Buying vs retaining heifers

[Ky cowboy]

Recently got the oppertunity to lease my grandparents farm. Roughly 200 acres of pasture some good some not, the one property that's pretty rough my grandfather just purchased this winter it joins his other farm. Haven't discussed the details with my parents, aunts and uncles but all pretty well said I can lease/use how ever I want. My dad and I are the only two that have any interest at all and dad's ready to retire and fish. Back to my main question, I already lease 2 other farms 1 is for hay only the other I run small # of cows in and have retained a few heifers Would I be better of retaining heifers off this farm and placing on my grandparents place or purchasing bred heifers, or middle age cows.

 

[dun]

Ford or chevy!
Some folks maintain that retaining heifers is wasted money. But if you need to expand fairly quickly I would by middle aged cows and retain heifers as I could. Gradually get rid of the older cows as they are replaced by retained heifers.

 

[TexasBred]

Recently got the oppertunity to lease my grandparents farm. Roughly 200 acres of pasture some good some not, the one property that's pretty rough my grandfather just purchased this winter it joins his other farm. Haven't discussed the details with my parents, aunts and uncles but all pretty well said I can lease/use how ever I want. My dad and I are the only two that have any interest at all and dad's ready to retire and fish. Back to my main question, I already lease 2 other farms 1 is for hay only the other I run small # of cows in and have retained a few heifers Would I be better of retaining heifers off this farm and placing on my grandparents place or purchasing bred heifers, or middle age cows.

If you presently only run a small number of cattle it's going to take forever to get any real increase in numbers to put on the new land saving only your best heifers . I'd probably so looking and buy some quality heifers then start retaining heifers from those high quality cattle.

 

[Aaron]

Retain your best heifers, go find a neighbor that has retained his best heifer calves and offer a good buck for the whole bunch. Much cheaper to buy open yearlings/weaned calves than buying breds.

 

[JMJ Farms]

I agree with Aaron but it's a much quicker return on the breds. Depends on your personal situation and your cash flow needs. Heifers also tend to be a little more needy as far as getting that first calf out and nursing, and then getting her bred back. Good luck either way you go.

 

[dun]

As much as I enjoy breeding and calving out or retained heifers, experienced cows (middle aged) are a good dollar investment. They take less management, should know what they are doing and generally will calve easier less possible turmoil) and provide a slightly better market calf.

 

[Ky hills]

As much as I enjoy breeding and calving out or retained heifers, experienced cows (middle aged) are a good dollar investment. They take less management, should know what they are doing and generally will calve easier less possible turmoil) and provide a slightly better market calf.

+1, I agree Dun, I love retaining my own heifers, but you are right, those middle aged cows should have more live calves and wean them off a little heavier.

 

[greybeard]

Looks like the $$ angle is covered.
But--You got lots of time and a high tolerance for stress and worry? then keep your best heifers and buy more heifers.
not so much of either?
Buy older 'experienced' mommas and breed them to the best low bw and or CEbulls you can find or afford.

 

[Ky cowboy]

The guy I lease from told me he wants to sell his share of cows yesterday so I'm going to probably buy him out and cash lease the farm from him. Most of his cows are 4-6 years old should finish calving out by the end of May. He hasn't told me how much he wants for them what do you think a fair price is for them? If I buy him out and with the heifers I already have this'll put me up to close to 25 head not much by most standards but a good start. I'll probably go ahead and buy a few more 4-6 year old cows later this spring to put on my grandparents farm

 

[Nesikep]

You're going to pay a premium for bred heifers of any quality... now is that premium as much as it would cost you to raise your own? I like knowing the history of my cattle, and it helps me make better decisions, however if I came across that much land I'd definitely have to buy cows to stock it within a reasonable timeframe, my herd isn't good enough I can keep all or any of my heifers as replacements.

Just for myself, if I went with the heifer route, I'd get top notch animals, my choice would be PB Gelbvieh and cover them with a Saler bull for the first year or two.. If I went with cows, I'd look for a herd dispersal of someone who's been doing it a while so they've gotten rid of the real problematic lemons.


Well, I think you were reading my mind... I think those cows, if they are any good, would be about perfect. For price, check out your local sale barns.

 

[Rafter S]

The guy I lease from told me he wants to sell his share of cows yesterday so I'm going to probably buy him out and cash lease the farm from him. Most of his cows are 4-6 years old should finish calving out by the end of May. He hasn't told me how much he wants for them what do you think a fair price is for them?

I sold a few good pairs (2 - 4-year olds) a couple of weeks ago for $2400.00 each. That may be a little high, but the guy wanted to buy some and I really didn't care if I sold them or not.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I agree with Aaron but it's a much quicker return on the breds.

Heifers will keep your freezer full of beef.
Cows off a dispersal are the lowest risk.

 

[cpaer]

Sir:

Which ever route you select choose QUALITY! Only buy animals from a place that is noted as a reputation outfit. Don't buy 3-5 year old cattle based on age but select for the QUALITY OF THE HERD. Paying a little more at this stage of your career will give you much greater profit as the years go by as well as pride of ownership.

If you only afford 3 top cut animals, buy 3 instead of 5 or 6 of the more common cattle. AI your heifers CULL very hard each year. The passage of time is your best friend if you follow the above suggestions.

 

[JSCATTLE]

In your situation I agree with everyone saying to buy cows over heifers .. I retain 5 percent of my heifers a year .. but I enjoy raising them .. I also like that if therequired is a problem in the future they are calm enough I can either Dr them in the pasture or lead them to the pen with a bucket . I don't have to pen the whole bunch to Dr one ..

 

[Ky cowboy]

Just got out of the hospital with my wife, we had our 3rd child yesterday. Hoping to go tomorrow if she feels ok to talk to the guy I lease from about a price for the herd. Thanks to everyone who replied.

 

[True Grit Farms]

Congratulations.

 

[kjonesel]

In my experience buying a herd is expensive in that you buy the good with the bad. Open heifers take some time. Bred heifers are the quickest way and you also get the better genetics. Downside to bred heifers is that you need to be there to assist in calving. If you can call someone to help buy yourself a calf puller and a set of chains build some calving stalls or have some heavy corral panels and become a real cowboy.

 

[Ky cowboy]

In my experience buying a herd is expensive in that you buy the good with the bad. Open heifers take some time. Bred heifers are the quickest way and you also get the better genetics. Downside to bred heifers is that you need to be there to assist in calving. If you can call someone to help buy yourself a calf puller and a set of chains build some calving stalls or have some heavy corral panels and become a real cowboy.

I already own all of the heifers that come from this herd and 5 of them will be calving out this april. If We can agree on a price I'll be buying the remainder of his mature cows, we culled his herd hard when I took over oldest cow we have is 5 and all are great mommas that milk great. They're mostly red baldies or solid tans with a few whites thrown in the mix. When we reach an agreement I'll be purchasing a new bull for this herd. My former ag teacher raises some really nice lim-flex and limo bulls. Probably going with a homozygous polled/black from him.

Kjonesl we already have a barn that was setup for horses in the past with 16 stalls and an arena it has since been converted into where we work our cattle but we still have 10 stalls set up to put up heifers or other cows that need more attention

 

[Nesikep]

Hope they all do well for you!

 

[kjonesel]

That sounds like a great facility. I believe that if you purchase heifers from a breeder that is actually crossbreeding for heifers which sometimes you end up doing when you are crossbreeding then you can't go wrong.