Rocky Dog Ranch

p to hang. The weight difference from live to hanging is from loss of blood, head, hide, hooves, viscera, lungs and heart. The hanging weight is usually about 60% of the live weight. So, a 1200 lb animal would have a hanging weight of 720 lbs (estimated). (A half share would then be 360 lbs, and a 1/4 would be 180 lbs). This is the weight we base our per lb charges on. The butcher also charges cut/wrap fees based on this weight, plus extra if a customer has requested additional bones or organ meats. The last weight is the “final” or “take-home” weight. This is the weight of the meat that each customer will bring home. This weight is usually about 60-65% of the hanging weight. So for a 180 lb quarter share, the final weight would be about 108-117 lbs (estimated). The weight is lost in 2 ways. About 4% is water weight lost during the 10-14 day period that the carcass is hung (or “cured”). Then about another 30-35% is lost during the cutting process. This amount is variable based on 2 factors – one is the amount of fat in the meat, and the other is the cuts that a customer requests. Higher fat means more loss. (Our grass-fed beef animals tend to be lower fat, so the loss tends to be closer to 35%.) Also , the more boneless cuts requested by the customer, the lower the final weight. (Note that the lower weight doesn’t mean that you are receiving less meat – rather, you are receiving fewer bones). What does this mean as far as actually per lb costs? It depends on the per pound original cost/price as well as the cuts that a customer requests. A 180 lb quarter share of beef would range from $3.50-5/lb (for final weight). This is less than what you would pay if you purchased grass-fed beef by the cut from retail outlets.