Store cattle

[sherg]

This has probably been covered before but what do people think is the best way of making them pay, I'm looking at maybe next year buying a few they wouldn't be grazing just in a shed.
the shed is 120' x 65' with a central passage, currently make big bale silage and we'd grow enough barley, just be buying in protein.
Is it possible to make a profit or would I be wasting my time?

 

[beefandsleep]

Numbers game, if your only talking 40-50 dont bother, if your thinking 500+ then you can make a decent living feeding as much home grown feed as possible, but its a stupid amount of money to have tied up I will admit that.

 

[sherg]

Numbers game, if your only talking 40-50 dont bother, if your thinking 500+ then you can make a decent living feeding as much home grown feed as possible, but its a stupid amount of money to have tied up I will admit that.

It would take me a while to get to 500 maybe 50 next year and double it up for the year after if I could

 

[Mrfarmjunk]

Money can be made. Hard work. Buying them at the right price is the main thing. Don't pay too much. Feed as much home grown as possible as selling isn't worth much. What you thinking of buying bulls or steers and heifers? We buy in bulls for fattening and make a decent profit. I'd say go for it.

 

[sherg]

Money can be made. Hard work. Buying them at the right price is the main thing. Don't pay too much. Feed as much home grown as possible as selling isn't worth much. What you thinking of buying bulls or steers and heifers? We buy in bulls for fattening and make a decent profit. I'd say go for it.

Probably steers I would think but haven't really made up my mind, just wanted to know how other people were going about it I was thinking about buying in steers about 6 months old and turning them over in 12 months

 

[Mrfarmjunk]

Probably steers I would think but haven't really made up my mind, just wanted to know how other people were going about it I was thinking about buying in steers about 6 months old and turning them over in 12 months

Sounds ok to me. Might be best to grow them on a bit with silage and a bit of barley mix, so you get a bit of size about them. We buy bulls about 6 month old and put them on adlib barley mix and finish them about 14/15 month. All depends on your market place though.

 

[GTB]

I always think it's better to buy younger cattle and graze them for a summer, watch them grow into money if you know what I mean. Bloke down the road finishes about 2/300 a year has no hard and fast buying policy. Buys only steers though but of varying ages dependent on value for money. Finishes them on tmr based on home grown silage and barley. You can't control the selling price which means you have to buy them right.

 

[Hampton]

Numbers game, if your only talking 40-50 dont bother, if your thinking 500+ then you can make a decent living feeding as much home grown feed as possible, but its a stupid amount of money to have tied up I will admit that.

I don't believe you need that many, but do believe it's a treadmill. Buy the first lot, reinvest those in the next lot. Once you are on treadmill it's easy to stay on, but tricky to get back into it once you stop.
They must be bought at the right price, otherwise you blow your profit before you start.

 

[liammogs]

Why not buy only heifers? Atleast when it comes to selling (18mnths +) youll have more buyers, as in a steers and bulls have one avenue.....on the hook, but with a heifer youll always be able to tempt a few extra bid from the boys that need bulling heifers, time of year dependant aswell, and heifers will be cheaper to keep over winter not needing as much hard feed!!

 

[oldoaktree]

One thing to bear in mind is the amount of investment for the return you will get .
From a recent visit to a store mart the type of cattle I used to buy are either side of £900 ( heifers) they might leave you clear profit of £150 some more some less ! One might die.
50x £900 =£45000 / 50x £150 = £7500
Then there's things like puncture new bale spike water trough leaked etc and if you have to borrow the money .........

 

[GTB]

I know people say sucklers don't pay but there may well be more money in them than buying cattle to finish at the moment.

 

[sherg]

I always think it's better to buy younger cattle and graze them for a summer, watch them grow into money if you know what I mean. Bloke down the road finishes about 2/300 a year has no hard and fast buying policy. Buys only steers though but of varying ages dependent on value for money. Finishes them on tmr based on home grown silage and barley. You can't control the selling price which means you have to buy them right.

I haven't really got any spare grazing and renting it in would be difficult especially with tb I guess that's why we don't see store cattle grazing around here anymore

One thing to bear in mind is the amount of investment for the return you will get .
From a recent visit to a store mart the type of cattle I used to buy are either side of £900 ( heifers) they might leave you clear profit of £150 some more some less ! One might die.
50x £900 =£45000 / 50x £150 = £7500
Then there's things like puncture new bale spike water trough leaked etc and if you have to borrow the money .........

If they would leave me £150 clear profit I would be very happy

 

[d williams]

One thing to bear in mind is the amount of investment for the return you will get .
From a recent visit to a store mart the type of cattle I used to buy are either side of £900 ( heifers) they might leave you clear profit of £150 some more some less ! One might die.
50x £900 =£45000 / 50x £150 = £7500
Then there's things like puncture new bale spike water trough leaked etc and if you have to borrow the money .........

Find a bank that will give you that % return you'd be doing well and please give me their details

 

[Yale]

TB is a big factor and a potential huge fly in the ointment if you get locked up.

 

[GTB]

TB is a big factor and a potential huge fly in the ointment if you get locked up.

Not if you sell deadweight but they might stop you buying more in, that would be the biggest downside.

 

[gone up the hill]

I haven't really got any spare grazing and renting it in would be difficult especially with tb I guess that's why we don't see store cattle grazing around here anymore

If they would leave me £150 clear profit I would be very happy

They should do if you don't draw set any wages against them,

Small cattle are very dear, don't under estimate the cost of feeding/ keeping them for 12 months, you will be better off buying bigger cattle and turning them over more quickly ( unless you do bulls )

 

[sherg]

They should do if you don't draw set any wages against them,

Small cattle are very dear, don't under estimate the cost of feeding/ keeping them for 12 months, you will be better off buying bigger cattle and turning them over more quickly ( unless you do bulls )

Sounds good advice with any luck that way I could see my money twice in the year
Realistically would an hour a day be enough or am I underestimating how much time they take up, just presuming 100 in a shed, I could buy a feeder/bedder type thing to speed the job up

 

[gone up the hill]

Sounds good advice with any luck that way I could see my money twice in the year
Realistically would an hour a day be enough or am I underestimating how much time they take up, just presuming 100 in a shed, I could buy a feeder/bedder type thing to speed the job up

That depends on your system but should be feasible except for any days you have to pull one out/ clean out the feed passage/ mill grain/TB test etc etc,

I would defo advise getting a straw chopper to bed up, I wouldn't chop the silage but next summer chop it as its baled, also you will need to give them minerals and ideally something like Bircarb.

 

[sherg]

That depends on your system but should be feasible except for any days you have to pull one out/ clean out the feed passage/ mill grain/TB test etc etc,

I would defo advise getting a straw chopper to bed up, I wouldn't chop the silage but next summer chop it as its baled, also you will need to give them minerals and ideally something like Bircarb.

Its a bit of a project for next year at the moment, I'm just thinking I've got a shed here made for the job and the only way I can expand as I am is by either buying store cattle or more store lambs

 

[gone up the hill]

Its a bit of a project for next year at the moment, I'm just thinking I've got a shed here made for the job and the only way I can expand as I am is by either buying store cattle or more store lambs

Just do your costing's carefully!

If going in from zero cattle then buying bigger stuff is the way to go!