Our first calf

[Cascadian]

In the past we have purchased a half a beef here and there. Mostly because we weren't in a position to raise one. Last year we purchased from a neighbor who has been doing it all his life. It worked out great. This year we are going to buy a calf and raise it ourselves. We have 2 acres of pasture we are fencing off from the home area. The neighbor has 2 - 500 lb heifers for $800 each. They are a little under 1 year old. Not sure what breed? All I know about beef is they are delicious. Any thoughts, what should I ask?

 

[Double R]

I’m not sure exactly what your thinking as far as questions but these are what come to mind.
Breed?
How long ago were they weaned?
Deworming?
Vaccines?
Previous health problems?
What feed have they been on?
Have they ever tested fences? Especially important if you only plan on getting one. Especially when she/they start cycling and want a boyfriend.
If you’ve bought beef from them before ask what they fed that animal out on. Also at what age/weight did they slaughter that animal.
I’m sure others will chime in with helpful questions. That’s the first things that come to mind.
What kind of fencing are you putting up? Hotwire also?
Very excited for you!

 

[Cascadian]

We are still doing 2 sides of the pasture. Well my wife doesn't want barbed wire. So we are doing 4 ft field fence with a hot wire. I have 6.5 ft t posts and 4 inch by 8 ft round treated posts. We are going to place wood every third or so post. That is pretty much what is seen around here.

All I have ever seen the cows eat is grass and hay.

Thanks for the info.

 

[backlash]

The neighbor has 2 - 500 lb heifers for $800 each.

Sounds a little over priced but I'm no expert. I lost $700 last year on 3 calves.
Wait for peanut or one of the other cattle barons to chime in.

 

[Curmudgeon]

Any thoughts, what should I ask?

I can't speak to raising them, as I have never done it.

One thing I would look into is grain costs. A local farmer here that raises and sells beef got quite the shock last week. They buy the same amount of feed every week (standing order), week before last it was 1000 delivered, last week it was over 1700 delivered.

 

[Cascadian]

Sounds a little over priced but I'm no expert. I lost $700 last year on 3 calves.
Wait for peanut or one of the other cattle barons to chime in.

I saw that. I read some of the other threads. I realize it would not likely be a money maker. We are mostly securing our supply next year and some for our son's family. I think a good part of the year it will graze and not cost us. I am curious about the price and why he isn't keeping them.

 

[Double R]

Sounds a little over priced but I'm no expert. I lost $700 last year on 3 calves.
Wait for peanut or one of the other cattle barons to chime in.

Very sorry for the profit loss. Very common with small amounts of cattle unfortunately.
Price can depends on the breed and market for the area. Are they really 500#’s? I’ve seen a lot of claims on cattle weights that were extremely far off. When we sell we have a scale for live weight for off the farm sales. The market also has scales.
If they are true black angus at 500#’s around here they will bring $1.40-$1.70 current market value (live weight) for beefy black angus heifers. But cross bred heifer at 500#’s will only bring $0.80-$1.00 a pound.
Top end prices are if they are weaned 45 plus days (far less sickness risk) fully vaccinated, boosted and bunk broke.
If these heifers are 500#’s and just under a year old my guess would be they aren’t a full beef breed, had poor milking moms or poor feed quality after weaning. Just guessing without seeing them.

Edit to add: Off farm prices for higher end genetics, health protocols, weaning programs do bring more than market price most times.

 

[Double R]

We are still doing 2 sides of the pasture. Well my wife doesn't want barbed wire. So we are doing 4 ft field fence with a hot wire. I have 6.5 ft t posts and 4 inch by 8 ft round treated posts. We are going to place wood every third or so post. That is pretty much what is seen around here.

All I have ever seen the cows eat is grass and hay.

Thanks for the info.

Nothing wrong with that as long as the Hotwire is kept up. Suggestion of getting a Hotwire light to add to it so you’ll know quickly when it’s down. Makes a huge difference for us. Flashing means the Hotwire is shorted or down. We do far less fencing since adding lights. Inexpensive and gives and early warning to issues your otherwise not get until the fence is actually down and animals are out.

 

[Double R]

I saw that. ☹ I read some of the other threads. I realize it would not likely be a money maker. We are mostly securing our supply next year and some for our son's family. I think a good part of the year it will graze and not cost us. I am curious about the price and why he isn't keeping them.

If you are able and the price turns out to be fair you can always consider doing what a lot of our customers did. Buy 2. They are far less likely to test the fences or leave when in heat in search of a boy. Eat far better with company. Then at slaughter time have a buyer lined up for the extra animal (or 1/2’s) and that will usually cover the majority of your costs for your own animal.
Just a thought to consider.

 

[Curmudgeon]

If you are able and the price turns out to be fair you can always consider doing what a lot of our customers did. Buy 2. They are far less likely to test the fences or leave when in heat in search of a boy. Eat far better with company. Then at slaughter time have a buyer lined up for the extra animal (or 1/2’s) and that will usually cover the majority of your costs for your own animal.

I know several people here that do that. It seems to work well for them.

 

[Cascadian]

I appreciate the input. Being a total noob I have to trust someone. I think I am better off trusting my neighbor than a stranger. At least he would be more likely to lend a hand or advice if it was his cow. Buying 2 is starting to sound like good advice. It wasn't mentioned but if we lost one we wouldn't be left empty handed. If things continue to go downhill selling or even trading the other shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Double R]

@Cascadian I’m guessing he has handling facilities? That could end up being another benefit longer term. So many don’t have a plan for containment when an animal gets sick. Simple treatments become big problems when there’s no plan in place. At the least have an incredible sturdy catch pen (not wire) so you can load her/them and haul to the vet if there’s no handling equipment on site.

 

[Peanut]

Cows are herd animals, they always do better with others. "Others" can mean anything, a goat, a goose, saw an old hen and a calf become buddies once. But, if you have the grass to support 2, then get 2. I currently have a single calf, an orphan. But he has a horse and donkey to hang out with.

About your available grass... how many head is your neighbor running on exactly how much grass (acres)? What about other cattleman in your area? This will give you an idea of what your 2 acres will support. It may not support 2 head.

There is no "money" it it unless you're producing 100+ calves a year. With one or two calves... what you get is insurance, if the store closes tomorrow you have beef to eat.

Double R has given you sound advice... I will add, if you don't have facilities for handling large livestock then you'd better make pets out of them. Halter break them, put a cattle trailer in the pen and feed them in it. They'll be easy to load when you need to.

Example, I know a guy who has a calf or two each year for beef. He bought a small livestock trailer for scrap metal prices. It had no tires, was a rusted out piece of junk. He hauled it on a flatbed and set it in his pasture and feeds his calves in it... they look forward to going in trailers.

Handling cattle is common sense, if the critter doesn't want to do something... give them a reason to want too.

 

[Cascadian]

So we talked to the neighbor. I asked lots of questions. We are getting both.
One is black Angus the other is half red half black from registered parents. Bred from his stock. No health issues just born later than the rest. He doesn't vaccinate or de worn unless he needs to. Any new animals get quarantined. Same as his grand pappy.

He said they could be butchered this fall but would only be about 400 lbs hanging. We would opt to feed them through the winter. He said we would need 4 tons of hay at current inflated prices about $250 a ton. His reasoning for selling them is to help offset the cost of running his outfit. He needs to pay for diesel, labor to bring in his hay etc. I really didn't get a sense that anything he said was untrue. So what the heck I guess we are going for it. After all you can't eat cash right?

 

[Bacpacker]

So we talked to the neighbor. I asked lots of questions. We are getting both.
One is black Angus the other is half red half black from registered parents. Bred from his stock. No health issues just born later than the rest. He doesn't vaccinate or de worn unless he needs to. Any new animals get quarantined. Same as his grand pappy.

He said they could be butchered this fall but would only be about 400 lbs hanging. We would opt to feed them through the winter. He said we would need 4 tons of hay at current inflated prices about $250 a ton. His reasoning for selling them is to help offset the cost of running his outfit. He needs to pay for diesel, labor to bring in his hay etc. I really didn't get a sense that anything he said was untrue. So what the heck I guess we are going for it. After all you can't eat cash right?

How much land do you plan to run them on? How does your grass hold up during winter with no cattle on it? How much rainfall is typical for your area?

 

[Peanut]

4 Tons of hay? A cow eats about 2%-2.5% of their body weight each day (a pregnant cow needs more). I always calculated my hay needs for 120 days.

A 1000lb cow would need 2400lbs of hay for winter. 2, 1000lb cows will need 4800lbs. Thats 2 1/2 tons, not 4 tons. That puny little calf I have, he hasn't eaten 500lbs of hay all winter, Of course I supplement his hay with 18% calf starter.

Other considerations... fall grass. It's tough and less nutritious than July grass. If there has been no rain it can be so tough as to slow a cows daily consumption by half.

When to start feeding hay or supplements? Watch neighboring farms... If they start feeding you should also (assuming you have grass). Since you don't have experience reading the state of graze in a field... Watch the guys who can read a pasture.

Also, my grtnephew never learned this lesson in spring... just because a pasture turns green doesn't mean it'll support livestock. I'd suggest you watch you neighbors again. They'll know when their pastures will support critters and when it won't.


Edit to add "calculated my hay needs for 120 days." I always had another month of hay in reserve, never know when winter will stay late or arrive early.

 

[Cascadian]

How much land do you plan to run them on? How does your grass hold up during winter with no cattle on it? How much rainfall is typical for your area?

2 acres of meadow. We have about 5 more that are a mix of grass, berry bushes and other stuff.

Our grass stays green all winter. We get 50 inches of rain at 800 ft in the Willamette valley Oregon. If we don't cut the field it is waist high by summer.

 

[Cascadian]

Peanut, we were figuring 180 days. He came up with about 3 tons I just added some on for insurance. I guess I figured on keeping them until fall of 2023 since this fall would be too early.

 

[Peanut]

Since you have more acerage... and its partially shaded. Sowing clover is something to consider in that area. It's a nitrogen fixer for starters, cuts down on fertilizer you might need to buy.

It also grows early in the year before most grasses. Cows will have green stuff earlier. I have 6 or 7 acres that is semiwooded. I have shade tolerant "bahai grass" under the trees for summer. I also sow clover there. Usually the Alabama sun will stop clover by early May. Because of the trees and partial shade I have sweet clover growing all summer. And into December some years.

This kind of area helps the cattle with the summer sun too. Here cattle here will graze at night to avoid the August/Sept. sun. With clover/bahai under the trees the cattle have several acres to nibble on during the day. (My cows used to graze 9pm to about 9am)

One tiny bit of advice, something @Spikedriver wrote about not long ago. Make sure your calves are in great shape as winter starts... It's a lot easier to keep weight on cattle in winter if they are fat and happy when it starts. If a cow is in bad shape at halloween you'll be lucky to keep them alive til spring.

 

[Cascadian]

We got our cows today. It was a lot of work getting the fence done. Like 2 weekends straight and a couple evenings. Hopefully all that work will keep them out of trouble.

 

[Cascadian]

Oh, and we got the mobile slaughter and butcher lined up for spring.

 

[Peanut]

Looks good! Fence is perfect. Looks like you have plenty of grass as long as it stays green. Your cows look healthy, looks like you're set.

Keep us posted as to their progress.

 

[sonya123]

I can't speak to raising them, as I have never done it.

One thing I would look into is grain costs. A local farmer here that raises and sells beef got quite the shock last week. They buy the same amount of feed every week (standing order), week before last it was 1000 delivered, last week it was over 1700 delivered.

Yeah same here, we got 1000 lbs of grain today for our sheeps and goats and it was almost twice what it was just a few months ago. This will last us about 3 months , not sure how much to feed cows.

 

[Cascadian]

Looks good! Fence is perfect. Looks like you have plenty of grass as long as it stays green. Your cows look healthy, looks like you're set.

Keep us posted as to their progress.

Thanks, I will.