Fall pairs to the sale

[Dave]

So I had 5 kind of ratty fall pairs I bought last October. They had been running with B's fall pairs. Well yesterday he gathered his pairs and split off the calves. So my pairs got a trip to town. They sold today, of course they split them to sell. I averaged paying $1,500 a pair last fall (I said they were small or old). Today they averaged selling for $2,826.60 per pair. Five of the cows all broken or smooth mouth that were 4 or 5 months bred sold for $1,775 each. The average weight on the 5 was 1,176. They sold by the head as bred cows but the average price by wieght worked out to $144.56 cwt. This market is crazy but crazy good. Uncle Sam is going to love me this year.

 

[1982vett]

Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then…

Current prices sure makes it tempting to load them all up. But then what ya gonna do?

 

[farmerjan]

Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then…

Current prices sure makes it tempting to load them all up. But then what ya gonna do?

Let the grass grow and take a vacation... Make some hay and take another vacation... buy back next year when there is a drought and you have hay to feed out...

IDK sounds like an idea....

 

[GoWyo]

I have 8-10 pairs in the special project pasture I planned to cull the cows this fall when we wean the calves. We have moved to D1 drought this week and pastures are not going to hold, so I am considering selling them early as pairs, maybe in the next week or two. If they will bring $2500+ that would buy some semi loads of hay that we are going to need. This year is pretty discouraging on the pasture situation around here. Looks like 2022 all over again, except we did "reset" all our pastures last year when we had 150+% of normal precipitation.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Let the grass grow and take a vacation... Make some hay and take another vacation... buy back next year when there is a drought and you have hay to feed out...

IDK sounds like an idea....

That's exactly what the guy I used to cut hay with has done! Sold every one of his. Every. Dang. One...

@Dave u may be on vacation this winter.
Occurs to me, the type u sold today, is the type u wanna buy in a few months usually right??
Might've been money ahead to keep the cows and just sold the calves.
Be interesting to see what ya end up spending when the time comes around again...

 

[Dave]

That's exactly what the guy I used to cut hay with has done! Sold every one of his. Every. Dang. One...

@Dave u may be on vacation this winter.
Occurs to me, the type u sold today, is the type u wanna buy in a few months usually right??
Might've been money ahead to keep the cows and just sold the calves.
Be interesting to see what ya end up spending when the time comes around again...

There was nothing in those I would want to keep. I questioned myself when I bought them. I don't buy fall pairs. I buy older cows who will calf in February March. I am wondering what those cows will cost this fall.

 

[MurraysMutts]

There was nothing in those I would want to keep. I questioned myself when I bought them. I don't buy fall pairs. I buy older cows who will calf in February March. I am wondering what those cows will cost this fall.

I'm wondering the same thing.
Still pretty astounding the prices old bred cows are bringing.

It's a great time to have some to sell!
Not a great time to buy....

I've a sneaky suspicion, they are gonna hold for quite some time this go round

 

[Dave]

I always buy with the theory of of never paying more than half of the price they will be worth the next fall if the market holds. So if kill cows are worth $2,000 now and the calf is going to be worth $1,600. If the market dumps as it will, at no more than $1,800 for bred cows this fall. The market crashes all I am out is the feed. I still have my original investment and live to fight another day.
When everyone else is running in it is time to lay back and watch. I remember 2015 and 16. I have a friend who bought 200 500 pound steers in late 2014. Put them on feed. By the time the smoke cleared later in 2015 he lost $450 a head. I made big bucks on bred heifers in 2014. I did real good in 2015 because I contracted early. 2016 I gave back the money I made one of those years because I went one year too far.

 

[CowboyRam]

I have 8-10 pairs in the special project pasture I planned to cull the cows this fall when we wean the calves. We have moved to D1 drought this week and pastures are not going to hold, so I am considering selling them early as pairs, maybe in the next week or two. If they will bring $2500+ that would buy some semi loads of hay that we are going to need. This year is pretty discouraging on the pasture situation around here. Looks like 2022 all over again, except we did "reset" all our pastures last year when we had 150+% of normal precipitation.

I should have some to sell this year. I'm not sure what this years hay is going to be yet, I just have not heard what the going rate is. I do have about 38 tons of last years first cutting that is some pretty clean alfalfa that I would be will to let go for $150 per ton. It has been covered all winter.

 

[GoWyo]

There is a lot of hay in the Torrington-Scottsbluff area and irrigation water supply should be pretty good. Forty mile haul isn't too bad. That's a good price if I was closer.

 

[gcreekrch]

I'm wondering the same thing.
Still pretty astounding the prices old bred cows are bringing.

It's a great time to have some to sell!
Not a great time to buy....

I've a sneaky suspicion, they are gonna hold for quite some time this go round

The profits on these high value cattle are better than any feeder cattle we have ever owned.