backhoeboogie
Well-known member
My nurse cow is coming six years old now. My nurse crate cost me about $60 to build including steel and wire cattle panel welded to the outside.
Aside from the initial cost of the cow and crate, it looks as tho my input to the cow is going to cost about $1.75 per day here at the house with feed, forage and hay (which the calves share). Prorated over three calves (no longer putting 4 on her) it looks like 58 cents a day. If I go 120 days until weaning, that's $210 or about $70 per calf. The three calves are getting a surplus of milk out of that cow and packing on the pounds.
All three are heifers. Two are brangus splits bought at the sale barn from aged cows that no one was bidding on as a pair. The ring man split them and sold them individually. I took just the calves. These are what I call "splits". They looked to be about 2 weeks old with no naval cord, very healthy and each weighed 115 lbs when they were bought. I paid too much. I have never paid as much for splits but I was in a hurry to get out of the sale barn. I should have waited it out and paid less than 1.50 per pound or so.
Even tho I paid too much, it still looks like I can come out ahead based on input costs. In 120 days I will cycle another group of calves on her. I may go with 4 depending on the cow. Likely I should have 4 now but I wouldn't be able to just turn them out in the 4 acre lot if I do that.
Once the grafted calves have been on her a week in the crate, they all have her scent and she is accepting them.
Do you folks feel it is worth the effort? It is very time consuming until the calves are accepted.
Aside from the initial cost of the cow and crate, it looks as tho my input to the cow is going to cost about $1.75 per day here at the house with feed, forage and hay (which the calves share). Prorated over three calves (no longer putting 4 on her) it looks like 58 cents a day. If I go 120 days until weaning, that's $210 or about $70 per calf. The three calves are getting a surplus of milk out of that cow and packing on the pounds.
All three are heifers. Two are brangus splits bought at the sale barn from aged cows that no one was bidding on as a pair. The ring man split them and sold them individually. I took just the calves. These are what I call "splits". They looked to be about 2 weeks old with no naval cord, very healthy and each weighed 115 lbs when they were bought. I paid too much. I have never paid as much for splits but I was in a hurry to get out of the sale barn. I should have waited it out and paid less than 1.50 per pound or so.
Even tho I paid too much, it still looks like I can come out ahead based on input costs. In 120 days I will cycle another group of calves on her. I may go with 4 depending on the cow. Likely I should have 4 now but I wouldn't be able to just turn them out in the 4 acre lot if I do that.
Once the grafted calves have been on her a week in the crate, they all have her scent and she is accepting them.
Do you folks feel it is worth the effort? It is very time consuming until the calves are accepted.