Average Livestock Weights

Why Weights Matter in Ranch Vision

Ranch Vision uses the average live weight you enter for each animal class to calculate three critical outputs: grazing demands (GUMs), supplemental feed costs, and projected sales revenue. Entering accurate weights produces more reliable reports. Use your own records wherever possible — the benchmarks below are a starting point if you don't have them.

Cattle

Weights below are Ranch Vision's North American benchmarks for medium-framed British and Continental cattle crosses. Breeding stock weights (bulls through H0s) are sourced from Ranch Vision's benchmark dataset.

Animal Class	Description	Avg Weight (lb)
Bulls	Mature breeding bulls	2,000
Mature Cows	Cows in 3rd or later breeding season	1,250
H2s	Heifers in 2nd breeding season	1,250
H1s	Heifers in 1st breeding season	1,050
H0s	Weaned replacement heifers (3-yr calvers only)	1,250
Heifer Calves	At weaning	524
Steer Calves	At weaning	541
Retained Heifer Stockers	Post-weaning backgrounded heifers	—
Retained Steer Stockers	Post-weaning backgrounded steers	—

Stocker weights depend entirely on the length of your backgrounding program and starting weights. A common approach is to estimate sale weight as weaning weight plus expected daily gain × days on feed.

Frame size matters. Large-framed cattle (e.g., Simmental, Charolais) will run heavier than these benchmarks; small-framed cattle (e.g., native-range Hereford, Longhorn) will run lighter.

Sheep

Weights below are for medium-framed commercial sheep based on USDA and university extension sources. Sheep weights vary more by breed than cattle, so these benchmarks should be treated as starting points. Where your own flock records are available, use those instead.

Animal Class	Description	Avg Weight (lb)
Rams	Mature breeding rams	225
Mature Ewes	Ewes in 3rd or later breeding season	160
E2s	Ewes in 2nd breeding season	145
E1s	Ewes in 1st breeding season	125
E0s	Pre-breeding replacement ewes (2-yr lambers only)	105
Ewe Lambs	At weaning	75
Wether Lambs	At weaning	80
Retained Ewe Feeders	Post-weaning backgrounded ewe lambs	—
Retained Wether Feeders	Post-weaning backgrounded wethers	—

Breed variation is significant. Wool breeds (Rambouillet, Merino, Columbia) typically weigh less than meat or dual-purpose breeds (Suffolk, Hampshire, Dorset, Katahdin). Suffolk rams can reach 275–350 lb; Rambouillet ewes commonly average 130–150 lb. Adjust these values to match your flock.

Goats

Weights below are for commercial meat goats (Boer, Kiko, Spanish, and common crosses) based on university extension and peer-reviewed sources. Goat weights vary considerably by breed, and there is less standardized benchmark data available for goats than for cattle or sheep. Values marked as estimates should be verified against your own herd.

Animal Class	Description	Avg Weight (lb)
Bucks	Mature breeding bucks	200
Mature Does	Does in 3rd or later breeding season	120
D2s	Does in 2nd breeding season	110
D1s	Does in 1st breeding season	95
D0s	Pre-breeding replacement does (2-yr kidders only)	80
Doe Kids	At weaning	50
Wether Kids	At weaning	55
Retained Doe Feeders	Post-weaning backgrounded doe kids	—
Retained Wether Feeders	Post-weaning backgrounded wether kids	—

Important breed note: Boer and Boer-cross animals are significantly heavier than Spanish or Kiko animals. Dairy breeds (Alpine, Nubian, LaMancha) have different growth and mature weight profiles and these benchmarks do not apply to them. If you run a mixed-breed herd, use a weighted average based on the proportion of each breed.

How to Enter Weights in Ranch Vision

Average weights are entered in the Average Weights & Months Fed section under the Grazing tab for each species:

Select your species (Cattle, Sheep, or Goats).
Go to the Grazing, Purchases, and Sales sections.
Enter the average live weight for each animal class.
Click Save when complete.

Weights can be entered in either pounds (lb) or kilograms (kg) — set your preferred unit under Ranch Profile before entering data.