Stop the train

[Caustic Burno]

For the commercial Cow/Calf operation.
For the first time in my life price's have gotten so high on replacement cattle here it pay's to retain a commercial heifer.
This is on paper. I have been scratching out the number's more than once. I still don't like heifers as I consider them a crap shoot versus a proven cow. I figure on paper to retain a heifer to production is 1400 to 1500 dollar's quality cow's are now bringing more than that.
This ties back into Tn Penquin's thread on the US cow herd .

 

[backhoeboogie]

Interesting. I've been doing it wrong anyway Now I can justify it?

Fertility genetics has been my reasoning mostly.

 

[highgrit]

Seems like very few train wrecks when you keep your own heifers.

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

We plan on retaining all the quality heifers we can this year. I very much regret selling the nice lot of 21 we sold last fall.

 

[thendrix]

I am keeping a heifer that was born here this spring also. I just wander how much further it is going to rise befroe people say "thats enough! I'm not paying that anymore!"

 

[TennesseeTuxedo]

$2.25 for 6 weight.

 

[bigbull338]

but the q is can you afford to put 2yrs an $1500 an wait for her to calve.i keep heifers an buy cows when i can.so its a crapp shoot either way you go.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

i had a 3 in one pair, pay for itself in one fell swoop.... with 200.00 to spare

 

[Anonymous]

Sell the heifers, buy breds, and be a year ahead. If it pencils out even is great, but time is still against you no matter which way it pencils out for commercial
Pb and specialty is a whole other story

 

[RD-Sam]

For the commercial Cow/Calf operation.
For the first time in my life price's have gotten so high on replacement cattle here it pay's to retain a commercial heifer.
This is on paper. I have been scratching out the number's more than once. I still don't like heifers as I consider them a crap shoot versus a proven cow. I figure on paper to retain a heifer to production is 1400 to 1500 dollar's quality cow's are now bringing more than that.
This ties back into Tn Penquin's thread on the US cow herd .

How do you arrive at the $1500 figure?

 

[Caustic Burno]

Your dam has a cost per day as well as the heifer until she return's income to the operation.
The dam went two year's without returning income you have 16 months in the heifer from weaning till calving.
Both these cow's have a per day cost, retained heifers are not free by any mean's.
You have to know your cost to keep a cow in the pasture everyday.
For me the cost would be about 1500 dollars figured at 1.50 a day. Before the drought here I figure I was at about 1.27 a day to upkeep a cow.

 

[kenny thomas]

I neither agree or disagree with either thought but every time I keep heifers i say never again.
That being said I bought a few cows/calf pairs yesterday costing from 1625-1800. Sure seems high that way also.

 

[Stocker Steve]

For the commercial Cow/Calf operation.
For the first time in my life price's have gotten so high on replacement cattle here it pay's to retain a commercial heifer.
This is on paper. I have been scratching out the number's more than once. I still don't like heifers as I consider them a crap shoot versus a proven cow. I figure on paper to retain a heifer to production is 1400 to 1500 dollar's quality cow's are now bringing more than that.

I have been looking at the same issue. Beef mag this month calculated retaining heifers the last couple years was very profitable. Kind of late news to help most of us. They also calculated retaining 2012 heifers is marginal -- because they project cow/calf profits will start dropping in 2014...

The Noble Foundation ran some numbers a while back including tax rates and 179 deductions. It was ugly - - basically you could only afford to retain if you were so poor you did not pay income tax. This must be how big ranches are put together ;-)

I don't trust a data point in time. If your would have done a calc last fall you would have sold all your cows cheap and then sprayed out the pasture to grow $7 corn.

I agree that buying heifers is a crap shoot, but I have much better success with retained heifers out of proven cow families.

So I split the difference - - retaining a select 10 to 20% from my top cows (this year they are AI wf calves out of Victor Domino), buying in some discounted red cows, and putting in a little crop to renovate one or two pastures each year. What really skews gross margins here is that we seem to be one of the few areas in the country that still has inexpensive hay. :cboy:

 

[Brute 23]

Just remember that is the cost in YOUR operation... not in every one's operation.

 

[Stocker Steve]

Just remember that is the cost in YOUR operation... not in every one's operation.

I my replacement raising cost is less than some, but the real issue is the difference between my options.

So last winter I sold 9 month old black middle cut could have been replacement heifers for $65 more than I had to pay for bred red cows... :shock:

 

[Beefy]

i have always held back 20-40 heifers each year but now (and last year) i am inclined more to sell heifers more than ever. in large b/c i'm maxed out anyway. but the prices certainly dont make me feel too bad. also i dont know why everyone is so gunshy about calving out heifers, its not a big ordeal if you know what you are doing.

 

[highgrit]

The majority of the problems with heifers, come from using the wrong Bull.

 

[Brute 23]

I dont get it either. Last time I pulled calves it was years ago because of some funked up Simental bull. Got rid of the bull and got rid of the problem.

Worked for a guy who had us check his angus heifers morning and evening. Plum crazy....

 

[RD-Sam]

Your dam has a cost per day as well as the heifer until she return's income to the operation.
The dam went two year's without returning income you have 16 months in the heifer from weaning till calving.
Both these cow's have a per day cost, retained heifers are not free by any mean's.
You have to know your cost to keep a cow in the pasture everyday.
For me the cost would be about 1500 dollars figured at 1.50 a day. Before the drought here I figure I was at about 1.27 a day to upkeep a cow.

I can rent pasture, buy quality hay and mineral, vaccines, etc., for less than a dollar a day per head. That is why I asked about the high cost of raising a heifer. I keep all of mine to build the herd, the ones that don't cut it, get used for freezer beef and I about break even.

 

[Ouachita]

This subject is very interesting to me, and will become more interesting in a few months at weaning. This afternoon, my 10th calf in 14 days hit the ground. 9 heifer calves, 1 bull calf. (I had one older cow abort a few weeks back that would have made the calf count 11 to date).
I have 3 mommas yet to calve, and one is a heifer. Of the 11 mommas that have already calved (including the aborted), 3 have been heifers with no problems at all.
So, my results of retaining 4 heifers (3 have calved, one yet to calve) are running 100% success so far with no help from me. Of the other 10 experienced mommas (including the one that aborted), I have 2 yet to calve. My point is that out of 8 experienced mommas that have already calved, one aborted, and one has a gimpy calf. So I consider that a 75% success rate........3 out of 4 heifers are batting 100%, and 8 out of 10 experienced mommas are batting 75% on profitable drops.
I have a low birth weight registered black covering. It's turned out well, I'm guessing. I don't know how to read all those numbers. My herd is a motley crew, but all the calves are black except one red tiger stripe just like her momma, and one out of the Jersey which is solid chocolate colored. 2 have white faces. Except for the aborted calf, and the premature "calf can't stand up" calf, all have hit the ground at 55-60 pounds, and are packing on weight good.
My thoughts are to let this bull re-breed in a couple months, then sell him private treaty (come and see his calves). Then I'll go without a bull thru the winter, and see what happens with the market. To retain or not to retain heifers; that is the question. Decisions...........