Where to start

[PapaFat]

Where to start


I have 125 ac south of Abilene TX, good grass, good fences and stock tank, I was thinking of getting 15 steers around 300 pounds to run on the grass for 10 months then resell them at auction will this work? Will I make any money? Do I need to supplement the feeding with anything? Or any other comments or help would be great

Thanks

 

[flaboy]

PapaFat, this has been discussed many times here. I have copied a topic for you. You can also do a search and find more of the same.

http://cattletoday.com/forum/viewtopic. ... highlight=

 

[dj]

they will need a mineral supplement at all times. if you feed alittle once in awhile it helps them become accustomed to you and will help when you are going to move them out.
are you going to make money? too many variables to answer that, but probably not the kinda money your thinking.
oh and on the feeding thing if they aren't where you can see them and hear what's going on don't feed. feeding would just make it easier for someone else to load them up in the middle of the night. and with todays prices that is very likely to happen. hope this helps some.

 

[SF]

Where to start


I have 125 ac south of Abilene TX, good grass, good fences and stock tank, I was thinking of getting 15 steers around 300 pounds to run on the grass for 10 months then resell them at auction will this work? Will I make any money? Do I need to supplement the feeding with anything? Or any other comments or help would be great

Thanks

Go with 450 to 500 pounders. 300 pounders are too small to turn out on grass without some creep feed.
Keeping them for 10 months and reselling them will work. You may do better only keeping them for 6 to 8 months.
Don't know if you will make any money. Lots of variables.

 

[1848]

!0 months is way to long unless you are going to keep ownership through slaughter. Buy in October and sell in April. Sew some rye for extra nutrition in the winter, but have hay available. Make sure you keep mineral out too. 300 wt is good, but just make sure they are at least 4 months old. At four months they can convert forage well (on their own) and will continue to gain wt. Don't forget to vaccinate all of them up front. Good luck

 

[PapaFat]

Does anyone know were I can buy lightweight steers near Abilene. Also on 125 ac of good grass how many head can I run just an estimate (one per every 4 acres)? I would like to make about $200.00 to $300.00 a head is that obtainable? Can I buy them already vaccinated?

 

[SF]

Does anyone know were I can buy lightweight steers near Abilene. Also on 125 ac of good grass how many head can I run just an estimate (one per every 4 acres)? I would like to make about $200.00 to $300.00 a head is that obtainable? Can I buy them already vaccinated?

Go to the sale barn. They have one their in Abilene. Prices dropped a little this week there. They sold over 1000 head this week. 300-400 pounders this week sold for $111.00 / cwt to $160/cwt.
Don't know how many you can run, depends on your pasture.
$200 to $300 per head profit is probably unobtainable. I'd plan on vaccinating them after I bought them. Some will be vaccinated, some will not. Be hard to know.
Good luck on them 300 pounders. Still think that is too light to be putting on Abilene grass without creep. 300 pounders have been weaned very young, or had really sorry mothers that weren't milking. May take awhile for these calves to take off on just grass.
Good luck

 

[bigbull338]

to me it doesnt matter if your starting with 300 or 500lb calves. your still going to have to vacc them worm them.get them bunk broke as well as eating hay an feed along with grass. doctoring any sick cattle. making sure they dont get out. id keep emm penned in a small pasture a wk or so fore i turned them out. scott

 

[Tod Dague]

Don't set your self up with a time limit. The determiner as to when to sell has more to do with calf weight and grass availability. If they are on a slow ADG 10 months may not be too long if they started small and you want them heavy. You have to look at you market and determine your cost of gain and how much you will be paid for the gain. Feeding steers on grass can dramatically increase your cost of gain if you are not careful. If you do feed the calves anything be sure that it is just a supplement to help them digest the grass better such as protein. Do not be afraid of lower ADGs. Watch your grass constantly and adjust your socking rates accordingly.

 

[Bama]

using todays markets
a 325 pound steer purchased for $470
sell at 700 pounds for $725

net of $255

now take out feed, fencing, pasture upkeep, fertilizer, fuel, vet, medication, animal health, commisions, anything else I forgot.

$200-$300 profit per head will be hard to realize. Expecially if the market drops as expected.

good luck, hope everthing goes well.

 

[PapaFat]

Ok if you cant tell I am very new to all this what do you mean buy a supplement and minerals, Are you talking salt licks ???

 

[dun]

Ok if you cant tell I am very new to all this what do you mean buy a supplement and minerals, Are you talking salt licks ???

Generally minerals and slat aren;t real supplements, they're necessities just like water. Supplements are usually those that are a protein or energy type of feed, i.e. range cubes, cottenseed products, urea (prefer to not use that one myself), corn, and other grains, etc.

dun

 

[PapaFat]

How often do I need to feed supplements? And how much do I feed

 

[dun]

Ok if you cant tell I am very new to all this what do you mean buy a supplement and minerals, Are you talking salt licks ???

You've probably heard this before.it depends!

How good is the forage base you're feeding, what type of cattle are you feeding. Baby bottle calves have a whole different set of requirements then a dry mature beef cow in mid gestation.

dun

 

[PapaFat]

I was thinking of 10 to 20, 300 to 400 lbs steers i have good year round grass 120 ac and a large stock tank, i was planning to sell them at 800 to 900 pound range and buying the calves weaned and pre-conditioned

 

[Tod Dague]

If you have good grass year round you shouldn't have to supplement at all. When grass was plenty but quality was low I supplemented with a meal like soy or cotton, no more than 1 - 2 lbs. per head/day. You need to talk to some of the feed suppliers and cattlemen around you and find out what is available to you. I stayed away from urea with the stockers.

 

[bigbull338]

yes tell your feed man what your plannning on doing.he will help you setup a feed program . if your grass stays good 3lbs of feed is enough. but if its short you need to add to it. scott

 

[Tod Dague]

yes tell your feed man what your plannning on doing.he will help you setup a feed program . if your grass stays good 3lbs of feed is enough. but if its short you need to add to it. scott

If grass is short you are overstocked and you need to sell some calves.

 

[SF]

I was thinking of 10 to 20, 300 to 400 lbs steers i have good year round grass 120 ac and a large stock tank, i was planning to sell them at 800 to 900 pound range and buying the calves weaned and pre-conditioned

You're located south of Abilene, so what variety of grass do you have that is growing year around? I'm not being critical, I'm just curious.

 

[PapaFat]

I am not sure but one of my neighbors had cattle on their until last Jan and it was only a few inches high when the cattle came off in mid Jan, by April it was 3 to 4 feet again (was hard to see the turkeys shot 3 toms) it was green and growing all winter. Other ranches in the area, the grass was brown and looked dormant, the previous owner told me it was year round grass and from what I saw this winter it looked like it too me. I bought the place for an investment and some hunting but would like to try some steers mainly for the experience and when I retire hopefully soon, it might even supplement my military retirement check and give me something to do!