Alright Hobby Boys

[Beefy]

ah. communal'd. i gotcha.

You gotta" understand - it is a fight for survival. Let's change places for a minute.

What would you do if cattle prices dropped as follows:

1. Cull cows went to 200 bucks - or less.
2. Calves - good ones went for 70 cents a pound
3. Cow calf pairs sold for less than 500 bucks
4. Bred cows were in the 350 buck range

We have been through this.

Do the math and see if you can make it - then drop the prices until you cannot make it.

You now know your limits.

Everyone loves high prices - but what happens if they go south? How well would you do considering how you operate today?

What would you change to make it work?

Why are you not doing this now?

With your present prices would this not optimize the potential profit?

Bez!

I gotcha, meaning i understand. not like HA, i GOT you. (if thats how you read it). Anyway, fertilizer cost and hiring someone to bale it here is more expensive than just buying it, plus i can use what i have as pasture and get better quality hay. i wouldnt even consider having my own haying equipment just because of upkeep mainly, plus there are too many people around custom baling. chipping in should work if there were enough sensible people around to share with.

 

[aplusmnt]

This is a great thread! I will be the first to say I have no idea really what it cost for my few head. We started it as just keeping show heifers, and that is way to expensive to ever figure what it cost for fear it would make you cry. Any money earned either goes to buy more show animals or kids college funds. Cost come out of cleaning toilets.

But It is interesting reading the post, because I plan on moving more into the commercial area, keeping say 10 head to breed for show calves until my kids are done with showing. And the rest commercial.

Wondering how you factor in say fence cost on a given year? Say you put up $5,000.00 in fencing a given year. Do you divide that amount amongst each cow that year? Or do you depriciate the fencing out over say 5 year only deducting $1,000 amongst the cows for each of those 5 years?

The feed, hay, vet bills, gas all those cost are easy to see how to figure into a cows profit. But not sure how a person figures in the Barn, Equipment, Fences and things like this on profit and loss sheets.

 

[Bez!]

ah. communal'd. i gotcha.

You gotta" understand - it is a fight for survival. Let's change places for a minute.

What would you do if cattle prices dropped as follows:

1. Cull cows went to 200 bucks - or less.
2. Calves - good ones went for 70 cents a pound
3. Cow calf pairs sold for less than 500 bucks
4. Bred cows were in the 350 buck range

We have been through this.

Do the math and see if you can make it - then drop the prices until you cannot make it.

You now know your limits.

Everyone loves high prices - but what happens if they go south? How well would you do considering how you operate today?

What would you change to make it work?

Why are you not doing this now?

With your present prices would this not optimize the potential profit?

Bez!

Beefy wrote:

I gotcha, meaning i understand. not like HA, i GOT you. (if thats how you read it). Anyway, fertilizer cost and hiring someone to bale it here is more expensive than just buying it, plus i can use what i have as pasture and get better quality hay. i wouldnt even consider having my own haying equipment just because of upkeep mainly, plus there are too many people around custom baling. chipping in should work if there were enough sensible people around to share with.

This is an interesting comment - we have a population of only a couple of thousand within the immediate 50 or so miles - therefore we obviously have a "different" type of crowd to work with.

I am with you - but you did not answer the questions.

Not being a smart @rse. Give it a go and then figure how many of your friends and neighbours will be in the biz if it happens.

Times are good - but they never last forever.

I will be curious to see your answers. Especially if the prices stayed there for three years or more.

Bez!

 

[Beefy]

i know one thing i would do is cull heavily. I plan on doing that this year anyway. i want at least 2 acres per cow. right now its more like 1. we need to cull about 100 head anyway.

 

[Anonymous]

cost - If owning land in america is important - and I agree totally - and land usually appreciated - do you credit the bovine for maintaining the land. Weed control. reduced taxes - free fertilizer. tools for educating offspring.

 

[Beef11]

Land is a seperate enterprise. Land has to earn its own keep. Cows have to pay fair market value for the grass on the land. efficent cows surely help. Anymore cows have a hard time buying land so if you want to make money on your investment other than appreciation (which goes up in the long run) You need to find alternate revenue streams. Mike raises catfish, caustic raises free range pork and has a petting zoo.

While on this subject, do yall figure in your horses? and caustic not to pry but what do you figure your time at?

On the equipment end of things I never had a tractor when i had my beef herd. I had a pickup and trailer and one of my leases had a squeeze. I'm a solid guy and don't mind chucking hay and sick cattle got roped. Tractors are a budget killer and you need to be careful with them. This time around i'll have a tractor around but i worry about getting one cheap enough to earn its keep.

 

[shutskytj]

What really sucks for me is factoring in the property taxes, which are sooo high in Ct. is anyone else paying 5000 a year on these taxes I have only 50 acres too most of it woods

 

[cypressfarms]

I've ran the numbers many times and I'm still coming in just under $300/head. I do have a very cheap connection for hay (1/2 if my hay was free - from my dad's land that a cutter went in half's with us - whoops not free, I did pay $160 in fertilizer), and I have almost no "rustables" (only one 1968 ford 4000).

I think I could have gotten it lower this past year because the price of bulk feed was so low compared to my ryegrass seed and fertilizer. Next year I may take the bulk feed route instead of ryegrass if prices stay the same.

 

[Caustic Burno]

Caustic,

You didn't mention depreciation. Did you figure that into the $393? I've just started my tax prep for the year, but with depreciation I'm coming up north of $500/hd.

Red I don't have anything to depreciate, if i did I would probally set down and cry at what that brought the cost to.

Aero posted about 177 buck a calf not there actually loose about 10% of the calf crop to buzzards cow having it on a creek bank you name it.

Bez got soft last year 1st time heifer had a calf in the bald ass open left it to go feed and the black devils got it so Igave her another chance she lost another calf. This cow has cost me 800 bucks and she aint working with me I could put up with she trampled the calf to death fightin buzzards but to walk off. She is hamburger next week her replacement got here yesterday.

As far as cost to winter other than ya'lls being a lot longer per month I bet it is close. I actually think our winters are harder on them 35- 40 degrees and raining all the time, them cows are cold as they never get dry and suck up some hay.

On the 12% hay coment I have a good friend that I love the way he puts this "I am not looking for better hay but a better cow to may it on the hay I have " Another one by Craig " If the cow can't make it on the hay I have I am replacing the cow not the hay"

Cert nothing wrong with show calfs I actually like lookin at them, it just at the shows listening to most of the owners I talk I need an alka selzer.


By the way where is old Tears and Sniffles ranch thought he wanted to talk about cows.

Cypress you better sharpen that pencil up again not saying you can't do it but boy thats mighty cheap.

Beef 11 my time was not in those numbers if I figure my time at 10 buckks an hour rough scrathing this early puts me at about 90 bucks a head profit.

Well looks as we do not have a lot of cattlemen on the board as seems very few actually know what it cost to maintain old Belle.

 

[cypressfarms]

Cypress you better sharpen that pencil up again not saying you can't do it but boy thats mighty cheap.

Beef 11 my time was not in those numbers if I figure my time at 10 buckks an hour rough scrathing this early puts me at about 90 bucks a head profit.

That's the difference, I wasn't calculating my time!

 

[Caustic Burno]

What really sucks for me is factoring in the property taxes, which are sooo high in Ct. is anyone else paying 5000 a year on these taxes I have only 50 acres too most of it woods

If my taxes were as high per acre as your I would climb a tall pine and jump. Taxes here on ag exempt land about 4 bucks an acre.

Beef 11 you ask about horses I got rid of those bottomless pits years ago for what it takes to keep one horse a year you can run 3 more cows. Also that mule ain't eatin parked in the barn.

 

[aplusmnt]

What really sucks for me is factoring in the property taxes, which are sooo high in Ct. is anyone else paying 5000 a year on these taxes I have only 50 acres too most of it woods

Is this ag excempt? $100.00 per acre is pretty high. I think we are paying around $7.00 per acre.

 

[Crowderfarms]

What really sucks for me is factoring in the property taxes, which are sooo high in Ct. is anyone else paying 5000 a year on these taxes I have only 50 acres too most of it woods

If my taxes were as high per acre as your I would climb a tall pine and jump. Taxes here on ag exempt land about 4 bucks an acre.

Beef 11 you ask about horses I got rid of those bottomless pits years ago for what it takes to keep one horse a year you can run 3 more cows. Also that mule ain't eatin parked in the barn.

If our taxes was that high, I'd let you cut that Pine down with me at the top of it Caustic. We average about 8 dollars an acre here. Of course if you add improvements and the House, things get a little higher. I still believe we get a fair shake on land taxes here.

 

[MikeC]

Property Taxes here are a little less than $2.00 per acre for farm/timberland.

 

[Crowderfarms]

Property Taxes here are a little less than $2.00 per acre for farm/timberland.

Here as well, til' you build a house on it.

 

[MikeC]

Property Taxes here are a little less than $2.00 per acre for farm/timberland.

Here as well, til' you build a house on it.

I surveyed out the house lot so the whole parcel wouldn't get caught up in the higher rate.

 

[aplusmnt]

Property Taxes here are a little less than $2.00 per acre for farm/timberland.

Here as well, til' you build a house on it.

Any reason they can find to raise it they will!

They been talking about paving our road, I am sure they will try to raise our taxes if they do. I think if they do I will hire a lawyer to try to get them lowered, to me it will diminish my properties value.

 

[Caustic Burno]

This is a great thread! I will be the first to say I have no idea really what it cost for my few head. We started it as just keeping show heifers, and that is way to expensive to ever figure what it cost for fear it would make you cry. Any money earned either goes to buy more show animals or kids college funds. Cost come out of cleaning toilets.

But It is interesting reading the post, because I plan on moving more into the commercial area, keeping say 10 head to breed for show calves until my kids are done with showing. And the rest commercial.

Wondering how you factor in say fence cost on a given year? Say you put up $5,000.00 in fencing a given year. Do you divide that amount amongst each cow that year? Or do you depriciate the fencing out over say 5 year only deducting $1,000 amongst the cows for each of those 5 years?

The feed, hay, vet bills, gas all those cost are easy to see how to figure into a cows profit. But not sure how a person figures in the Barn, Equipment, Fences and things like this on profit and loss sheets.

Yes if fencing cost 5000 bucks depreciated over 5 years thats a 1000 bucks against your cows 10 cows = 100 dollars a year cost. Same with barns, trailers, etc. you are a business man it is the same with the cows.

 

[Crowderfarms]

Property Taxes here are a little less than $2.00 per acre for farm/timberland.

Here as well, til' you build a house on it.

Any reason they can find to raise it they will!

They been talking about paving our road, I am sure they will try to raise our taxes if they do. I think if they do I will hire a lawyer to try to get them lowered, to me it will diminish my properties value.

Aplus, Most places have a dispute board you can go to. I know we have one. One thing good here is we have a few Judges, and representatives here with AG interests.They try and take care of "US".

 

[shorty]

I came up with $423.00 per cow ( 17 cows ) that included the cost to keep a bull plus creep feed for the calves. Calves sold averaged $668.00. as long as cattle prices stay where they are we are making a little something for our time.