Need advice on starting up

[R Ranch]

Hi all,

So we are wanting to seriously get into cattle, and what I thought I knew is not even close to what i need to know!!! help is desperatly needed! ok so were looking to buy a bigger piece of property 400-600 acres in BC and here are my questions ( i should mention that we will be starting angus )

* how many cows per acre

* when first starting up a heard what is the best ration of cows/ heifers/ calves ect

 

[TexasBred]

First off that a huge investment in land to "start up" with. Why not start with 40-50 acres with an option to buy the remainder at some later date and at an agreed to price and go from there.

 

[R Ranch]

At the moment we have 30 acres, along with breeding Quarter horses. We want to start up a cow calf operation as well as get a good crop going. Haha i can see it sounds a bit hastly the way I worded it, but please dont get the wrong idea, this has been a long process not something that was decided on a whim. I asked those questions because, i guess just as everything else, all my information contradicts itself. So i am hoping to get some real knowledgable advice. It would be greatly appreciated.

 

[backhoeboogie]

So i am hoping to get some real knowledgable advice. It would be greatly appreciated.

If you are going to play this game, play to win. If you are not going to play to win, don't play.

Find someone who is successful in your climate and pay attention to what they are doing. My climate is totally different.

Watch out for horse traders. People will try to sell you anything they can.

Your cows need to be capable of foraging on what grasses you can grow on that ground. They need to be capable of providing a healthy marketable calf each year. Don't get emotionally involved. This is a business and treat it as such.

Don't try to feed cows out of a bag. You'll go broke in a hurry. It is all about grasses in my opinion. Your growing season is shorter than mine but you have longer days in the summer. Use all of it to the maximum of your benefit. Stock pile some hay that will sustain the cows through the winter.

Get a mentor if you possibly can. What works for me in my climate will be totally different and so will the breed of cattle. You need to visit with those who are making things work on similar ground in close proximity.

 

[BTRANCH]

AMEN to what Backhoeboogie said about the grasses! We started about 4 years ago and focused on the cows instead of the forage. We learned too late that if you take care of the grass, the grass will take care of the cows.

Don't be afraid to start small and work your way up. It can get pretty overwhelming quick.

Good luck!!

 

[R Ranch]

I know you are right, that is going to be the first step! does anyone have any advice on my questions?? it would be a great help

 

[IluvABbeef]

These two websites might answer your questions:

http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/beef/factsheets.htm

http://infobasket.gov.bc.ca/portal/serv ... 9&PageID=0

If not I suggest you go to your local agriculture-extension office to get the info you need.

 

[TexasRancher]

So i am hoping to get some real knowledgable advice. It would be greatly appreciated.

If you are going to play this game, play to win. If you are not going to play to win, don't play.

Find someone who is successful in your climate and pay attention to what they are doing. My climate is totally different.

Watch out for horse traders. People will try to sell you anything they can.

Your cows need to be capable of foraging on what grasses you can grow on that ground. They need to be capable of providing a healthy marketable calf each year. Don't get emotionally involved. This is a business and treat it as such.

Don't try to feed cows out of a bag. You'll go broke in a hurry. It is all about grasses in my opinion. Your growing season is shorter than mine but you have longer days in the summer. Use all of it to the maximum of your benefit. Stock pile some hay that will sustain the cows through the winter.

Get a mentor if you possibly can. What works for me in my climate will be totally different and so will the breed of cattle. You need to visit with those who are making things work on similar ground in close proximity.

backhoeboogie I deem this as great advice too....and was wondering if you'd care to take a shot in dark as to the optimum grass for the Texas Commerce/ Greenville area...and what cattle (you think)would fair well there? I'm sponging information....for my business. thanks

 

[backhoeboogie]

So i am hoping to get some real knowledgable advice. It would be greatly appreciated.

If you are going to play this game, play to win. If you are not going to play to win, don't play.

Find someone who is successful in your climate and pay attention to what they are doing. My climate is totally different.

Watch out for horse traders. People will try to sell you anything they can.

Your cows need to be capable of foraging on what grasses you can grow on that ground. They need to be capable of providing a healthy marketable calf each year. Don't get emotionally involved. This is a business and treat it as such.

Don't try to feed cows out of a bag. You'll go broke in a hurry. It is all about grasses in my opinion. Your growing season is shorter than mine but you have longer days in the summer. Use all of it to the maximum of your benefit. Stock pile some hay that will sustain the cows through the winter.

Get a mentor if you possibly can. What works for me in my climate will be totally different and so will the breed of cattle. You need to visit with those who are making things work on similar ground in close proximity.

backhoeboogie I deem this as great advice too....and was wondering if you'd care to take a shot in dark as to the optimum grass for the Texas Commerce/ Greenville area...and what cattle (you think)would fair well there? I'm sponging information....for my business. thanks

You are slightly wetter and therefore a touch more humid than I am. If I was planting grass, I would plant sudan. That is an expense that will be with you year after year. If you cannot grow coastal, look into bahia. Long term you are best planting something residual. Take care of the pasture and it will take care of the cattle.

I am overseeding my residual grasses with Hubam Clover. The seed comes from Breckenridge, Texas (Turner Seed) and this has been very successful for me the past two years. It puts a lot of N in the soil. With the cost of fertilizer being what it is, I intend to buy a bunch of seed this fall. The folks there told me that this clover variety "could grow to 6 feet tall". In the spring of '07 I actually had it 8 feet tall on the Brazos Flood plain. It was amazing. This year I grazed it closer. Anyway, it is a cheap source of N considering and you get forage from it that the cows go after.

Rotate you cows all you can. Keep the flies off of them and that is a chore.

Find someone in your area that is making it on like ground. Do what they are doing and go from there. Use clover for N if you can. It will really help.

Good luck. That bit about playing to win is a serious statement.

 

[denoginnizer]

Spy on the neighbors. I say this half joking but as I ride by other farms I always take notice of what they are doing and when they are doing it. I know the farmers that have the best reputation for making money and that have been in business the longest. I pay special attention to what they are doing . Now Im not saying go do whatever they are doing , because it might not work with your situation , but I try to figure out why they are doing what they are doing. Its kinda like watching a bunch of experiments that I didnt have to pay for.

 

[Brute 23]

FOr what its worth, my advice is to stock the place very lightly right off the bat. It makes it easier to get the place in shape. That away if you need to section off a little piece to plant grass or need to fix fences you are not depending on cattle being able to graze every square in.

From here on out, I will plant grass and get fences in shape before cattle ever hit the property.

 

[ToddFarmsInc]

....From here on out, I will plant grass and get fences in shape before cattle ever hit the property.

good call. The ground around my moms house is finnally getting into pretty good shape. (and now we are planning on selling to for more urban sprawl) My parrents bought the ground (about 40 acres of cool season grass, brome mostly) nearly 14 years ago.

The previous owners had over grazed the ground, and the grass was in terrible shape. Trees, brush, cactus (which is really rare around here). Now I run around a 100 head of cattle on the ground and it has never looked better. The previous owners had 5 cows on it and had over grazed it. That may sound strange, but the previous owners had no other pasture, and had no internal pens, or lots, so the 5 cows just kept eating the same tastey patches over and over, ignoring other areas of the fields. When I run my cows on it, they are on it for 1-2 weeks out of the year, and that's it. With that large number of head of cows, everyone eats everything, everything gets uniformally grazed down, then before I see too much of the cows ankles, they get moved right on out.

Management is more important than quanity.