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Post by SWMan on Mar 13, 2024 0:38:57 GMT -6
What's a better deal:
A $2400 yearling heifer ready to be bred this summer or a $3600 bred heifer that calves in a couple of months, or buying bred heifer/young cow in fall for $?
If a guy is looking to expand...
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radar
Junior Member
Posts: 61
Likes: 33
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Post by radar on Mar 13, 2024 4:42:14 GMT -6
Was in cows for years ,the best luck I had was breeding up my own breed heifers or buying young {2nd 3rd } calvers, it just seemed the bred heifers I bought were always wild and didn't milk like my own, either to wild and crazy at calving time or never took there calf. Yearling heifers will take you 2 years to see any return ,And a bunch of them will be crazy or no milk it seemed to me....Or maybe I'm just not a good picker,!!!, HUMMMMMM maybe there s a reason after 50 years with simmi/red Angus cross I got out of them,In the dought 0f 02 , ran out of pasture, gave 60 pair away,kept the bred heifers and 2016 sold the whole herd ,,There is life after cows ..Sorry for the side track .. I'd buy young cows out of a dispersal sale,, there is a reason they will cost you more money,...also the bull you pick will be 1/2 of what the herd is made up of.. It hurts to pay loads for a good docile bull, but for breeding up good calves, to make cows you need a good bull Just my two cents
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Post by garyfunk on Mar 13, 2024 6:41:17 GMT -6
Radar makes some great points. There have been a few dispersals and hopefully for your sake there's a few more this spring. I think if you want to take advantage of this cycle you're better off getting something so you have a calf to sell this fall. 2nd and 3rd calvers are what you should look for if you're thinking long term. But there's nothing wrong with 5 -8 year old cows from a dispersal of a reputable operation. Bigger calves right away and usually the poor doers have been culled out by then. Also their daughters would probably make good replacements down the road.
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Post by kevlar on Mar 13, 2024 7:12:46 GMT -6
Best deal are the ones that fit right inside the freezer! lol. You missed out on some good ones a couple weeks ago in Brandon, my brother in law sold off a good chunk of his herd, he has a pretty good reputation in the cattle world, the Brandon Sun did an article on the him and the sale. That’s where some of my freezer cows come from.
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Post by meskie on Mar 13, 2024 9:10:02 GMT -6
That’s a tough question. Besides expanding what are you buying it for? Different genetics? Who are you buying it from? If you know the herd it came from it make a difference you can see the cows and what it will be bringing to your herd.
If you’re just buying to expand and have more calves to sell then the bred would be the way to go.
I prefer to select replacements from our own herd. You know what you’re getting. Have bought bred cows before and they have turned out ok for the most part. The 3-4 year old ones seem to be best. We bought a couple heifer calves this year but they are for the kids 4-h projects. Likely over paid for them but the more expensive part is taking them to the couple spring shows they want to go to.
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Post by Oatking on Mar 13, 2024 11:17:23 GMT -6
4 h meat is worth every penny ! Great for the kids project. I buy half a cow every year from a friend.
It’s expensive
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Post by cptusa on Mar 13, 2024 20:12:56 GMT -6
Personally I like to buy breds. Quicker ROI. I've been buying the same set of bred heifers at my local sale barn for 20+ years.
Sale day was during our January blizzard this year. Wanted 10, ended up with 30. $2300/head was a bargain. I'll figure out where to put them later.
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Post by SWMan on Mar 13, 2024 22:44:36 GMT -6
That’s a tough question. Besides expanding what are you buying it for? Different genetics? Who are you buying it from? If you know the herd it came from it make a difference you can see the cows and what it will be bringing to your herd. If you’re just buying to expand and have more calves to sell then the bred would be the way to go. I prefer to select replacements from our own herd. You know what you’re getting. Have bought bred cows before and they have turned out ok for the most part. The 3-4 year old ones seem to be best. We bought a couple heifer calves this year but they are for the kids 4-h projects. Likely over paid for them but the more expensive part is taking them to the couple spring shows they want to go to. Make work project I think. My herd is not big enough to grow as fast as I want to but we are retaining heifers. Bought a different bull last weekend so might get some of that breed and run a bit of a comparison that way. Bred cows in fall might be the best fit, or pick up pairs if it's dry and feed is short...I've done that before. |
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Post by meskie on Mar 13, 2024 22:56:52 GMT -6
I tried to buy a bull today but I guess the ones we liked so did other guys with deeper pockets.
Breds are good to buy if you know where they came from. That’s the only way to really do it with a small herd. Pick ones you like and fit with your herd. Don’t just buy to buy sone.
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Post by Oatking on Mar 14, 2024 7:39:54 GMT -6
I am surprised more farm kids don’t raise 4h cattle.
I am a little embarrassed because I know little of cattle but know 4h meat is the best.
The last one we bought last July was around 9000 plus cutting up another 500.
What is the current auction price ?
That price seemed like good money , compared to past years!
Have prices settled down from last summer?
Of course we buy to support the program .
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Post by meskie on Mar 14, 2024 8:11:44 GMT -6
4-h is a lot of work for kids and parents and lots don’t want to do it. Cattle prices keep rising so hopefully the kids get a decent price at the sale this summer.
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Post by kevlar on Mar 14, 2024 8:19:07 GMT -6
I think the 4H beef is a lot better than the regular 4H, my niece took it for several years and loved it and had never come from a farming family. My kids are in the regular 4H and think it’s going to be the last year, my son for sure, he absolutely hates it. I just find they don’t get anything from it, I don’t think it’s what it used to be years ago. Of course this could change from club to club.
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Post by meskie on Mar 14, 2024 8:49:38 GMT -6
Around here there is only horse or beef 4-h. Both of those can get fairly competitive with family’s spending lots of money to try and win and then the kids loose what 4-h is really about.
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Post by cptusa on Mar 14, 2024 20:04:50 GMT -6
That's the worst part. Someone is always willing to buy a trophy. It takes away from what it's really about.
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Post by kevlar on Mar 14, 2024 21:07:23 GMT -6
That’s what I get from it too. The cattle club is mostly parents trying to build a reputation for their farm, have seen kids win and not even know how to lead or brush their calves. Our club seems to be a large part of the parents pushing their kids to join them doing most of the projects for them. Kids do their speeches using words they don’t have a clue what they mean. When a 8 year old kid makes a poster, it should look like an 8 year old made it, not done by a professional designer. Seen kids do whatever type of speech that nobody else is doing so they just advance to the next level no matter how well they do.
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