Stocker start up

[Stocker Steve]

How do you make it work?

1) Marketing - - Buy low sell higher. A classic move is buying small lot of bulls in the SE and selling upgraded pots of steers to a Midwest feedlot.
2) Timing - - Surf the rising tide. A classic move is to buy pee wees in the winter.
3) Production VOG - - Buy cheap TDN (not grain) and put pounds on. A classic move is to run 5 wts. on MIG grass for 100 to 120 days, while supplementing daily with a DDG mix.

 

[BFE]

Yes, picked up a trailer in Camp Point IL.
I bought heifers last week weighed 445 for 1.49.

I'd say you did well on those.

Wayne City sale is 1st and 3rd Monday of the month. Greenville is every Wednesday. Two sales close to me. The man I bought from in salem buys Wednesday and Thursday morning. He had some 500+ steers that were probably chee ee eep, off colored and big nubbed horns. If you're ever through on those days let me know we'll hit a sale together.

 

[BFE]

1) Marketing - - Buy low sell higher. A classic move is buying small lot of bulls in the SE and selling upgraded pots of steers to a Midwest feedlot.
2) Timing - - Surf the rising tide. A classic move is to buy pee wees in the winter.
3) Production VOG - - Buy cheap TDN (not grain) and put pounds on. A classic move is to run 5 wts. on MIG grass for 100 to 120 days, while supplementing daily with a DDG mix.

Buyer told me October is the best time to buy.

 

[Travlr]

1) Marketing - - Buy low sell higher. A classic move is buying small lot of bulls in the SE and selling upgraded pots of steers to a Midwest feedlot.
2) Timing - - Surf the rising tide. A classic move is to buy pee wees in the winter.
3) Production VOG - - Buy cheap TDN (not grain) and put pounds on. A classic move is to run 5 wts. on MIG grass for 100 to 120 days, while supplementing daily with a DDG mix.

Well I admire you if you can make it work. I just don't like the perceived risk involved... and I play poker. Thanks for the response though.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Buyer told me October is the best time to buy.

Depends on your location and weather, but peak run here is often in November before deer hunting opens.

Dead calf month can be low cost, but it is also a risky time to buy.

 

[BFE]

Depends on your location and weather, but peak run here is often in November before deer hunting opens.

Dead calf month can be low cost, but it is also a risky time to buy.

Dead calf month?

Apparently when a big rain hits or harvest wraps up everyone floods the market with those spring calves, moving them before they have to start feeding them hay. Makes sense to me. I've got a place to winter them and should have some good baleage to put in them.

 

[sstterry]

I bought a few black steers and 2 bull calves today weighed 433 and cost 181.45. Worked and put out on hay before dark. Will be put on mostly grass this summer

Were you at Greenville?

 

[KAstocker]

October is known as dead calf month with the temperature swings.

 

[kenny thomas]

Were you at Greenville?

No, Jonesville. My side of the mountain.

 

[BFE]

October is known as dead calf month with the temperature swings.

I'll be danged never heard that. February is what I'd consider worst here. Either cold mud or ice, take your pick. Both hard on calves.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Made the mistake of going to the sales barn during a rainy dreary part of Dead Calf month. Prices were way way down and I could not resist a load of put together bawling calves. Brought them home and worked them. It kept raining and raining and I started seeing a lot of health issues about day 5. Decided to open the gate and let them spread out on the pasture. Three crawled through the fence and ended up in a dairy pasture down the road, but I did not lose to IBR.

 

[tex452]

It doesn't hurt to try.
We are starting to do something different.
Precondition for at least 60 days and sell at the special precondition sales.
We will see?

 

[BFE]

It doesn't hurt to try.
We are starting to do something different.
Precondition for at least 60 days and sell at the special precondition sales.
We will see?

I sold at one the first of April. Did really good.
The man at the feed store sold his local. Got 40 cents less than I did. I told him to let me know next time we'll plan and make a load of two.

 

[BFE]

Update.

Calves appear to all be growing well and are good and healthy. I had to doctor one for respiratory and it was a home raised one. I think most of them should be near the top of the market at the September feeder special sale I'm taking them to.

A question. I plan on buying more in October to turn in April. What is the minimum weight any of you all would buy to bring home through the winter? Our winters are generally mild but wet. We have about three weeks of arctic cold on average the rest 25-45 degree night/day temps.

 

[KAstocker]

Last winter was the first winter I had some. I bought 430 lb heifers and sold them 90 days later. I had them on stockpiled fescue and fair quality hay and 3 lbs of grain. They did not gain well only averaging 495 lbs when I sold. I think part of that was being on the wrong end of shrink both when I bought and sold them, which makes a big difference on a short turn. Lesson learned.

A couple friends of mine had similar weight calves and did the same thing but had them on 1% BW grain up to 5 lbs and held them until May to get a spring grazing. Their heifers gained 1.7 and the steers were 2.0 lbs ADG if I remember correctly.

My understanding is the smaller the calves, the higher percent of their diet needs to be grain until their rumen develops.

Sickness wise, I had issues, but they were bought 600 miles away. My friends bought local and had no issues.

 

[Travlr]

Update.

Calves appear to all be growing well and are good and healthy. I had to doctor one for respiratory and it was a home raised one. I think most of them should be near the top of the market at the September feeder special sale I'm taking them to.

A question. I plan on buying more in October to turn in April. What is the minimum weight any of you all would buy to bring home through the winter? Our winters are generally mild but wet. We have about three weeks of arctic cold on average the rest 25-45 degree night/day temps.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding?

You are going to be selling calves at a stocker sale and looking to buy calves to overwinter them?

Why not keep the ones you have and avoid the sale commissions?

 

[BFE]

Price. Unless I put together larger loads to ship farther I need to sell around 600 pounds to get the best price for the most weight in this region. I eventually want to put together enough to make a pot load at a time of 8 weights to ship farther west but I'm starting smaller, 20-24ft trailer loads to sell more local.

 

[bird dog]

You can get by with 4 weights in October but they just won't do very well on pasture unless its oats or wheat. KAstocker's info is similar to what I have seen. Health problems are also more of an issue. If you have some good hay, you can wait until December/January and do just about as well. The calves are more winter hardy by then and sometimes cheaper. Buyers are afraid of smaller calves when its cold and everybody that want wheat calves has already bought. You won't have as long of a wait until spring forage starts coming in buying in January. Put them in a small pasture with some shelter and fresh water. Give them all the good hay they can eat and some 14% or better creep a few times a week. They will be ready to go on pasture at green up and ready to market in May when prices are strong. Roll them out and roll in some 4 weights to graze the balance of the summer.

 

[BFE]

You can get by with 4 weights in October but they just won't do very well on pasture unless its oats or wheat. KAstocker's info is similar to what I have seen. Health problems are also more of an issue. If you have some good hay, you can wait until December/January and do just about as well. The calves are more winter hardy by then and sometimes cheaper. Buyers are afraid of smaller calves when its cold and everybody that want wheat calves has already bought. You won't have as long of a wait until spring forage starts coming in buying in January. Put them in a small pasture with some shelter and fresh water. Give them all the good hay they can eat and some 14% or better creep a few times a week. They will be ready to go on pasture at green up and ready to market in May when prices are strong. Roll them out and roll in some 4 weights to graze the balance of the summer.

They'll be on wheat baleage and fescue hay. I've been doing 5# a day of the feed I posted earlier. Still accumulating bulk bins to get going on the byproduct route.

We don't generally have much bad weather until after Christmas, and our Oct/Nov is generally pretty dry. April is normally the best time to sell here. I'll probably buy their replacements in February when the hay is running out and people are looking to move them.

 

[50/50Farms]

Maybe I'm misunderstanding?

You are going to be selling calves at a stocker sale and looking to buy calves to overwinter them?

Why not keep the ones you have and avoid the sale commissions?

Because that sure as heck won't pencil.