Just curious on everyones take on a free bull usage other then feeding him. Would breeding heifers/cows and selling as bred or breeding then calving and selling pairs make more sense? Or any other ideas?
Free bull usage
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Buck Randall
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Well, it all depends on the market. Right now, bred cows aren't worth any more than their weight in hamburger. That could change, but nobody knows. A lot of it depends on what kind of cattle you're dealing with. Reputation cattle? Sale barn bargains? The people in the best position to make money are the ones that can be flexible. Know what it will cost you to fatten them out, sell them as bred, or keep them to calve, and adjust your plan as the markets dictate.
Buck Randall said:
Good answer.
Dsth
Well-known member
If I knew the answer to your question, I would be making a lot more money as a livestock advisor. What the markets will be down the road is only a guessing game. Right now I would say good looking bred cows with good info about their background and breeding are priced about the same as pairs. If you are a lucky person, I would suggest buying a group of cheap bred cows, calving them out and sell as pairs. Hopefully not lose any calves or have any health problems with the cows. Good luck
In addition to the above, other than feeding him he's your liability. Is he up to date on all vaccinations (biosecurity!)? Has he been semen tested? Is he a jumper - what if he gets out? Or injured/sick/killed? Plus, what are his EPD's if you're planning on using him on cows AND heifers?
Nothing is ever truly free.
Nothing is ever truly free.
Jeanne - Simme Valley
Well-known member
Good comment: Nothing is ever truly FREE.
Silver
Well-known member
Often times nothing is more expensive than something free.
greggy
Well-known member
I know somone who had a free bull not too far back, 70% came up empty......cheap and nas tay 
greggy
Well-known member
Fair enough if you know them and bull is ok.
farmerjan
Well-known member
If it is someone you know, is willing to help and you trust him then it probably is a good deal. Get a couple of things in writing to protect BOTH OF YOU and to not ruin a friendship.
Condition of use..... use for feed and keeping bull in good condition.
INJURIES ..... this is important. No one expects anything to happen.... BUT IF IT DOES.... spell it out who is responsible for what. Example.... we borrowed a bull from a farmer/breeder.... The bull did good then he "broke his penis".... we had established a value on the bull if he had been sold as a breeder.... he was one of 3 they didn't sell at their bull sale, decent but not top of the line. So he was worth 2000 as a breeder.... took him to the stockyard and they got the check and we paid the difference to the owner to equal the 2000. ONLY FAIR because although it was a "freak accident" it still happened on our watch. We were good, they were happy, and we used another bull the next year. This is when we didn't have many cows and did not want to buy and use a "stockyard" bull.....had done that and wanted better calves. 2 years later we bought our first bull at a bull sale. We have bought a few at dispersal sales too that were not always registered, and got a few good ones and a couple of so-so.....
Other than that, as far as injuries go, feet trouble and such is usually on the person using him..... hey, you would have to fix his feet if he was yours or he wouldn't be able to breed.....
One of our own bulls, turned up shooting blanks..... we had him for several years, used him and liked him.... never semen checked... and one year saw several coming into heat that should have been bred.... preg checked; open, open, open.... shipped him and put in 2 young bulls to catch them up... took 3 years of "moving the cows "back" 6 weeks or so, to get them back to where they should have been.... our "bad" . Sh$t happens.
Length of use so that no one feels stuck, or cheated out of time. We had one guy that wound up keeping a bull for over a year because he liked the calves and wanted to use him again.... we were going to use him that fall, but had other ones so we said okay. Got him back last year... fat and sassy....
Doesn't have to be a big deal, written contract.... just the basics so there are no mis-interpretations and will keep the friendship intact if something does happen......
Condition of use..... use for feed and keeping bull in good condition.
INJURIES ..... this is important. No one expects anything to happen.... BUT IF IT DOES.... spell it out who is responsible for what. Example.... we borrowed a bull from a farmer/breeder.... The bull did good then he "broke his penis".... we had established a value on the bull if he had been sold as a breeder.... he was one of 3 they didn't sell at their bull sale, decent but not top of the line. So he was worth 2000 as a breeder.... took him to the stockyard and they got the check and we paid the difference to the owner to equal the 2000. ONLY FAIR because although it was a "freak accident" it still happened on our watch. We were good, they were happy, and we used another bull the next year. This is when we didn't have many cows and did not want to buy and use a "stockyard" bull.....had done that and wanted better calves. 2 years later we bought our first bull at a bull sale. We have bought a few at dispersal sales too that were not always registered, and got a few good ones and a couple of so-so.....
Other than that, as far as injuries go, feet trouble and such is usually on the person using him..... hey, you would have to fix his feet if he was yours or he wouldn't be able to breed.....
One of our own bulls, turned up shooting blanks..... we had him for several years, used him and liked him.... never semen checked... and one year saw several coming into heat that should have been bred.... preg checked; open, open, open.... shipped him and put in 2 young bulls to catch them up... took 3 years of "moving the cows "back" 6 weeks or so, to get them back to where they should have been.... our "bad" . Sh$t happens.
Length of use so that no one feels stuck, or cheated out of time. We had one guy that wound up keeping a bull for over a year because he liked the calves and wanted to use him again.... we were going to use him that fall, but had other ones so we said okay. Got him back last year... fat and sassy....
Doesn't have to be a big deal, written contract.... just the basics so there are no mis-interpretations and will keep the friendship intact if something does happen......
