Replacement Heifer Prices

[tnwalkingred]

All,

I've got 9 nice heifers that are approximately 580 lbs. According to the market prices they should bring close to 800 dollars a piece for slaughter.

They have been wormed vaccinated twice, wormed twice, and on feed since July. I'm ready to sell them so I decided to post them on Craigslist for a few days and see if I had any bites. I posted them for $9000 as a group with free delivery. I know this is quite a bit higher than what they're worth but I'd at least give it a shot and see.

What are ya'lls thoughts on what their really worth and if I'll have any luck selling them online? Is there any "real" value to buying them off a farm as opposed to from a market if you're looking for replacements?

 

[denvermartinfarms]

No value at all in my eyes. Paying 100$ a head for not being at a sale doesn't work for me. Although it does for a few. You might try them on the Internet for a week at market value and see if you could save the commission and the hauling.

 

[denvermartinfarms]

Ok I just saw you posted them at 9000$ for the group, at first I thought you were at 900$ a head, worth a shot but very unlikely. Do you have a scale?

 

[Aaron]

A lot of quality heifers are going for slaughter. Very few people buying breds. Guys are getting older and the young guys either are big enough, or have too much debt.

At our last local sale for this year, this past weekend, you could have bought 5-6 month bred cows for slaughter price all day long. 75% went for slaughter. Few Herefords on offer and not of my quality, so I was not a buyer. Although there was one good-looking blue roan that I almost pulled the trigger on.

 

[tnwalkingred]

Denver,

I don't have a scale but will definitely weigh them before I carry them to market if I even decide to sell them. Bred heifers are bringing $1200-$1500 a piece in these parts right now. If they don't bring what I want them to I may very well keep them till spring and sell them as bred heifers. I've already had some calls about them so we'll see how it goes over the next two weeks. I read where the price of replacements was going to be extremely high over the next few years.

Aaron,

Young bred cows here are bringing $1500+ right now. I'm curious as to why they would be so much cheaper in your part of the world.

 

[greybeard]

Breds sold at $970-$1290 here last week.
Feeder heifers 500-600lbs sold $1.04-$1.78--avg to $1.41.
You are asking $1.72

 

[Aaron]

Denver,

I don't have a scale but will definitely weigh them before I carry them to market if I even decide to sell them. Bred heifers are bringing $1200-$1500 a piece in these parts right now. If they don't bring what I want them to I may very well keep them till spring and sell them as bred heifers. I've already had some calls about them so we'll see how it goes over the next two weeks. I read where the price of replacements was going to be extremely high over the next few years.

Aaron,

Young bred cows here are bringing $1500+ right now. I'm curious as to why they would be so much cheaper in your part of the world.

At the same sale, after the breds sold, you could buy first-calf straight Angus heifers, with fall calves at foot, $1400 a pair - take as many as you want. And they were pretty decent pairs.

They are so much cheaper here because the number getting out compared to the number getting in is 10:1 - no joke. And I am in the middle of the country - same goes for Western and Eastern Canada.

For 95% of the breds and pairs at that sale, there were only two buyers in the entire barn of about 120 people, a 50+ year old fly-by-night cowman and a slaughter buyer.

Here is the report for the stocker's at that sale: http://www.ontariobeef.com/markets/auct ... ocker.aspx

 

[tnwalkingred]

One thing I've learned over the years of buying and selling everything from horses/cattle to trucks/tools is its only worth what you can get for it. I've already had 3 people contact me since I made the posting. I'll keep you guys up to date on how it goes.

 

[Bigfoot]

I have been gathering weaned heifers for a couple months now. $850 is the most I have paid. That's not to say that you want get your price. A small group of real dandy calves might be worth that to somebody. It will take just the right buyer. It'll probably be someone trying to get in the cattle business.

 

[Calhoun Farm]

Not sure where you are, but Athens stock yard is having a heifer replacement sale this friday night. I went last year and bred heifers where bringing 1500 to 1700/head. Opens where in the 1000 to 1200 range. I went with the intentions of buying, but I wasn't paying that for them.

 

[Kscattle]

I've seen some of the "breeding bulls" on Craig's list on another thread and their asking prices. As long as they're decent heifers you'll get close to what your asking for yours. Some people are scared to death of sale barns and will pay extra for that fear. It doesn't hurt to try!

 

[banekar]

Where are you located and what breed of heifers are they? That can make a big difference.

 

[Tim/South]

Shots and on eating feed will put calves in the upper end price per lb. here.
I let a neighbor pick through my heifer calves and get what he wanted. We weighed the load and he paid upper end market price average per head. He was happy, I was happy.
He wanted calves off the farm, could see the mommas.
I saved on overnight shrink at the sale barn, also hauling and commission.

 

[Isomade]

If they are nice and you were here they are way under priced. I sold 20 commercial angus/Brangus replacement heifers 3 weeks ago for 1200 each. They had been weaned for 3 weeks and weighed 600.

 

[banekar]

We have been selling our weaned Brangus heifers off of the ranch also. Depending on size, getting anywhere between 1000 and 1300.

 

[James T]

One thing I've learned over the years of buying and selling everything from horses/cattle to trucks/tools is its only worth what you can get for it. I've already had 3 people contact me since I made the posting. I'll keep you guys up to date on how it goes.

I think your right on the mark. You had them on feed, offering free delivery and giving yourself a little wiggle room on the price too.

 

[tnwalkingred]

7 of the heifers are super nice. There'a two that could be a little better and I've decided to take them out of the group and haul them to the sale barn on Monday with a couple bulls calves I need to get rid of. As nice as the other 7 are I got to thinking it might hurt their value as a group. So I'm gonna stick to my guns and demand a premium price for them. If I was just getting into the cattle business I'd be more than willing to pay extra for slick healthy heifers that were coming off a farm and not out of a barn. I'll try and post some pics of the heifers this weekend.

 

[tnwalkingred]

We'll I got the 2 cull heifers and the 2 cull bulls in the pen and ready to go to the sale barn in the morning. I'll be curious to see what they all weigh and let's hope prices are high!

 

[Calhoun Farm]

I'm selling 3 black angus and 1 black baldie. I'm asking 1100ea or 4000 for all 4. My girls are about 14months old.

 

[fitz]

I'm selling 3 black angus and 1 black baldie. I'm asking 1100ea or 4000 for all 4. My girls are about 14months old.

Sounds fair. You like them?

fitz