Update: Yellow tag day tomorrow

[Warren Allison]

Well, tomorrow morning we tag and band the February calves, and cut out and load up the August calves. We use white for January and July calves, yellow for Feb and August calves, green for March and September, etc. Them move the cows we just weaned to a place across the road, and move the same number of heavy breds over to the Kudzu place.

Today was the last day of quail and rabbit season. If it wasn't , we'd have plenty of time and perfect weather for one more hunt tomorrow. I think I only got to hunt 6 times this whole past season.
This is what the end of the month looks like every month these days. Weaning an average of 60 six month olds, and tagging and banding about 60 four weeks old or less.

Back when me and Scott still had good sense...and had only 120 head... we calved in February, and we rounded up and hauled calves to the sale right before Labor Day. And we'd move the cows all to the 450 acres of crop residue in November, then move them and their calves back across the road to the Kudzu place at the end of hunting season. That was it. Just that simple. But. I have got us into a full time situation now, with 722 calving year round. AND, all but 223 of the 1201 acres is brand-new planted/sprigged, so we having to put out hay. This just shot my business mode all to hades with the extra inputs. Oh, we are making money hand over fist, with the contract at $3.35/lb for steers and $3.10 on heifers...averaging about $1800+ on steers and about $1650 on the heifers, BUT... me and Scott neither one really needed or wanted the money. Wish something like this had come along 45 years ago, when we were raising families and did need the money! But at our age and health, I myself was happier just fooling with them two days a year, and bird and rabbit hunting all fall and winter. If I didn't have this deal with my friend, I'd like to sell about half of those cows...maybe more, and scale this back to where it was a fun side project again.

 

[simme]

In this time of war, strife, division and fear, it is good to see that some aspects of our reality have finally returned to the old comfortable "normal". Speaks to the resilence and determination of the rural way of life and the american cowboy. Looks like the adversity has been overcome. Lemons turned to lemonade. Makes me think of the phrase "Long live the king".

 

[Ouachita]

In this time of war, strife, division and fear, it is good to see that some aspects of our reality have finally returned to the old comfortable "normal". Speaks to the resilence and determination of the rural way of life and the american cowboy. Looks like the adversity has been overcome. Lemons turned to lemonade. Makes me think of the phrase "Long live the king".

Your positivity has no bounds. You are an inspiration

 

[Warren Allison]

It went pretty good Saturday. Weaned 44, I think..19 heifers and 25 steers. We only had about 3650-400 cows last August, About everything that did calve last August were ones I had got from Mike. 3 calves were out of our original Corriente cows. 1 had a black Simm calf ( biggest of this bunch sand no ear) and 2 by that Brangus x Chi-Angus bull ( tallest of the bunch and no ear) All the rest were out of Mike's cows and by this Brangus bulls we are using now.

I had 69 February calves to tag and cut. 9 of them were out of some of the last bunch of heavy breds I bought end of the year, The guy I bought them from had advertised they were bred to Angus and Charolais bulls. It was getting close to the end of the year and I needed to put some money into cattle, plus Corrientes were going up in price faster than anything..so I bought them anyway. 9 of them calved last month... 5 kinda smallish Angus calves and 4 &^%@#$* Char calves...a faded dun and 3 smokies. And all 4 had nubs! Those &^%@#$ Charolais are bad about that. Mike had brought his trailer down Saturday, and he told me " Hell, I will take them too at weaning," His wife and daughter-in-law have started a little butcher business, selling steaks etc to folks and to the local restaurants. He said he felt like if he wasn't pushing for us to get 900-1000 , that he felt like I wouldn't have bought them, so he'd just take them. There are 11 more cows left out of that bunch, then no more &^%@#$ Char calves . I had kinda figured there would be some horns/scurs though, when the boy told me they were with Charolais bulls.
We had plenty of good help.....6 of us all together, and everything went smooth. Scott didn't have to do anything, and that was good because he was hardly able, But, he grilled some gator tail while we were working cows, and it was awesome! He makes a sauce to go on them out of chili sauce and honey, and something else that I can't remember...might be mustard... and it was good!

 

[gcreekrch]

My crew of 3 girls and two guys including Ma and me would have had that little job done by noon and had time to video and photograph the highlights. Surely a cowman of your stature and ego would have recorded at least part of the happenings.

 

[Warren Allison]

See my post above, on March 1st. I have always thought we were pushing it to take on this many cows and calves at this time, and had wished I could have waited a year so that all of this new pasture could get started a little better. Plus, 700+ cows have become a JOB... and I said if I hadn't made the deal with Mike, I would scale back about 500 or so cows! He is about 10 years older than me and Scott ( we are 68) and I keep telling myself I hope we hold out til he decides to retire. But, his son told me last week, he had found some more sources in Florida, and they are now feeding out around 3000 head a year, so him getting out any time soon didn't seem very likely.

However Mike told me Tuesday that a very large Tech company...maybe the largest there is.. has been approaching him with an offer that he is having a hard time refusing. He said he would like to take them up, but the capitol gains tax would get half of it. Or, he'd have to go to Alabama, and buy more land...about 10 times as much ....within a year of selling, He said he'd never live long enough to get 10k acres doing what he does now on a thousand, Wears him out even thinking about it. They are offering north of $50k an acre, for the land to build data centers, operations faciliities, and training operations on it. I told him, heck, that's over $50 mil...sell it and buy some condo development in Florida, and live in one and rent the rest. Too much work, he said, and he don't care much for the beach.

The Joint Economic Development Commission is really encouraging him to do it. It would mean thousands of jobs for our county. And what's left of farm land here would go for development of housing for those 5000+ families at similar prices, probably. Businesses would flourish, and other businesses that service, supply, etc., this giant company would be moving, too. So, that would be the end of farming/ranching....just about any rural land left in this county. Even the Governor came to see him to talk about how great this would be for Georgia.

I told him that he ought to get JEDCO, or the state, or both, to buy half the acres from him for north of $100k an acre, then he could turn around and donate the other 500 to them, and there would be no tax. Well, he called me just while ago, and he said yesterday he had talked to a real estate attorney friend of ours...good ole country boy that used to rope with us, and asked him about what I had told him. He said Danny told him he would try to set up a meeting with JEDCo next week and "throw it out there and see if the dogs will eat it!" Wants me to go with him to make sure he understands what all they are saying. He said: " Other than Danny ( our lawyer buddy) I don't trust none of them chicken eating SOBs!" LOL. You'd have to understand Mike. He never has let pork or chicken etc, to be served at his table, He and his wife and son eat beef at breakfast. ( but they do eat eggs!) He said he is in the beef business..don't want no part of no damned hog or chicken eating! If he REALLY gets mad at someone, he calls them a chicken-eating SOB. LOL.

So maybe it will all work out for him, and maybe in a year or two I can scale back down to where we can get back down to 150-200 hd, have them all calve in February again, sell them all at the sale after Labor Day again, and can enjoy what time we have left quail and rabbit hunting, which is the reason Scott and I bought the place 45 years ago anyhow!

 

[kenny thomas]

Tell him to sell and require the buyer to pay the capital gains tax.

 

[Warren Allison]

Tell him to sell and require the buyer to pay the capital gains tax.

That would be even more income to him. This thing with JEDCo should work. Back in the late 90's, our BOE wanted to purchase this 80 acre farm to build a new high school on. The man agreed to sell it at $25k an acre...which was HUGE sum in 1998. But, right before closing, everyone discovered that because he had paid his dad $1 for the place, instead of inheriting it, $1,999,999 would be subject to capitol gains, tax. so he was about to back out of the deal. Then a businessman came up with the idea of buying just 40 acres from the man for $50k an acre, which set the value of the land. Then the farmer donated 40 acres of land, valued at $50k an acre, which is tax deductible, so it was a wash. No capitol gains.

 

[TexasJerseyMilker]

"If he REALLY gets mad at someone, he calls them a chicken-eating SOB. LOL."

 

[Warren Allison]

Saturday I went down there and we rounded up, tagged and banded the March calves. 64 of them. This may be the month with the most.
Gathered, sorted and loaded the September calves, 45 of them.

Having so many head , they had really knocked down the Kudzu this winter, but it is coming on like gangbusters, now. One advantage that we have noticed with 700 something Corrs, calving year round, is that there has been very little if any coyote predation on the rabbits and quail this spring. Talked to the meat goat and sheep farmer next to the new ground I bought last year and he has only lost 2 lambs so far. He said he hasn't seen them as frequently as he has in other years. If he didn't have sheep and goats, the coyotes would most likely just move on out of this area and go look for "greener pastures".

My arthritis and carpal tunnel were giving me fits Saturday. I had to throw two loops a lot with trying to heel and drag. I guess Joe had to rope 40 or more of them. For the first time, this seemed more like work than fun. But I still enjoyed it. Me and Scott are just getting too old for this, especially considering we don't have to do this. If all goes well with Mike selling out though, about 1 more year to year and a half, we should be totally done with this 700 cow-calf business.

 

[Warren Allison]

Well, it is national news now. Mike just sold his place, 960+ aces for $90 million dollars, to a company that will build an 8.6 MILLION SQUARE FEET data center on it! His place is located about 1 mile form Plant Bowen, as the crow flies, which is the largest coal-burning plant in the south. They currently have 4 generators, and are going to have to add 4 more just to supply power to this place . Final approval will be held at a zoning board meeting later this month, but it will be passed. The governor and everyone else is pushing hard for it. Lots of opposition to it from the citizens, but the almighty dollar will win out. This will be the end of agriculture in Bartow county, because everyone's land will now be taxed at $100k an acre, so no choice but to sell out to industrial and commercial. I hate it too, but can't blame Mike. The company paid him $9 mil in earnest money, and he has already bought about 3500 acres of pasture and row crops close to the Montgomery. He is moving his feed operation ( currently feeds 3k a year), as well as his Brangus seed stock operation down there. It was all he could do to get that many from us and the folks that he has been furnishing bulls to and buying their calves at weaning,.... so...he intends to buy up and breed his own cows again.. Corriente, Fla Scrub, and Pineywoods., like he sold to us last year for next to nothing (or for some of them....actually nothing). . He told me Saturday that he will buy the 730 something we have accumulated, and pay us $1600 a head ( the going rate for black Corr cows) and STILL pay us for any of the calves at the contracted rate.

As y'all have read before, I wasn't all that thrilled about growing that fast anyway, from about 100 totally no- input, maintenance-free head to 700 head, with plans to go to 1000 head, this year , once the new pastures are well established. . Just too much like work for 2 old farts like me and Scott, especially since he wanted us to calve year round. So, we are gonna keep 200-225 or so, and go back to calving in February, and sell to him once a year around Labor day. We are gonna just keep them on the original 230 acre Kudzu place, and on the 270 acres adjoining it, that was the timber land I bought last year. Those 400 acres of row crop land across the road of Scott's, that we sprigged in World Feeder and Bulldog Alfalfa last year he is leasing it to Scott and Lisa. As well as the old 50 acre dove field plot next to it. And I think they are going to lease the 260 acres from Scott's momma, that we fenced in and sowed last year, too.

So, I am keeping the February calvers and as many of the January and March calvers as I need to get our 230 or so. Might have to keep some Dec calvers too, and get them all calving in February next year, Mike is going to buy these calves at weaning, too. And he is going to furnish the 8 bulls we will need to get them calving this tight. He prefers to buy and feed out calves by his bulls.

They plan on breaking ground on the date centers this winter. Mike already has crews building the feed lots down there, like he has here. There are 4 houses on the places he bought. One for him. one for his son, one he will make into a bunkhouse for his hands and for the truck drivers that haul his cattle. The 4th one is going to be Clay's house. He is still going to be hauling that mash from the Budweiser place up here, all the way down there.

I told Mike that at 78 ( his age) I be damned if I'd do all of that. I would take that money and buy a house and a boat on the coast, and just fish everyday and eat out every night.!!! He asked me to buy, or make, 8-10 good cow horses for him to carry down there so I guess I will be doing that this summer. And, I have decided to go ahead and build down there in Unadilla. I don't want to live up here in what this county is about to become.

 

[MACVSOG]

i do not acquiesce well, if at all.
sometimes the easiest choice to
make is when there is no other
viable choice. good luck.

 

[Warren Allison]

Right now, I have had to move in with my 91 yr old mother. She has some dementia, which is getting worse by the month, and is nearly blind with Macular Degeneration. Starting next week, we are remodeling my grandparents' home which is located across the road on my 8 acre Bermuda hay field, where I raise my horse-quality hay. It is much smaller than her house, and is on a slab, so no steps. And it is right beside her life-long friend who is 90, and across the road from another who is also 90. They plan on living out the rest of their time visiting and gossiping, etc, Home and land prices here have already sky-rocketed the past 3- 4 years, and after this deal with Mike's place goes through, she will be living on a virtual gold mine between the 2 places. And the taxes will take a gold mine to pay in about another year or two, once the data center breaks ground. So, I suspect we will be moving to the place I am building in south GA later this year, if she is still with us. Between selling those cattle for $800k+, (which we have virtually nothing in), and selling Mike those 200+ calves each year, (which we will have zero cost in other than a little salt and minerals), AND selling our places up here, I am going to be doing ok. Plus I have someone trying to buy my insurance firm. I am going to have a hell of a tax problem myself, once all of his happens. But, I'd give it all away, if there was some way I could prevent her from deteriorating anymore, and my county from becoming what it will this next year or so. Myself, I could live comfortably on my SS and a couple of deferred comp plans I have ,and be happy in a barndominium on about 10 acres, just enough to keep 2 or 3 horses. I doubt I will be able to fish any this year, with taking care of momma and all, but maybe someday....