Bred cow sale

[creekdrive]

These are Canadian prices but just thought I'd share some prices from up this way. This past Tuesday we sold some bred heifers. We sold 18 head and averaged $2380. We had one group of 8 reds that sold for $2650 which we were awfully pleased with. It was our first time selling any breds so thought we did quite well. There was a total of 585 bred heifers at the sale that ranged from $1350 - $3175 for an average of $2266. Bred cows sold from $1350 - $3100, avg $2432.

I checked back and we averaged $837 for our heifer calves that we sold last fall so I think it was smart to keep this group and sell as breds.

 

[TCRanch]

Wednesday's sale had bred cows from $700 - $1525, cow/calf pairs from $900 - $1825. Even butcher/canners and calves were all over the board. Prices here are up for calves, down for butcher/canners. Never know what you'll get for breds/pairs. I sold a bred for $1300 in Oct, private treaty. Same guy bought 3 breds at the sale for $800, 1 for $850.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I checked back and we averaged $837 for our heifer calves that we sold last fall so I think it was smart to keep this group and sell as breds.

Calves were cheap last fall, so 2016-2017 was a profitable year to raise and SELL replacements.
Longer term question is whether NA can export enough of the increased beef production?

 

[Bigfoot]

I was going to let go of 10 more bred heifers, reading this makes me think I may as well not advertise them.

 

[Lucky_P]

Steve,
Dentist friend here works 4 days a week - but he's told me that they're closed Fridays to avoid all the drug-seekers looking for a painkiller script to get 'em through the upcoming weekend. Had never considered that reason until he told me that.

 

[bball]

Steve,
Dentist friend here works 4 days a week - but he's told me that they're closed Fridays to avoid all the drug-seekers looking for a painkiller script to get 'em through the upcoming weekend. Had never considered that reason until he told me that.

Must be a commonality in the dental world...we see an uptick in 'toothaches' in the ER on Friday nights.

 

[cowgirl8]

I sure know that I can't raise them for that. The people I saw buying them were ranchers who run 100's of cows. They were buying them as replacement heifers that they bought for less than they can raise them for.

Black heifer calves were $600 here last fall, and now they are worth $850 more as breds.
I can carry a yearling for a lot less that $850 per year. :nod:
Some years it pays to raise replacements, some years it does not. Don't look at the fully burdened average.

We get 850 for a heifer weaned and vac.....

 

[BrandX]

yep, Saturday I bought one heifer 7 months bred fir $900 and one 7 year old 5 months bred for $700. both black and quality looking.

 

[BrandX]

just got a $1300 check today for selling 2 calves. one was 330lbs @ $2/lb. the other was 400+@ $1.80
so I bought quality bred cattle for what I sold small calves for

edit: calves were bulls and not vaccinated.

 

[Stocker Steve]

yep, Saturday I bought one heifer 7 months bred fir $900 and one 7 year old 5 months bred for $700. both black and quality looking.

Single breds with some size are $1000 here. Dinks are quite a bit less.

 

[talltimber]

I figured the bred cow market in KC would be similar to the feeder market in that it would be some of the highest prices in the country? Last week here:
med and lg 1, 2-6yo, 2nd and 3rd, 995-1450lbs, $1050-1375 1st stage 950-1200
7-BM, ", 1152-1495, $950-1125

 

[farmerjan]

just got a $1300 check today for selling 2 calves. one was 330lbs @ $2/lb. the other was 400+@ $1.80
so I bought quality bred cattle for what I sold small calves for

edit: calves were bulls and not vaccinated.

That's a good bit more than what they are bringing here. Most are in the 1.30 to 1.50 for 5 wt STEERS
not bull calves. Wish we could get those prices but from here there is so much in trucking to get them to anywhere. Cull cows in the high 30's to 40's.
Had a bred cow sale a week ago, and many were in the 6-900 range. Many were older cows from what I was told. I didn't go, we are trying to readjust to moving the cattle around from the 2 lost pastures this year and just getting a handle on how to handle some of the cattle that used to go to that one place for the winter. Have a real nice group of at least 10 heifer calves that we have kept back for future breeding. After the new year we will be able to better assess what we have, what we are gonna sell; we still have 50 to preg check and the calves to wean off. Been holding them longer and had grass to keep them on. The calves will get sold early spring I think, since prices this year have dropped a little again.

Hears hoping 2018 will be a little more promising....and that we will get some precip to get the springs and water tables back up, or it will be a bad year. Might be good we are down a bit in numbers.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Hears hoping 2018 will be a little more promising....and that we will get some precip to get the springs and water tables back up, or it will be a bad year. Might be good we are down a bit in numbers.

There is a strong market here for breds. Some of the demand is coming from producers who are exiting dairy and/or seeding down some marginal crop ground. They tend to overpay for older cows, so about 75% of our cull cows go back to the country.

 

[farmerjan]

Lost 3 dairy farms in the last 3 months that I tested, sold out. One was a reg breeder, 57 years in the dairy business. It was sad. He will probably be raising some holstein steers he said and he has the knowledge to grow holsteins. He's 78 yrs old. Yes, some of the dairies are converting to beef, but 90% of the cull cows here go right on the trucks to cargill etc to slaughter. We are friends with the one buyer. He sometimes will pull out a couple of cows that look very preg, but talking to a couple of the guys at the sale, they just give the truck drivers the slips, they load up and head to PA. There are plenty of bred cow sales here that a buyer can get into them fairly cheap without pulling cull cows out of the pens.
Sad thing is, so many of the farms wind up getting split up and become houses and such. we are only a few hours out of Richmond, an hour out of Charlottesville, and the population just keeps growing so more and more land is going to houses and apts and such.

 

[ddd75]

Lost 3 dairy farms in the last 3 months that I tested, sold out. One was a reg breeder, 57 years in the dairy business. It was sad. He will probably be raising some holstein steers he said and he has the knowledge to grow holsteins. He's 78 yrs old. Yes, some of the dairies are converting to beef, but 90% of the cull cows here go right on the trucks to cargill etc to slaughter. We are friends with the one buyer. He sometimes will pull out a couple of cows that look very preg, but talking to a couple of the guys at the sale, they just give the truck drivers the slips, they load up and head to PA. There are plenty of bred cow sales here that a buyer can get into them fairly cheap without pulling cull cows out of the pens.
Sad thing is, so many of the farms wind up getting split up and become houses and such. we are only a few hours out of Richmond, an hour out of Charlottesville, and the population just keeps growing so more and more land is going to houses and apts and such.

sprawl is a terrible and disgusting thing.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Another sale today. The boys wanted cows -- young or old. I can not pencil out a profit on most of these unless you are betting on a really high cull cow market...

Lead off second calvers were U$S 1625.
Better heifers were $1425 to $1550.
Better cows were $1225 to $1475.
Cull heifers were $950 to $1050
BM cows were $750 to $875.

 

[Till-Hill]

LAST SALE PRICES AS OF: DECEMBER 16TH, 2017 NE Iowa
Sold: 863 Head
Category:
Price:
FANCY BRED 1ST & 2ND CALF HEIFERS
1600.00to1925.00
YOUNG COWS & BRED HEIFERS
1300.00to1750.00
MIDDLE AGED COWS
1200.00to1650.00
SOLID MOUTH COWS
1000.00to1400.00
OLDER COWS & LATER BREDS
700.00to1100.00
COW CALF PAIRS
1100.00to1550.00

 

[Stocker Steve]

Sounds like MN should be exporting breds to Iowa. Usually we just ship them west.

Does your cow/calf operation pencil out at those prices? Free stalks?

 

[Till-Hill]

Sounds like MN should be exporting breds to Iowa. Usually we just ship them west.

Does your cow/calf operation pencil out at those prices? Free stalks?

Steve I have not done my taxes yet but I feel if I had the spot to dry lot cows next summer or just at least the wintering ground I think the broken mouth cows are the best buy with this cheap feed. Broken mouths with feed should only gain weight after calving. If calves are same price as what I sold for this year. 575# steers x $1.77 1 round off shots off the cow. Cull heifers I don't remember weights or price but it was $733/head on 3 different colors of short eared, midgets, junk!

So if I could buy a broken/gummer good cow now for $1,000 bred for March/April. Feed/pasture at $.8/day for 300 days have $1240 in her, average $850/head on calves like this year and cow brings $.5/# at $1200 day of calf sale next October I think some decent money to be made. If your feeding 20 cows this winter why not feed 40? Bred heifers I think at today's price if buying the right kind will be money makers if this feeder market holds for 2-3 years yet.

Them in between cow ages I'm not sold on buying. If I could have it my way I'd buy all coming 3rd calvers. You take the chances out that someone selling you a heiferette. Should be high chance she has calved ok twice and raised it. Them are the hardest to find tho. Gummers with TMR I think and ship her if best bet. Turn cheap bull in on them in case cow market does drop and calf her again. Leave you some options.

 

[Dave]

Thursday I helped my friend haul fall pairs to the winter ground. He had a guy buy a couple fall pairs for him at Toppenish. We went and picked them up Friday morning. Big, young (3 year olds) black Angus cows (1,500 pounds) with 200 pound calves. He paid $1,525 a pair for them. He got over $1,000 for his fall steers this year so if the market is the same this summer that price will work.