Cost of keeping a cow

[pricefarm]

I know it been talked about before but what does it cost u to keep one a cow for a year. ? Just looked at my books and it equal 700$ per cow that encludes all my farm expenses.

 

[M-5]

you will not receive an answer where anyone will agree how the accounting procedures should be done when looking at the cost of keeping a cow.

 

[pricefarm]

I include everything I spend that I wouldn't spend if I wasn't farming.

 

[M-5]

I include everything I spend that I wouldn't spend if I wasn't farming.

IMO that's the way it should be done. Obviously the more animals you have the lower the fixed cost go. Ive seen numbers all over the board with most being between 400 and 500

 

[pricefarm]

I thought 700$ was a lot. I have the pasture to run around 10 more cows. Just havent found any I like for a reasonable price.

 

[M-5]

Do you have newer equipment that your paying On???

 

[Kell-inKY]

break it down for the rest of us please, I would like to see that

I don't know off hand about some of my own costs but here is a quick rundown off the top of my head, and as stated, I can't remember the details.

120 Hay (4 bales average, 30 each)
20 Vaccinations (just guessing?)
40 Mineral and fly control (sort of guessing)
15 corn (to keep momma's following me when needed)
20 Wormer (wild guess, I think it's less per cow, can't remember)

Total of $215, round up to maybe $250? Again, this is just back of the napkin guessing. This is if nobody gets sick, I don't need any new fence, or equipment like a watering trough. There is a small amount of electricity and water I suppose but hardly enough to notice, I mostly use ponds.

That is just to keep ONE cow on the property, not including the bull or AI fee, bush hogging weeds, new gates or the such. I have to be missing some things? Can someone else break there's down?

 

[M-5]

got to add fuel for hauling, Tractor, your time , land taxes, tools , fert -lime,

 

[True Grit Farms]

$765.54 per cow is what it cost here last year. But the cows also pay for all the deer expenses.

 

[Kell-inKY]

got to add fuel for hauling, Tractor, your time , land taxes, tools , fert -lime,

Yeah, the lime and fertilizer thing was a bunch!, forgot that (this IS the beginners board), if it actually did any good I sure can't tell. Be awhile till I do that again. Figure 5k over 5 years divided by 10 cows = 100 extra dollars, could run more head and that would reduce it per cow.

All good points. Fuel for hauling hay is not that bad, a tank for 40 bales (pretty close), taxes on land is dirt cheap compared to the house, don't know what that is but very small percentage of my tax bill and I would be paying it if I had a cow on it or not. Can't figure what my time is worth, since I work full time at a job like most others? Tools and tractors, I would have anyway as well and I actually mow less with cows out, and my equipment isn't much compared to others. I think this is where a lot of beginners like me get into trouble. I'm the king of craigslist.

If you include tractors everyone's will be wildly different won't they? Then you have to figure how many head you can average that cost into, that makes no sense to me. Plus is a tractor an expense or an asset? It still has value? But M-5 already stated this is impossible.

 

[Supa Dexta]

Most people have entirely no idea what it costs. And it would scare them to learn they are right there with you.

Most will fall in the 500-700, and trend towards the higher end of that.

Open cows aren't an option of you account for them properly. If you think you're doing it for substantially less, you're kidding yourself and surprisingly that figure translates to pounds (600 ish) in europe.

 

[pricefarm]

Do you have newer equipment that your paying On???

Yes I do bought a cab tractor last year. Not making payments on it but I deprecate it over so many years.

 

[M-5]

got to add fuel for hauling, Tractor, your time , land taxes, tools , fert -lime,

Yeah, the lime and fertilizer thing was a bunch!, forgot that (this IS the beginners board), if it actually did any good I sure can't tell. Be awhile till I do that again. Figure 5k over 5 years divided by 10 cows = 100 extra dollars, could run more head and that would reduce it per cow.

All good points. Fuel for hauling hay is not that bad, a tank for 40 bales (pretty close), taxes on land is dirt cheap compared to the house, don't know what that is but very small percentage of my tax bill and I would be paying it if I had a cow on it or not. Can't figure what my time is worth, since I work full time at a job like most others? Tools and tractors, I would have anyway as well and I actually mow less with cows out, and my equipment isn't much compared to others. I think this is where a lot of beginners like me get into trouble. I'm the king of craigslist.

2 ways to figure your time. What you would pay a hand to do it or break out what you make per hour on your day job and then figure weekly avg of time spent working on the farm. it all has a value

 

[pricefarm]

I don't count my time. If I did there would never be a profit.

 

[SRBeef]

I know it been talked about before but what does it cost u to keep one a cow for a year. ? Just looked at my books and it equal 700$ per cow that encludes all my farm expenses.

A few years ago both Iowa State and the U of MN had numbers of around $500-550/yr to keep a cow I think currently that would have to be 600-700. I use $650. for the cow plus 50% of that to get a spring calf to January. So $975 is my breakeven on a calf sold in January though I don't really sell calves.

This is in the north where we have to feed stored feeds for 5-6 months of the year. South would be less.

 

[Dave]

I figure the total out of pocket cost. Profit is divided by total hours and that how much you made per hour. Well actually you should figure out how much money you have invested. Figure a reasonable interest rate for that money . Subtract that from the profit and them divide by the hours worked. I don't do that last step because I don't want to know that I worked that cheap.

 

[Bigfoot]

Open a checking account, just for your farm. Let the only money you put it, be from cattle sales. Let the only checks you write be for cattle expenses. You'll always know exactly how much you lost farming. It'll even slow your spending down to a trickle.

 

[Son of Butch]

Cows, heifers, replacement heifers, and bulls all lumped together. $657 hd
$657 + $80 hd for capital, fuel, maintenance, vet and other misc. expenses = $737 hd
adding labor pushes the cost per calf weaned per cow exposed to well over $900

 

[Lazy M]

You guys are making me rethink this whole farming thing but I'm in too deep to quit now..luckily I have a "real" job I guess..

 

[Dave]

Open a checking account, just for your farm. Let the only money you put it, be from cattle sales. Let the only checks you write be for cattle expenses. You'll always know exactly how much you lost farming. It'll even slow your spending down to a trickle.

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