Warren,
In your original post you said "IF I ever decide to fool with cow/calf operations again,. then this is exactly what I'd do: Buy these $300 cows that will give me a $700-$750 calf the first year, with zero labor, zero calving problems,. zero vet costs, and virtually zero feed costs. Like Longhorns, Corriente are as heat, disease, insect and parasite resistant as a Brahma, and as cold tolerant as a Highlander."
I'm curious, if you're not fooling with a cow/calf operation these days, what are you doing in the cattle business?
Tennesee Tux, I am not in the cattle business pre se. Never was, really. I am in the horse business. Cattle are a nuisance that is necessary to do what I do with the kind of horses I have. About the only cow-calf operation I ever maintained for any length of time, was I actually raised roping stock in the 80;s and about the mid-90's with the surge in the teampenning craze, I actually starting breeding these cows to Angus bulls, to get polled uniformed color cattle for teampennoing and sorting. I was and am.. primarily a trader. Used to I would buy them and keep them a while, etc. Now days, I am usually buying for a client. I rarely own any cattle for more than few days. If I am not using the client's money, but using my money, I try to have them sold before I buy them. People contact me about insuring their farms. Some still contact me because they assume I still sell trailers. The Brangus breeder crossing them with Black Herefords that I have posted about, called me about insurance. After I met him, we talked about horses, and I got him some, spent some time showing him and his family how to ride them, etc. Then he started talking about building a multi-use building that he could have sales in, and horse events, ropings etc in. So, I served as his GC til we got it designed and built.
The only cattle I own full time now, is 3 Corriente steers. There are 8 of us that like to practice team roping, and we all 8 keep three steers each, so we have 24 that we keep at the friend's place that has the arena.
And, I still help friends with their cattle...some. I will even bring a horse for them to ride, but I never get out of the saddle. I pen and sort and rope them...I won't do any ground work.; I wouldn't get in 4 H show ring with calves in it on foot. I detest cows.. but I love working them on a good horse. I might pull a mower or bailer for you if you have a tractor with an AC cab, but I won't pick up a 35 lb bale. I will draw plans, do material take-offs, lay out and supervise building barns, fences corrals and other facilities, but I ain't driving a nail or digging a post hole. I sold my last farm about 2009, gave up my last leased farm about 2013. Too many broken bones are finally catching up with me in my 60's! Took a donkey to a buddy's house in May for him to use to train his kids' show calves to lead. I was surprised at how many cattle people don't know this.
Went to a cow sale ( the one I am going to take Kenny to soon) a few months back. Got to talkingh to someone w in line to unloaqd, and I could tel they didn;lt know much., First time they had been to a sale. I asked them what they wanted for the 4 calves.l The told me, ,and I paid them and put them in my name when they unloaed. Told the workers tp puyhem imn the weigh pen, and I made nearly $200.
I was the same way with horses. In my life I have stood 3 different AQHA stallions, and the longest I ever owned a foal by one of them was a week. You got three damn years in a foal counting gestation til they are 2 yr olds. My stallions, I made my money in a few seconds. Most of the money I made with horses, like cattle, was in buying and selling. And I learned 50 years ago, your money is made or lost when you buy, not sell.
Its interesting. The guy I purchased the Corriente from told me that a friend of his would bring a Black Corriente bull for him to use each year, then he laughed and said "but you never know what color the calves will be". I never felt the two 1/2 Corriente cows I had resembled the Corriente, except for the color pattern. Did you use the Red bull with Corriente heifers/cows or did you bring in a Corriente bull ?
