buying calves

[cross_7]

i read once where someone said they could buy calves cheaper than they could raise them.
When you figure the ALL cost to keep a cow, buying bulls, growing or buying hay, mineral, general maintenance and so on.
do you think it is possible to buy them cheaper than keeping cows ?

 

[Tim/South]

I bought calves for several years rather than raising them. I went back to raising my own.
Calves were cheaper then than now. My theory was that any feed or hay went directly to pounds on the calf. Not second hand through the Momma.
I was also guaranteed a live birth and could select gender.
I was buying light calves and having to creep feed them. Weaning age calves were out of my price range to show any profit.
What I learned is that a Momma cow can raise a calf better than I can. She can grow off a calf better than I can.
I know a man who sells his calves in the Fall. He then buys weaner calves and winters them on wheat, hay and some corn. He says because he raises his own corn and hay that he make a nice profit.
He says if he had to buy either the hay or the corn then it would probably not be wort it.
There are a world of people out there making a living running stocker cattle. A person would have to know what they were doing.
I do not.

 

[cross_7]

i have have done some figures and with the price of bulls, replacement heifers, hay, and etc.
it's close, but when buying calves and you figure medicine, death loss, having to buy feed when it's turns off dry like it did this fall, i'm not sure.
cows are 365 days a year, stockers are 150-180 days
lots of variables to consider.
which do you feel has less risk ?

 

[Bigfoot]

I background calves, and have cows and calves. I have made money on cows and calves, and broke even as well. I have never really lost money on cows and calves. I can't say that about my backgrounding operation. Cows utilize some forage that my calves couldn't really grow on as well. Especially in the winter.

 

[cross_7]

I background calves, and have cows and calves. I have made money on cows and calves, and broke even as well. I have never really lost money on cows and calves. I can't say that about my backgrounding operation. Cows utilize some forage that my calves couldn't really grow on as well. Especially in the winter.

i like to buy a few stockers when i have wheat pasture and have done well and not so well.
I can say the same about cows depending on whether it rains or not.
I may be wrong but here in west tx on say a 5 year average, stockers may make more money
Cows are easier, probably more work but it's spread out over 365 days a year, where as stockers can be a's and e's til they are shipped.

It's just bulls, replacements, hay, fuel and so on have gotten so high you have a bunch in cows
With stockers you eliminate some of that but then you add in wear and tear on equipment, seed wheat,medicine,death loss,your time and so on.
maybe be a wash ?

 

[Bigfoot]

I grow weary of cows and calves sometimes, and consider only backgrounding. Especially when I keep 10 hiefers knowing if I'm lucky 6 or 7 will actually make it into production. Your weather is probably more condusive than mine for backgrounding. I can also background 70 without borrowing money. If I had 200 I would be operating on the banks dollar.

 

[Caustic Burno]

i read once where someone said they could buy calves cheaper than they could raise them.
When you figure the ALL cost to keep a cow, buying bulls, growing or buying hay, mineral, general maintenance and so on.
do you think it is possible to buy them cheaper than keeping cows ?

Cross I figure it cost me a 1.50 a day to keep a cow standing in the pasture, that's roughly 400 dollar's a year.
I posted a pic of this girl earlier this year neighbor was selling. I was hauling to the salebarn for him and bought her off the trailer, now I cherry picked here. She was the best of the lot but the rest were not bad either.
I paid 800 bucks for her I can't raise one like this for that price. I could have bought the whole trailer load for 800 a piece and should have.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Very nice heifer for $800 - good buy!