Did you know there’s a difference between a bull and a steer? There’s also a difference between a cow vs heifer.
Here are quick definitions about the difference between a cow, heifer, steer and bull:
• Cow: A cow is a female animal that has had at least one calf. Using everyday lingo, the cows are the “moms”
• Heifer: A heifer is a female animal that has never had a calf. Once a heifer has a calf, she automatically becomes a cow. In other words, heifers are like “first-time moms”
• Bull: A mature male animal that is used for breeding. The bulls are the “dads.”
• Steer: A steer is a male animal that has been neutered.
So, what do you usually eat when you eat meat? Generally speaking if it’s good quality meat it’s usually a heifer or steer. If it’s lower quality meat, it’s usually a cow.
Now that you know the very basic definitions, let’s go a little deeper.
Cow vs. Heifer (the moms)
As we mentioned above, a cow is a female animal that has had at least one calf. Using everyday human-terms, cows are “moms.” A heifer is a female animal that has never had a calf. Once a heifer has a calf, she automatically becomes a cow.
Cows are a lot like people in that they have a 9-month gestation period, and some cows get pregnant regularly and others not-so-often. A “good cow” is one that has a healthy calf every year.
When a calf is about six-months old, it weighs about 500 lbs. From zero to six months, calves drink their mother’s milk. At six-months of age, we wean the calf from the mother’s milk and they start to eat grass. The reason for this is because at six-months the calf is able to effectively convert grass to nutrients (more on this later).
Let's talk about the calves
Calves on our farm are born in the spring and fall. If a calf is a female, it’s called a heifer. If it’s a male, it’s called a bull calf or steer (more on that later).
The calves stay with their moms for about six months, and then they’re weaned. There are two big reasons this happens at six months of age. First, at six months the mother no longer produces milk. Second, at the beginning of a calf’s life he needs his mother’s milk for nutrients. However, as he grows, he slowly starts to get more nutrients from the grass verses milk. At 6 months, the calf can convert grass to nutrients, and he will grow and gain muscle from the grass’s nutrients.
Steer vs. Bull
When a male calf is born, it’s called a bull calf. Typically, between three and six months of age, a bull calf is neutered and then it is known as a steer. By definition, a steer is a male animal that has been neutered.
We’ve been asked lots of questions on why farmers castrate bull calves. The primary reason is because bull calves have a temper and they like to fight each other to establish dominance. This makes them very difficult to handle on a farm.
Another big reason is because lower levels of testosterone in beef leads to higher quality grades and more consistent tenderness and marbling in beef. When testosterone is present in bull meat, the beef’s taste and flavor changes and becomes more gamey.
Bulls have a very specific job and it comes around two times a year - when we let them in the field with the cows. One bull can breed about 25 cows.
When they aren’t breading, they’re living the high-life and enjoying roaming fields, eating grass, and they don’t have any female cows telling them what to do!
About 65% of the genetic makeup of a calf comes from the bull, not the cow. Therefore, if we want a calf that has leaner meat, we will let a leaner bull be in the field with those cows.