7 look like

• very good flesh

• full brisket

• pockets of fat in the tail head

• no ribs visible