Farm Family
Well-known member
You make some terrific points and capture our feelings too…IWe retain heifers. I can not buy cattle for cheaper than I can raise an apples to apples comparison. Can I buy "a cow" ... maybe... but not an comparable equivalent.
Raising heifers is one one of the joys of the business, for me. I keep comments and notes and calf weights on every cow that comes through here so I have performance history, right off our land, in our environment, in our operation, to work with when selecting replacements. Doing this has really helped to cut back on all the nonsense because ultimately nonsense costs $$$. It is very satisfying to build a herd off perforce and see the market respond.
Maybe watch and talk to your neighbors that are keeping heifers and see if they will sell some out of their pile. Most people are going to keep a few extras than what they need. If some one needs 10 they may develope 12 or more. They may let you pick up a few extras for a couple hundred over what they would get at the AB.
My family and I both operate like that. We bring in what ever looks about the same quality to choose from. I have friends that will come pick out of the group or we may take what we want and out the rest on FB or some thing unless I'm busy then they just go to auction.
I'm not agaisnt buying but it's from other friends I know how they operate. My cull % of bought cattle vs retained cattle is always higher on the bought cattle.
seeing the genetic lineage develop and I love knowing who is who, seeing traits carry on through generations. Looking at a heifer and saying "man she is her great grandmother all over again" - and yes that is a good thing. Because we retain what we like and what works in our environment. We also run our own bulls. I love knowing that a Barbara heifer here is going to have a long spine, a good foot and be super friendly. A Mama bull will throw exactly four square teats, and will be a little cocky as a youngster cause he knows he's a keeper, good looking, deep bodied and wide topped. A Sweetheart will be a little more stout made. She is power in a smaller package that should not be underestimated. Those "No Tag" females are easy keepers just like the original version. They keep to themselves, not really front pasture notice right away girls, but they get the job done and fly under the radar cause they never give an ounce of trouble and come fall you are like…this is a damn good calf, whose is this…yep goes back to "No Tag". We were just saying the "G's" in our herd are all in their prime and what a consistent pen still to this day. Punching out well marked calves originating from a bull that should have stayed longer. And most of the dams in that lot were old cows, their last calf ironically and fortunate for us was a "G" heifer. That "G" year we struggled to feed everyone but so glad we scraped through to retain those lines cause like others have said sometimes those cows fail to give a replacement, lucky to get one...that was us with some damn good cows that retired after the G's. Replacements here are the fun or certainly bring much enjoyment.
