replacement heifers vs. older cows

[randiliana]

I prefer to keep our own heifers. BUT, if you figure what it costs to raise them for a full year with no income out of them, and then figure that it won't cost much more to raise a cow with a calf, it makes much more sense to pasture that cow. Now, having said that, a lot of the decision would rest on the type of cow I would be buying. If you buy someone's culls, that don't raise much of a calf, crawl fences, turn out to be too old to raise another calf, or are wild, then, the cost may become to high. However, if you buy dispersal cows, that is a different story. Sure you may pay more for the dispersal cows, but odds are pretty good that you are going to get GOOD cows.

 

[DOC HARRIS]

MY NEIGHBOR GOT OUT OF THE LIMOS, BECAUSE THERE WASN'T A CORRAL PANEL THEY COULDN'T LEAP OVER, HAD TO TRICK THEM INTO THE PEN BECAUSE HAZING WASNT AN OPTION

[/quote]Just curious - How many years ago was this situation with your neighbor? Were they PB Limousine, or crossed with something else? If crossed with something else, what was the "something else?"

DOC HARRIS

 

[murphy-livestock.com]

I sold all of my steer calves last week and was very satisfied with what i got for them. I kept about 50 heifers back and are all very high quality. That short term market around here is looking pretty cheap. Recently i have had very good luck with those older cows that come from west river. My heifers should average about 600 a piece if i sold them. I could pick up some short term cows for 550 to 650. I am very picky on what cows i would buy. What would any of you suggest. I could invest that money from my heifer calves into short term cows and have a calf born next spring. Its a tough decision for me because im trying to build my herd at the same time, but financial sense tells me to dump the heifer calves.

With all the draught around the country your Hfrs. will be worth double nest spring, just gotta know where to sell them. #2 I would find me some Older cows 5-9 Pairs, That are bred back for springers. You can get 3 in 1 that way, You won"t loose a year's Crop. Check My website out www.murphy-livestock.com I got a bunch of them for sale. All on VIDEO, The website is dedicated to us farmers. Any help we can be we will do it. Thanks Mike Murphy

 

[PPRM]

Well... I sit here recoverying from a surgery and was ironically just thinking about this as part of this years plan...

My situation is a bit unique. Around us there are hardgrass ranches all over with guys that have great cows. We have irrigated grass and some great feed. Those guys tend to sell cows at 9-10 years of age. I can take them and put them in better condition and get 3-5 more calves out of them...

I have only been in cows for 15 years. There are ranches with cows that are way beyond where I am. I can pickup a cow that has earned the right to be in these better herds, just some age and they cull while they can still get something for her. Many times these are cows that hadn't the nutrition to breed back...

So...Upside....

1)Price
2) Proven Cows
3) I can keep and sel lfor Capital Gains in a few years
4) Potential Hiefers from some great cows
5) Payback is quick compared to keeping hiefers
6) I do not have to be as concerned that the bulls are Hiefer Bulls....I don't have enough hiefers to justify a special hiefer bull..
7) My cows are getting big...I can buy more moderate cows that eat less and breed them to bulls that will give me some big calves....I have the feed...

Downside....

1) Gotta really pay attention to udders, ect...
2) Gotta work to make sure they match my cows calves
3) I worry about my direct marketinga bit..... I think as long as I stick with Angus and Hereford Cross, Likely I will be consostent with the steaks I sell

 

[sic 'em reds]

We are in the same situation as PPRM since we joined up with my wife's uncle. We run on mostly irrigated pasture and have access to kick out hay and hay fields in the winter. We can get the weight back on these older cows pretty easy and even the broken mouth cows get to looking good.

Getting him started, we have bought mostly mid to short term cows. They calve out good for us. There's always a few that only make it through the year with us do to age mostly. They get hurt easier or raise a crummy calf, or don't breed back. So for what we paid for them, we don't get behind them much. We bought a group last November that stayed again this year, although last spring about 15 hadn't calved yet so we sold them in May, and actually got more than what we paid for them.

I think to get started it makes plenty good sense to buy older cows. Then you can keep the better heifers or sell all of them. I still like raising our own replacements, even if they do cost a bit more to get into production.

 

[enge0376]

Buy the short term cows, sell them as pairs in the spring when they are high and double your money. It has been working great for me and you arent out anything if the market crashes because you dont have anything into them but a little feed. Just a thought.

 

[cowzilla]

MY NEIGHBOR GOT OUT OF THE LIMOS, BECAUSE THERE WASN'T A CORRAL PANEL THEY COULDN'T LEAP OVER, HAD TO TRICK THEM INTO THE PEN BECAUSE HAZING WASNT AN OPTION

Just curious - How many years ago was this situation with your neighbor? Were they PB Limousine, or crossed with something else? If crossed with something else, what was the "something else?"

DOC HARRIS[/quote] Always wondered where my cull Limos went :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: Thats the great thing about buying other peoples culls er I mean cows :wink:

 

[cowzilla]

Truck dropped off a few red baldys today . Wonder how many jumpers I got