raising cattle on a small scale

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farmtractor

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North Central Texas
I am working for a farmer and am working in return for pasture and hay for some cattle. I am only financially able to purchase around 10 -15 animals right now. My question is, what type of cattle would best work out for this type of situation, light weight calves, stockers, feeders, or feeding out thin cows or maybe even starting a small cow/calf herd. I have worked on dairy farms for six years, been to college for farming, and grew up on a farm, so I do have experience with cattle. I am hopeing to be able to build up equity and start farming full time in the future. If anyone would have any comments, ideas, or suggestions, they would be well appreciated.

Thanks for your time
God Bless
Ben
 
Your'e situation sounds exactly like mine. You totally described me from background to education to current situation to future goals. I went with cow/calf, just because it's a little more interesting to me. Instead of buying feeders and turning around and reselling them. I do my own AI though so that of course is something to take into consideration. Welcome, this is a great place to learn. I don't write much, but I am on here very often reading other's corrospondance.
 
farmtractor":1qptmbzp said:
I am working for a farmer and am working in return for pasture and hay for some cattle. I am only financially able to purchase around 10 -15 animals right now. My question is, what type of cattle would best work out for this type of situation, light weight calves, stockers, feeders, or feeding out thin cows or maybe even starting a small cow/calf herd. I have worked on dairy farms for six years, been to college for farming, and grew up on a farm, so I do have experience with cattle. I am hopeing to be able to build up equity and start farming full time in the future. If anyone would have any comments, ideas, or suggestions, they would be well appreciated.

Thanks for your time
God Bless
Ben

Unless you're very knowledgable about any given breed of cattle and what to look for (or avoid), I'd stay away from the Sale Barns. What you see (or don't see) is what you get...no guarantees.

On other hand, contact a local/area rancher and look at his/her herd and buy direct from source. Expect to pay more, but you usually get a better product and the seller should stand behind the product to protect his/her reputation.
 
farmtractor":1apehlyg said:
I am working for a farmer and am working in return for pasture and hay for some cattle. I am only financially able to purchase around 10 -15 animals right now. My question is, what type of cattle would best work out for this type of situation, light weight calves, stockers, feeders, or feeding out thin cows or maybe even starting a small cow/calf herd. I have worked on dairy farms for six years, been to college for farming, and grew up on a farm, so I do have experience with cattle. I am hopeing to be able to build up equity and start farming full time in the future. If anyone would have any comments, ideas, or suggestions, they would be well appreciated.

Thanks for your time
God Bless

Ben
I would start with a cow calf operation of registered Red Polls. There is a good demand for Red Polls right now and you can get a premium over market price for your calves.
 
You are probably not far from where I am. I raise Charolais X Longhorn crosses and tigerstripes. The former I do o.k. selling the steers and some replacement females and the latter sell good farther south especially at replacement sales. But a lot depends on your experience and goals. I wouldn't do stockers unless your experienced and have the cash. Cow/calf with a little ear would be my suggestion...maybe brangus with a hereford bull or vice versa. Also, look for a depersal sale or even referred seedstock guy rather than the sale barn. There are others on here with more experience than I that might chime in.
 
Consider Murray Greys if you want docile, moderate framed,
easy calving animals. The international assoc is having its
annual internet auction Oct 7th through 13th. The
web location is: http://www.murraygrey.net/cgi-bin/auction.pl
There are only "sample" animals listed right now--ones that
sold last year. But you can see how the site is set up....
there's no cost to buyers. This year's animals will be listed
starting around Oct 1st.
 
Jovid":p9l04zt2 said:
farmtractor":p9l04zt2 said:
I am working for a farmer and am working in return for pasture and hay for some cattle. I am only financially able to purchase around 10 -15 animals right now. My question is, what type of cattle would best work out for this type of situation, light weight calves, stockers, feeders, or feeding out thin cows or maybe even starting a small cow/calf herd. I have worked on dairy farms for six years, been to college for farming, and grew up on a farm, so I do have experience with cattle. I am hopeing to be able to build up equity and start farming full time in the future. If anyone would have any comments, ideas, or suggestions, they would be well appreciated.

Thanks for your time
God Bless

Ben
I would start with a cow calf operation of registered Red Polls. There is a good demand for Red Polls right now and you can get a premium over market price for your calves.

There are always exceptions but, generally speaking, registered breeders only get a premium if they have the reputation for quality and honesty that allows them to command premium prices.
 
Running Arrow Bill":12uk1epe said:
farmtractor":12uk1epe said:
I am working for a farmer and am working in return for pasture and hay for some cattle. I am only financially able to purchase around 10 -15 animals right now. My question is, what type of cattle would best work out for this type of situation, light weight calves, stockers, feeders, or feeding out thin cows or maybe even starting a small cow/calf herd. I have worked on dairy farms for six years, been to college for farming, and grew up on a farm, so I do have experience with cattle. I am hopeing to be able to build up equity and start farming full time in the future. If anyone would have any comments, ideas, or suggestions, they would be well appreciated.

Thanks for your time
God Bless
Ben

Unless you're very knowledgable about any given breed of cattle and what to look for (or avoid), I'd stay away from the Sale Barns. What you see (or don't see) is what you get...no guarantees.

I disagree with this statement. Granted, the buyer needs to be a little savvy when it comes to cattle in general before purchasing from the local salebarn, but it can be great resource for calves to feed out over the winter, 3 in 1's, sometimes even replacement heifers. One man's trash is another man's treasure! ;-)
 
I would go with the pairs or some 3-1 heifer/cows also buying off the ranch is alot better when starting off you could have a mentor you could ask all your questions
 
I do not know what arrangment you have with the farmer. Unless it is in writeing it can only be considered temporary.
Given that, you should only buy stock that you consider very liquid. Something you can take to the sale barn and get your money back without a lot of notice. This pretty much leaves out regestered stock. Stockers, 3 in 1's, bred cows, poor cows you can fatten up, etc. First check the market for your end product. Work it out on paper, and get after it.
 
I would investigate to see if any certain breed in your area would bring a premium at the sale barn and start from there. I would go cow/calf pairs because that is what we do, but think about diversifying your herd. Go to a producer and pick up some heifers, do some research and pick up some 3 in 1's, look at bred cows. This will also stagger the age of your herd so when it comes time to cull or sell older stock, you aren't turning over your whole herd.
 
I disagree with this statement. Granted, the buyer needs to be a little savvy when it comes to cattle in general before purchasing from the local salebarn, but it can be great resource for calves to feed out over the winter, 3 in 1's, sometimes even replacement heifers. One man's trash is another man's treasure!

msscamp is correct again, as usual. Whenever the subject of sale barns comes up, certain posters can't wait to trash them and all of the buyers and sellers that use them. IMHO, sale barns are an important part of the cattle industry and an indispensable part of most cattle operations. To warn new cattlemen to stay away from the sale barn at all costs does them a great disservice.
 
Hawk":hsq08zg7 said:
I disagree with this statement. Granted, the buyer needs to be a little savvy when it comes to cattle in general before purchasing from the local salebarn, but it can be great resource for calves to feed out over the winter, 3 in 1's, sometimes even replacement heifers. One man's trash is another man's treasure!

msscamp is correct again, as usual. Whenever the subject of sale barns comes up, certain posters can't wait to trash them and all of the buyers and sellers that use them. IMHO, sale barns are an important part of the cattle industry and an indispensable part of most cattle operations. To warn new cattlemen to stay away from the sale barn at all costs does them a great disservice.

I agree for the most part. There CAN be good deals at the Sale Barn...we even use it sometimes to remove some of our quality "culls" (if you will) that don't fit our breeding program and/or as seedstock for other producers. The Sale Barn is a "tool" and serves a valuable purpose: quick cash turn-around, removes A.U.'s from eating your pasture or hay, etc. The bottomline is that when buying from the Sale Barn one needs to know their cattle and make the correct purchase decision. In our locale at least, the Sale Barns could care less about pedigrees, animals' ages, etc. It is an "animal" that weighs X amount of pounds to be sold to someone that day and not held over until the next week's sale.
 
novatech":1e8y4fgj said:
I do not know what arrangment you have with the farmer. Unless it is in writeing it can only be considered temporary.
Given that, you should only buy stock that you consider very liquid. Something you can take to the sale barn and get your money back without a lot of notice. This pretty much leaves out regestered stock. Stockers, 3 in 1's, bred cows, poor cows you can fatten up, etc. First check the market for your end product. Work it out on paper, and get after it.
Take it from me, this is good advise. An elderly man that I share a fence with told me his pasture was too much for him to keep up and that I could use it like it was mine as long as I kept it up. So I shredded the long grass, plowed, and planted some ryegrass all on this mans word. Well when the ryegrass was about ready to graze I get home one afternoon and there's about sixty goats in that pasture. He told me he wasn't aware that I planted any grass and that he decided to raise goats.There wasn't anything in writing, and anything short of beating up an old man theres nothing I could do. A few choice words and I never spoke to him agian.
 
Re:
I would start with a cow calf operation of registered Red Polls. There is a good demand for Red Polls right now and you can get a premium over market price for your calves.
Consider Murray Greys
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