Weaning weights

[WFfarm]

MM, compare the cows to your own herd versus other people's herds. You have to optimize your cows for the environment you are in. What works in your area is different from mine or other parts of the country. A good scale has been helpful to us. You can't manage what you can't measure. Start by ranking your herd. Average daily gain is as important as final weaned weight. Certain ones will always be at the top of the list and they are your keepers and ones you should look for replacements from. They are naturally selecting themselves for your conditions, whether it be breed mix, heat tolerance, size, quantity of milk. Most likely it will be a combination of traits. Vise versa you will find others that are always at the bottom of the list, and are your first candidates for culling. You will eventually keep raising your average weaning weights. This is our method of managing our herd of about 32 commercial cows. When Jack Welsh was the CEO of GE he had a mentality that 5% of the workforce was always getting turned over. This was natural trimming of the "dead wood".

 

[MurraysMutts]

I had an idea Warren wasn't just sitting at one sale picking up cows....

Anyway.

Results!
Got to thinking a little. I sold HEIFERS.
Weights are bound to be down some. So here we are.


The group of 5 weighed 429 average. Not bad for sitting at the sale 3 days bawling!
The 295lb heifer was 2 months younger.
The standout was for whatever reason the 490lb heifer. These were all born within 30 days except the lightweight.
They were ALL out of my hereford bull and mutt mamas.

The 485lb steer was out of my Mutt Brangus, Richard. And he was born October 27th!

Weighed more than the pure hereford BULL. And he was older.

So there it is!

I've got 1 heifer out of Richard that I think I'll keep. She's near same size as the steer that sold. I guess I'm not as far behind the curve as I thought. I know there's plenty of room for improvement, but I'm not terrible dissatisfied for 6 and a half month old ALL NATURAL HEIFERS!
Yep. No implant in any of these animals.
That's a whole 'nother topic.

I forgot, the horns sold right with the polled heifers. Didn't seem to matter.

 

[gcreekrch]

Why three days at the yards? The closer time between cow and scale the better.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I hear talk of people raising 600 lb weaning weight calves.

What's it take to achieve that?

Do I need to consider a creep feeder?

Heavy milking cows.

Cheapest method is to buy some cull Holstein cows with usable bags.

Creep feed is not required, but the cows may need some grain.

 

[MurraysMutts]

Why three days at the yards? The closer time between cow and scale the better.

I agree!
My reds sold same day last month.

Logistics this time. Took time off day job. Threat of rain (that never happened)
They were at 2 different places. Would've been very difficult to catch em all in one morning b4 the sale started. Los of things with this group I guess.

 

[georgiabob]

If i was 20 years younger i'd have baldie cows and a brangus bull. I'd retain heifers and then play around with bulls until i found what worked.

 

[georgiabob]

If i was 20 years younger i'd have baldie cows and a brangus bull. I'd retain heifers and then play around with bulls until i found what worked.

My point was good mothers snd hybrid vigor.

 

[Warren Allison]

I had an idea Warren wasn't just sitting at one sale picking up cows....

Anyway.

Results!
Got to thinking a little. I sold HEIFERS.
Weights are bound to be down some. So here we are.

View attachment 15752
The group of 5 weighed 429 average. Not bad for sitting at the sale 3 days bawling!
The 295lb heifer was 2 months younger.
The standout was for whatever reason the 490lb heifer. These were all born within 30 days except the lightweight.
They were ALL out of my hereford bull and mutt mamas.

The 485lb steer was out of my Mutt Brangus, Richard. And he was born October 27th!

Weighed more than the pure hereford BULL. And he was older.

So there it is!

I've got 1 heifer out of Richard that I think I'll keep. She's near same size as the steer that sold. I guess I'm not as far behind the curve as I thought. I know there's plenty of room for improvement, but I'm not terrible dissatisfied for 6 and a half month old ALL NATURAL HEIFERS!
Yep. No implant in any of these animals.
That's a whole 'nother topic.

I forgot, the horns sold right with the polled heifers. Didn't seem to matter.

What did you sell that weighed 2145 lbs?!!!

 

[Silver]

What did you sell that weighed 2145 lbs?!!!

It's all right there in his post.

 

[MurraysMutts]

What did you sell that weighed 2145 lbs?!!!

Yeah....
5 heifers that all matched up pretty nice. Horned and polled sold together. Horns didn't seem to make a difference

 

[Warren Allison]

Yeah....
5 heifers that all matched up pretty nice. Horned and polled sold together. Horns didn't seem to make a difference

OK, I didn't see anything on the screen shot of your ticket that said how many head. I went back and read what you posed under it, and see now that it was 5. Does that check stub or ticket list the number of head off to the left, and that just got cut off of the pic?

 

[MurraysMutts]

OK, I didn't see anything on the screen shot of your ticket that said how many head. I went back and read what you posed under it, and see now that it was 5. Does that check stub or ticket list the number of head off to the left, and that just got cut off of the pic?

Yep. I missed it when I took the picture

 

[Hunter]

I must have missed something. Buyer asks someone to find cattle and cuts him a check for total amount they will pay. When cattle are delivered the buyer is happy with what he received. We have two happy parties in a deal. What is missing?
Not trying to stir pot but if one guy is successful doing it one way and someone else is successful doing it another, so be it.

 

[Hunter]

If I were the buyer I would have preferred $40,000 worth of better quality cattle. $5000 commission would have been $35 per head. That's plenty.

How do you know it would be better? Is there a history of poor cattle being delivered?
If buyer is happy and makes money who cares.
Are insurance agents or car salesmen thieves for charging more than someone else?

 

[Hunter]

Congrats to your guy for doing what he does. Is he doing what Warren says he is doing and driving all over or going to local sales and getting best available?
Wondering if we are comparing apples to apples.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

Enough! You guys are talking different kind of cattle purchases. Drop it. We are here to learn, advise, and discuss. How do you think this looks to our new people joining our FRIENDLY, HELPFUL group.

 

[Lee VanRoss]

I must have missed something. Buyer asks someone to find cattle and cuts him a check for total amount they will pay. When cattle are delivered the buyer is happy with what he received. We have two happy parties in a deal. What is missing?
Not trying to stir pot but if one guy is successful doing it one way and someone else is successful doing it another, so be it.

Perceived perception of a person can be a deciding factor in personal success. A modicum of decorum can smooth things
better than a hot iron (read temper).

 

[Brute 23]

There is more to the story.

Sitting in an auction barn buying for multiple buyers at $10/hd, ya I can see. Middle manning some cattle on the phone, $10... ok, I'll buy it.

Paying some one to drive all over, look at cattle, sort cattle, work out payment and hauling logistics for cattle at $10/ head barely covers travel expenses on a couple hundred head. Especially since they were probably pieced together 20, 50, 75 at a time. If you could walk up and buy 300 in a group from one place it would be different and the $10 might be more in line.

None the less, if that's the deal the guy made and WA did what was asked its their business. A good deal is when both side are happy.

 

[Warren Allison]

There is more to the story.

Sitting in an auction barn buying for multiple buyers at $10/hd, ya I can see. Middle manning some cattle on the phone, $10... ok, I'll buy it.

Paying some one to drive all over, look at cattle, sort cattle, work out payment and hauling logistics for cattle at $10/ head barely covers travel expenses on a couple hundred head. Especially since they were probably pieced together 20, 50, 75 at a time. If you could walk up and buy 300 in a group from one place it would be different and the $10 might be more in line.

None the less, if that's the deal the guy made and WA did what was asked its their business. A good deal is when both side are happy.

Yep, except it was 10-28 at a time. And when I bought the 28 they all had calves on the side, so I had to hire another truck and trailer to bring them back from south Fla to middle GA. And, I always helped him change out tags on the cows, and calves if there were any, plus I cut a few bull calves for him, too, when I'd deliver them. And at no additional charge.

The client was gonna give me $37, 500 to buy 5 registered Brangus and/ or Ultrablack bulls. I was going to get them from a breeder I had bought 18 f1 Black Hereford x Brahma cows from. However, When I was there, this breeder made me an offer on some Chi-Angus/Black Simmental/Brahma composites he has been developing. I am not all that wild about what he is doing as far as the bulls go. He has produced some bodacious heifers and cows, but I just don't like using cross-bred bulls like that. However, Memorial weekend, I am picking up 6 of these bulls, which will be 18-20 months old, and we get to use them for up to 60 days FREE. In addition, he signed an offer to buy every heifer born, for $900 at weaning at 6 mos old. If half the crop is heifers, that means my client is guaranteed $67,500 for 75 6 month old calves. For negotiating all of this, and going to get those bulls and hauling them 270 miles ( and I will probably have to spend the day helping them once I get there with the bulls) I am charging him just $500, for a 500+ round trip plus a day's worth of my time. I guess I am a crook for doing this, too.

 

[Lazy M]

Yep, except it was 10-28 at a time. And when I bought the 28 they all had calves on the side, so I had to hire another truck and trailer to bring them back from south Fla to middle GA. And, I always helped him change out tags on the cows, and calves if there were any, plus I cut a few bull calves for him, too, when I'd deliver them. And at no additional charge.

The client was gonna give me $37, 500 to buy 5 registered Brangus and/ or Ultrablack bulls. I was going to get them from a breeder I had bought 18 f1 Black Hereford x Brahma cows from. However, When I was there, this breeder made me an offer on some Chi-Angus/Black Simmental/Brahma composites he has been developing. I am not all that wild about what he is doing as far as the bulls go. He has produced some bodacious heifers and cows, but I just don't like using cross-bred bulls like that. However, Memorial weekend, I am picking up 6 of these bulls, which will be 18-20 months old, and we get to use them for up to 60 days FREE. In addition, he signed an offer to buy every heifer born, for $900 at weaning at 6 mos old. If half the crop is heifers, that means my client is guaranteed $67,500 for 75 6 month old calves. For negotiating all of this, and going to get those bulls and hauling them 270 miles ( and I will probably have to spend the day helping them once I get there with the bulls) I am charging him just $500, for a 500+ round trip plus a day's worth of my time. I guess I am a crook for doing this, too.

You're no crook. I may question the intelligence/ good sense of some of the guys that are cutting these deals, but don't blame you for taking their money when you fulfill your part.. then again if they have this kind of money to throw around, they must be successful in some facets of their life.
At the end of the day, if they weren't happy they could find someone else to do their legwork.