Central Fl Cracker
Well-known member
What time of year do most cow/calf operators send their calves to the auction houses assuming you calved in the spring. Also what target weight do you use when you are ready to sell?
Central Fl Cracker":2l9z0mag said:What time of year do most cow/calf operators send their calves to the auction houses assuming you calved in the spring. Also what target weight do you use when you are ready to sell?
You don't know what trouble is until you go the stocker route with weaned-on-the-way-to-town salebarn calves that have never seen needle or knife and still cost $700 a pop. That's where you'll need the experience.Central Fl Cracker":iykfdkfg said:The reason I was asking I have decided to go the stocker route due to cow/calf operations are more involved than the non experience I have.
Texan":3lsz91vs said:You don't know what trouble is until you go the stocker route with weaned-on-the-way-to-town salebarn calves that have never seen needle or knife and still cost $700 a pop. That's where you'll need the experience.Central Fl Cracker":3lsz91vs said:The reason I was asking I have decided to go the stocker route due to cow/calf operations are more involved than the non experience I have.
Bred, solid-mouthed cows that know how to do their job without you will look pretty good to you after you get a big enough dead pile of stockers going.
Central Fl Cracker":3uphlepq said:I must admit I am lucking the rancher that leases half of our property for cow/calf operations is going to sell me the feeders after weaning. He also runs 100 head on the same property and he will be my new mentor. If ya'll think running stockers versus cow/calf operation is a train wreck then I must be missing something. The cattle business is not rocket science and you just need to read and listen to experienced cattlemen like yourself to gain some experience. I assume you all were newbies at some time. :lol:
Central Fl Cracker":2zsygpsy said:so what problems should I expect doing stockers?
Central Fl Cracker":uk8mrj70 said:I truly thank you for your input and advice. There was quite a few items I had not thought about. You obvously know the stocker biz and here I thought you were mainly a cow/calf producer.
Caustic Burno":21zmoeum said:Stocker cattle represent a great opportunity to turn forages into profit for the savvy cattleman. The keysto a successful stocker program lie in four areas: pasture management, cost control, proper marketingand animal management.
Pasture Management
One of the cheapest things you can do to increase weight gain in your stocker calves is to properly fertilize and lime your pastures. Properly fertilized forages contain more of the nutrients that cattle need to gain weight quickly. The best way to go about fertilizing and liming your pastures is to take a soil sample several months before the forage growing season (for example, take a soil sample in the early fall for winter wheat or ryegrass). Based on the results of the soil sample lime and/or fertilize the pasture accordingly. Another important aspect of pasture management is weed control. For every pound of weeds in your pasture there is one less pound of usable forages for your stocker calves. Cooperative Extension agent can help you choose the correct herbicide and advise you on the correct time to apply them to remove unwanted weeds.
Cost Control
Obviously, to make money raising stocker cattle you have to sell the cattle for more than you put in them. Carefully controlling input costs like feed, medication, supplements, etc. and making sure that these items result in added benefits that are worth the cost is crucial. It is beneficial to keep a record of
all costs incurred, not only for tax purposes, but to help you determine your breakeven costs for future years.
Proper Marketing
Raising big, healthy stocker calves means little if you are unable to attain the best possible price for them. The first step in a successful marketing plan is to purchase cattle types that sell well in your area. For example, black-baldie stocker cattle are in high demand while eared-breeds such as the Zebu-crosses are in low demand in sale barns. Pound for pound, black-baldie will more often than not, bring a better
price than Zebu-crosses no matter how good the Zebu-cross cattle. The next step is to find out what the buyers prefer in terms of a final weight. If the buyers in your area
prefer 6 CWT cattle, it will do you no good to keep your stockers on the pastures until they are 8 CWTs.
Proper Animal Management
When processing stocker calves, it makes sense to perform a few management procedures to increase their value. These include castrating bull calves and dehorning any horned cattle, as well as deworming and vaccinating all calves. The mere act of dehorning and castrating will increase the calves' value by
several cents per pound at sale time. Vaccinating and deworming cattle will reduce your death losses and increase productivity because sick cattle don't efficiently gain weight.
Properly matching cattle-types to available forages will also maximize productivity and weight gain. The highest quality forages should be matched up with lightweight calves, while heavier calves can be placed on slightly more mature, less nutritious forages with no loss in production.