How Did Y'all Get Into Cows?

[Dave]

Don't get hung up on the idea of owning land to start out. You can lease cheaper than own and starting out it is much cheaper to get into a lease than into ownership.

 

[backhoeboogie]

At 15, 16 and 17 years old I vowed to never own a cow.

Never say never.

I go back several generations. Clear back to when all the longhorns were driven to New Orleans. I inherited land but have never put it into pasture. Everything I had I bought. The cows had to pay for the land. Leased some bought some land etc. I actually made more money on land than I ever did on cows.

I am 8 to 10 years from retiring. I will likely buy another 250 acre (or so) place once I retire. Its gotten too busy around here. Too many people moving in.

 

[backhoeboogie]

Don't get hung up on the idea of owning land to start out. You can lease cheaper than own and starting out it is much cheaper to get into a lease than into ownership.

It really helps if someone has land in ag exemption status on their taxes. They usually want to keep the exemption and would like to lease the land.

 

[slick4591]

My brother and I are 3rd generation owners of the farm. He lives out there and our agreement is that he pays the taxes for all of it. Dad had it in AG exempt because he raised goats. I hate goats, so cows were the alternative to keep the Ag exemption. Brother and I partnered on them but I bought him out first of last year.

 

[ez14.]

Well I don't really have a farm but I am single! Just thought I'd throw that out there :lol: (and I have some cattle)

 

[Brute 23]

Well I don't really have a farm but I am single! Just thought I'd throw that out there :lol: (and I have some cattle)

X2 Ha Ha... no horses or donkeys though

You don't have to be lonely... at cattletoday.com

 

[willow bottom]

Grew up on a 30 acre hobby farm about 10 miles north of Huntsville Al. Decided to get back into farming around 2001 so I just cut hay for a while. Started this farm in Tn in 2005 on some of my dad's land then bought 173 acres that joined it. Bought another 25 acre hay field across the hwy in 2008.

I'm in the cow calf business but have no breeding strategy. The farm is profitable because I don't feed hay until sometime in Jan.

How do you get by without feeding hay until Jan?

 

[Fire Sweep Ranch]

I always had a passion for ag, but was raised on a small half acre home. We raised Paint horses, showed them, bred them, and we always had a big garden and orchard (we used the land, every inch of it!). We would raise a steer for the freezer each year, and my FFA project was pigs (I bred Hampshire pigs).
Fast forward 30 years. We wanted out of CA, so we bought 45 acres of raw land near family in MO. We moved in 2007, built a shop and lived in that for several years before building our home, barn, and pastures. I researched several breeds, and bought two Simmental heifers in 2007. We have grown that small herd to over 35 breeding age females and calves, ALL AI bred or embryos. We started with NOTHING, were given NOTHING, but with the grace of God and a lot of saving, are doing good now and at a point where we need to sell more females so we do not get bigger (or find more land).
I teach Ag History in a college, and the future is bleak for most students wanting to start a farm, but I tell them it can be done, just have patience and work slowly. Start small and build up when you can! The average age of a farmer is in the 60's, and we need to pass the future to younger people. I do all I can to encourage the youth to get involved.

 

[shaz]

Grew up on a 30 acre hobby farm about 10 miles north of Huntsville Al. Decided to get back into farming around 2001 so I just cut hay for a while. Started this farm in Tn in 2005 on some of my dad's land then bought 173 acres that joined it. Bought another 25 acre hay field across the hwy in 2008.

I'm in the cow calf business but have no breeding strategy. The farm is profitable because I don't feed hay until sometime in Jan.

How do you get by without feeding hay until Jan?

Rotational grazing - stockpile fescue. No annual wheat, rye ect...just fescue

I'm really only grazing 2 months longer than the growing season locally.

 

[Farm Fence Solutions]

My Grandad still farmed a little and had some livestock when I was a kid. I guess that's where I got the bug, but it wasn't until I was a teenager before I really got any good exposure or owned any cattle. Against my parents wishes, I took up roping calves and steer wrestling, and having practice stock was a part of it. I went to agricultural colleges, but it was after school when I went to work on a fair sized cow/calf operation that I decided momma cows were in my future. Bought a little place, married the right woman, and the first thing we bought together was about 75 bucket calves. Bad plan. Now we have some mommas, and a feedlot to fill when the market is right. Good luck in your plans. I'd say you're on the right track.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKoYT4febHM

 

[TCRanch]

My Grandad still farmed a little and had some livestock when I was a kid. I guess that's where I got the bug, but it wasn't until I was a teenager before I really got any good exposure or owned any cattle. Against my parents wishes, I took up roping calves and steer wrestling, and having practice stock was a part of it. I went to agricultural colleges, but it was after school when I went to work on a fair sized cow/calf operation that I decided momma cows were in my future. Bought a little place, married the right woman, and the first thing we bought together was about 75 bucket calves. Bad plan. Now we have some mommas, and a feedlot to fill when the market is right. Good luck in your plans. I'd say you're on the right track.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKoYT4febHM

I love that song!

 

[1wlimo]

I grew up with them. Was given my first calf of my own when i was 9. Paid for the feed and keep by working every night after school with my grandfather.
Bought my first heifers for a start in cow/calf in my final year of collage. BSE lost me money there, and working too many hours for others no way to reduce my costs so got out. 10 years ago years of work down the drain I got back into cattle managing a place, then when that went under I finally wound up when I am now. Back with my third attempt at my own cow/calf operation me and my wife just bought our own land for the first time. Should give us a better foot hold in the industry. So I run my own, have joint venture, and run some on custom work, but my wife pays for me to live.

 

[Ryder]

I grew up with them. Was given my first calf of my own when i was 9. Paid for the feed and keep by working every night after school with my grandfather.
Bought my first heifers for a start in cow/calf in my final year of collage. BSE lost me money there, and working too many hours for others no way to reduce my costs so got out. 10 years ago years of work down the drain I got back into cattle managing a place, then when that went under I finally wound up when I am now. Back with my third attempt at my own cow/calf operation me and my wife just bought our own land for the first time. Should give us a better foot hold in the industry. So I run my own, have joint venture, and run some on custom work, but my wife pays for me to live.

Wish you good luck.
Hope you don't freeze to death before everything pays off for you.

 

[Ryder]

I've been thinking about the question for myself a lot recently. With considering college or not and how I'm going to manage making it so my life never sees a day without cows. Unfortunately it seems as though the only financially reasonable options to get a farm are to either mary into cattle or convince someone into letting me have their farm.

It makes me wonder, how did y'all get into farming and how are you making your operations work?

Maybe you and ez14 should get together and discuss each of your future aspirations.
He is graduating from high school and judging from his posts I think he is more mature than most his age and I would guess he is a hard worker and also a gentleman.

You could go over to his post about graduation party and congratulate him on his graduation and kind of flutter your eyes at the same time.
Chances are you could get invited to his graduation party and so on.

 

[M-5]

I've been thinking about the question for myself a lot recently. With considering college or not and how I'm going to manage making it so my life never sees a day without cows. Unfortunately it seems as though the only financially reasonable options to get a farm are to either mary into cattle or convince someone into letting me have their farm.

It makes me wonder, how did y'all get into farming and how are you making your operations work?

Maybe you and ez14 should get together and discuss each of your future aspirations.
He is graduating from high school and judging from his posts I think he is more mature than most his age and I would guess he is a hard worker and also a gentleman.

You could go over to his post about graduation party and congratulate him on his graduation and kind of flutter your eyes at the same time.
Chances are you could get invited to his graduation party and so on.

"you don't have to be lonely at cattletodayonly.com "

 

[Dave]

"you don't have to be lonely at cattletodayonly.com "

Hey, no half hidden shots at FarmersOnly, That is where I met my wife.