Bull! No, it’s a real story!

[Sir Loin]

Bull! No, it's a real story!

A neighbor bought 10 bred heifers.
They calved, well 8 of them did.
One had Johne's and was put down. She didn't calve.

One other did calve but got the runs real bad and tested negative for Johne's twice.
Could not cure the runs, so she went to the weigh pen at action.

Her calf look fine with no runs or other signs of difficulties.
The calf was about 60 days old at about 200 lbs.

Now knowing all this, I bought her for $200 which I felt was fair market value.

Well, 30 days later she developed white-eye which I was able to cure except for a small white dot in the center of both eyes.
Las week she developed the runs. Bad! It was all down the back of her, just like her momma had.

So I decided my gamble didn't pay off and it was time to cut my losses.
Yesterday, Tuesday, I took her to the action with me and sold her by the head.
She brought $200, exactly what I paid for her.
So all I am out is the commission, $18. And about a sack of feed.

Moral of the story:
"You can't win if you don't play" and "you win some and you loss some".
*****************

While I was at the action I wanted to buy 4 Holstein bull calves.

I saw 10 come off a trailer plus 2 Jersey bull calves.
They all walked off the trailer and into their holding pen. The 2 Jursey looked to be only 2 days ols and were very weak and wobbly.
When they came up for bid they brought in 4 0f the Holsteins.
I was prepared to bid up to $75 per head.
Biding started @$20 and by $50 per head, my bid, it was still hot and quick, so I stopped bidding and let the other bidder have them for $55, knowing there were more to come.
Next they brought out 3 Holsteins bulls, and the other bidder let me have them for $55 per head.
Next they brought out the other 3 Holsteins bulls, and they were bought for $55 per head which left me 1 head short to fill my pens.
Out came one of the two jerseys' and it went for $20.
They carried the second one in the ring and there was no bids no matter how hard the auctioneer tried.
He looked at me and I looked at his and I said $10 and he said SOLD.

And the gambler strikes again!
I bet $10 I could turn this sick calf into a $600 - 700 asset.
I lost again, he died last night.
So! As I said:
""You can't win if you don't play" and "you win some and you loss some".
The 3 Holstein bulls I bought are doing just fine!
Now I must go dig a hole in the rain.
SL

 

[JSCATTLE]

Id gladly dig a hole if it would rain... But you are right can't win if you don't gamble

 

[Goodlife]

Biding started @$20 and by $50 per head, my bid, it was still hot and quick, so I stopped bidding and let the other bidder have them for $55, knowing there were more to come.

Here was a lesson for me SL. Make sure you know what is going to be coming through the ring that you are interested in before they start coming through. The fact that you knew more good stock was coming through that met your needs allowed you to make smart decisions passing up some candidates and still come home with a truckload.

 

[Sir Loin]

Goodlife


Re:

Here was a lesson for me SL. Make sure you know what is going to be coming through the ring that you are interested in before they start coming through.

I always get there at lest 2 hrs early when I intend to buy.

Now all actions may be different, but this one starts at noon and they start with goats, sheep and pigs. Then the bottle baby calves by the head. So the bottle baby calves are right in the front where you can get at them and inspect them. As you walk back the pens the calves get larger until you reach the weaned calves, so I know exactly where to look for what I want.
After checking them and putting down their numbers and what I consider fair market value I move to outside and watch what is still coming in.
If I see something come in I'm interested in, I don't hesitate to talk to the owner and ask him for the animals number from his drop off ticket, so I can bid on it.
Then I go back in and inspect the animal again and if it looks good I put it on my buy list.

I always try to have twice as many numbers on my card then I intend to buy even if they don't exactly match what I came for. Like new born vs. trained bottle babies.
My next buy, I will be looking for 5 Holstein bulls/steers at weaning age.
That may be another tip for you.
Know what you are going to buy and what you think is fair market value, before you get there. Take a printout of last weeks sale with you as it will help you put a fair market value on the animal.
And don't worry if you happen to get caught up in the biding and bid over your limit, just don't start a biding war.
$5 -$10 over your limit is not going to break you. O have gone over my limit many times and still made good money off them.
These 3 just I bought for $55 each, I intend to sell at around 500 lbs @ $1.25 per lb.
That's $625 return on a $55 investment. Less cost of about $150 to raise the calf.
That's a profit of around $475 X 3 = $1,425
So you see $5 or $10 per head more won't kill you.
And if the grass and hay hold out next year I may hold them even longer, if momma don't need a new pair of shoes.
SL

 

[cross_7]

You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em
know when to kick'em in a hole

 

[TexasBred]

The moral of the story is that SirLoin probably spread Johne's all the way to his house and then hauled a load of it to the local sale barn and dropped the calf on some unsuspecting buyer.

 

[Sir Loin]

Re:

The moral of the story is that SirLoin probably spread Johne's all the way to his house and then hauled a load of it to the local sale barn and dropped the calf on some unsuspecting buyer.

No, the moral of the story is don't feed Staley's corn gluten crap because that is what these 10 heifers were raised on that produced this calf!
SL

 

[backhoeboogie]

You got to know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em
know when to kick'em in a hole

Exactly. When you sit at the poker table, you're gonna lose a few hands. Lose as little as possible.

You are also going to win a few. Win the big hands.

Bluffing is a risk that some times pays off.

 

[Jim62]

The less you bet, the more you lose when you win !! :tiphat:

 

[ga.prime]

Every hand's a winner and every hand's a loser.

 

[TexasBred]

Re:

The moral of the story is that SirLoin probably spread Johne's all the way to his house and then hauled a load of it to the local sale barn and dropped the calf on some unsuspecting buyer.

No, the moral of the story is don't feed Staley's corn gluten crap because that is what these 10 heifers were raised on that produced this calf!
SL

You bought them at an auction and still know what they had been eating? Sounds like you're a gluton for punishment SL. Keep ranting and making unfounded :cowboy: accusations about Staleys and they may serve you with papers for libel.

 

[Sir Loin]

TexasBred

Re:

You bought them at an auction and still know what they had been eating? Sounds like you're a gluton for punishment SL.

No, I didn't buy them, my neighbor did by private sale.
I only bought one calf from him as a private sale.
And we both know where they came from and what they were fed.

Re:

Keep ranting and making unfounded accusations about Staleys and they may serve you with papers for libel.

Please, bring them on! My attorney is looking for an excuse to file one big class action
For both cattle and horse owners.
And he won't settle on the courthouse steps.
SL
PS I am still waiting for you to furnish me with an analysis sheet and feeding instructions.

 

[angie1]

One of my favorite sale barn stories: I was at a sale and an awfully sick looking calf came stumbling into the ring. No one would bid no matter how low the auctioneer dropped the bid. Finally he said "Folks, this calf will be just fine, all he needs is a little TLC and he's going to turn around and make you alot of money! Just stop at the feed store on your way home, and pick him up some hydration." Then he started calling again, and someone finally took the bait.

Auctioneer said to the buyer as the calf was leaving the ring "Yea, you might want to buy a shovel while your at the feed store..."
I swear I still laugh everytime I think about that.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

What's the deal with Staleys?

 

[Sir Loin]

TexasBrad

You want to field that one?
SL

 

[TexasBred]

TexasBred

Re:

You bought them at an auction and still know what they had been eating? Sounds like you're a gluton for punishment SL.

No, I didn't buy them, my neighbor did by private sale.
I only bought one calf from him as a private sale.
And we both know where they came from and what they were fed.

Re:

Keep ranting and making unfounded accusations about Staleys and they may serve you with papers for libel.

Please, bring them on! My attorney is looking for an excuse to file one big class action
For both cattle and horse owners.
And he won't settle on the courthouse steps.
SL
PS I am still waiting for you to furnish me with an analysis sheet and feeding instructions.

If you have an attorney HE has an idiot for a client. Best of luck.

 

[TexasBred]

One of my favorite sale barn stories: I was at a sale and an awfully sick looking calf came stumbling into the ring. No one would bid no matter how low the auctioneer dropped the bid. Finally he said "Folks, this calf will be just fine, all he needs is a little TLC and he's going to turn around and make you alot of money! Just stop at the feed store on your way home, and pick him up some hydration." Then he started calling again, and someone finally took the bait.

Auctioneer said to the buyer as the calf was leaving the ring "Yea, you might want to buy a shovel while your at the feed store..."
I swear I still laugh everytime I think about that.

Angie I was at a sale about a year ago and a group of skinny cattle came into the ring that looked reallly old. Actioneer said "All the need is something to eat".....guy behind me said 'NO, what they need is something to eat with"......I about LMAO.

 

[Isomade]

One of my favorite sale barn stories: I was at a sale and an awfully sick looking calf came stumbling into the ring. No one would bid no matter how low the auctioneer dropped the bid. Finally he said "Folks, this calf will be just fine, all he needs is a little TLC and he's going to turn around and make you alot of money! Just stop at the feed store on your way home, and pick him up some hydration." Then he started calling again, and someone finally took the bait.

Auctioneer said to the buyer as the calf was leaving the ring "Yea, you might want to buy a shovel while your at the feed store..."
I swear I still laugh everytime I think about that.

Angie I was at a sale about a year ago and a group of skinny cattle came into the ring that looked reallly old. Actioneer said "All the need is something to eat".....guy behind me said 'NO, what they need is something to eat with"......I about LMAO.

:lol:

 

[redcowsrule33]

The moral of the story is that SirLoin probably spread Johne's all the way to his house and then hauled a load of it to the local sale barn and dropped the calf on some unsuspecting buyer.

:clap:

No, the moral of the story is don't feed Staley's corn gluten crap because that is what these 10 heifers were raised on that produced this calf!
SL

Not looking for a fight and won't give you one (I have more things to do on a Sunday) but I don't get the link between the corn gluten and the heifers having Johnes. Plus, just because she tested negative doesn't mean she didn't have it, the tests are far from perfect. Especially since they all came from the same place (unless I didn't follow the story right) and one was a known positive. The other 8 heifers might still have Johnes but they performed as they were supposed to, so your beef against the gluten can't be a performance issue. So I don't get it. Or maybe I'm displaying my own stupidity by being sucking into this discussion in the first place. :bang: Wouldn't be the first time.