Buying replacements from Sale Barns

[tdarden3k]

Yesterday I was watching the OKC Livestock Auction online for a while and 1 particular seller ran through hundreds of top quality heifers from 400-800 lbs in 30-60 head lots. These were obviously not "run out of grass" type heifers because of their condition. However he was gauranteeing them as being open.

It started me to thinking that if this seller is worth his salt ( and he obviously is because of the livestock that he was producing) that these were probably terminal cross calves and the only EPD that he cared about was the Weining Weight EPD of the bulls he was using.

So my question to all is ..... Is buying these type heifers for replacements pretty much a crap shoot considering that they were bred as terminal calves and more than likely without regard to BW, CE or Milking EPD's ?

 

[Dave]

As a percentage nationally very few replacement heifers have epd's of any sort. And there are lots and lots of heifers that go through the sales ring who are not bred as terminal calves.

 

[Isomade]

As a percentage nationally very few replacement heifers have epd's of any sort. And there are lots and lots of heifers that go through the sales ring who are not bred as terminal calves.

And the fact that yes, they are all a crap shoot at the end of the day.

 

[tdarden3k]

As a percentage nationally very few replacement heifers have epd's of any sort. And there are lots and lots of heifers that go through the sales ring who are not bred as terminal calves.

And the fact that yes, they are all a crap shoot at the end of the day.

Dave
That is good to hear. I was hoping that I am not over-thinking this.

 

[Texas PaPaw]

Yesterday I was watching the OKC Livestock Auction online for a while and 1 particular seller ran through hundreds of top quality heifers from 400-800 lbs in 30-60 head lots. These were obviously not "run out of grass" type heifers because of their condition. However he was gauranteeing them as being open.

It started me to thinking that if this seller is worth his salt ( and he obviously is because of the livestock that he was producing) that these were probably terminal cross calves and the only EPD that he cared about was the Weining Weight EPD of the bulls he was using.

So my question to all is ..... Is buying these type heifers for replacements pretty much a crap shoot considering that they were bred as terminal calves and more than likely without regard to BW, CE or Milking EPD's ?

Just curious if these heifers were being represented as "replacement" heifers because Monday is the regular stocker and feeder sale at OKC. Very likely these could have been stockers that were coming off wheat pasture and possibly were put together and not home raised. As feedyards do not want bred heifers it is common practice at OKC for heifers to be guaranteed open and they will then be palpated if requested by the buyer. Any found to be bred will be returned to the seller and usually resold on Tuesday. This allows the feeder buyers to pay top dollar for heifers without getting stuck with some that are bred. Maybe this will add some more perspective as to what you were seeing.

Just another 2 cents worth.

 

[tdarden3k]

For the time that I watched, which was about an hour, I never heard how they were being represented ....omly that they were gauranteed open.
Thanks for the explanation however. That would help a lot if I were looking to purchase if they were so designated.

 

[Stocker Steve]

So my question to all is ..... Is buying these type heifers for replacements pretty much a crap shoot considering that they were bred as terminal calves and more than likely without regard to BW, CE or Milking EPD's ?

Been there, done that. Seems like only about half of purchased heifers make good cows whether you buy the top ones or buy the cheap ones.
The best deal I ever had on heifers was horned herfs. They all turned out to be good momas but a couple seemed to hold a grudge after dehorning.
Buying cows at dispersals is a better investment unless you have an outlet for a lot of heifer freezer beef.

 

[bird dog]

Be careful. They may have also been implanted after weaning and may have reproductive issues because of this.

 

[tdarden3k]

Be careful. They may have also been implanted after weaning and may have reproductive issues because of this.

Yes.... Had totally forgotten about the dreaded growth implants !!!!!

 

[Nesikep]

It's a crapshoot no matter what you do, you just have better odds buying genuine replacement heifers.

When we started out, we bought 12 bred heifers, they had PM's done, lost 2 of them the first season and 3 calves, and only about 5 of them made it to 6 years old. 2 made it to 10 years

 

[cow pollinater]

It also kind of depends on the year and the feed on hand,etc. I've been buying some pretty fancy angus heifers bred right for my area as well as bred cows that just weaned a calf pretty cheap just because everyone else is lightening up due to the drought here.
Keep in mind that some guys don't have any intention of raising replacements. They'll buy a set of cows and dump angus bulls over them and cuss every heifer calf because she's not a steer. When they need a replacement they go buy a pair at the sale. That doesn't mean that the heifer calves produced are all junk.

 

[inyati13]

tdarden, this is not about your question as much as it is about heifers being a crap shoot. I will just share my experience. I have collected my herd by buying bred heifers off the farm. Granted I am not dealing in big numbers so I go out to the pasture and pick from lots of 20 to 40 heifers. I have not purchased anything from a stockyard or sale barn. The people I buy from have good reputations. I have not had a bad heifer. All good natured, delivered their own calves, been good with their calves, good milk producers, etc. I would say it has to be some good luck so I don't want to get too excited. But I also think it makes sense to use this approach. And believe it or not, I have seen heifers selling in the ring at higher prices than what I have bought off the farm. I know you are about to retire and hope this gives you some information on ways to grow your herd.

 

[tdarden3k]

tdarden, this is not about your question as much as it is about heifers being a crap shoot. I will just share my experience. I have collected my herd by buying bred heifers off the farm. Granted I am not dealing in big numbers so I go out to the pasture and pick from lots of 20 to 40 heifers. I have not purchased anything from a stockyard or sale barn. The people I buy from have good reputations. I have not had a bad heifer. All good natured, delivered their own calves, been good with their calves, good milk producers, etc. I would say it has to be some good luck so I don't want to get too excited. But I also think it makes sense to use this approach. And believe it or not, I have seen heifers selling in the ring at higher prices than what I have bought off the farm. I know you are about to retire and hope this gives you some information on ways to grow your herd.

Inyati13... Thanks for your response. I do value everyone's opinion that takes time to respond to my questions and then try to make educated decisions based on the comments. I have decided to try and develop some local relationships with a few breeders in my neck of the woods. I have found that just about any man will take as long as you will listen to talk about his cows. Since I will be buying a small foundation herd and building from there, I just cannot afford to get it wrong. I do believe that there are a few breeders that would rather sell their heifers to other farms than have them go to the sale barn. Thanks