Beef Cows

[Deleted]

Im new to the forum so forgive me if this is the wrong type if topic for this section of the forum. But I was wondering if anyone sells beef cows? Is it a good way to make money on the homestead or does it break even after the feed, vet care, and butchering of the cow?

[gundog]

I think you would want steers. There are a lot of factors involved and no one has all the answers. Things like how much grass do you have, how long is your grass growing season, how many months will you have to feed hay to your animals will all determine if you will make a profit or not. I have 8 steers and held them over through the winter. They will be 18 months old in October/November and weight 700-1100 lbs right now. My goal is to sell 6 and put two in the freezer. If I break even on the sell of the 6, I get two in the freezer for my labor. If not, I'll still get my beef at a really low price. Good luck

[Deleted]

The last one I raised was taken to freezer camp. Cost avoidance in buying beef at the grocery store made it worth what trouble it was at the time.

[Deleted]

gundog, we have a field on our property that is close to 5 acres that is pretty decent grass. And we have another one that is close to 2 that we can use for hay. So that shouldn't be a problem. I'm more curious about the cost of buying the steer and what they usually sell for per pound. I've heard $3.50 on hoof.

[manygoatsnmore]

A lot depends on the breed and the age of your feeder steers (I would want to begin with started calves if it was the first time I raised beef).

What area are you located in? Can you irrigate your 7 acres if it doesn't rain? How fertile is your soil and what kind of grass is growing on it? Unless you are able to get multiple cuttings off your 2 acres, you won't likely have enough hay to carry more than one steer through the winter.

Do you have the equipment to harvest that hay or will you need someone to custom cut and bale for you? A lot of guys that do custom cutting work it in around their own fields and prefer a large field to hay - some won't bother with a 2 acre plot. Having to wait to get your hay cut can limit how many cuttings you can get, as well as the quality of the hay you take off. The better the quality, the less you have to feed to keep your steers growing well.

with 5 acres, you probably can't raise more than a couple steers, even on really good pasture- they can go through grass pretty fast, even if you do rotational grazing. You might find that you need to supplement with hay even in summer.

Can you do your own minor vet work? Can you give a shot, take a temp, and restrain a growing steer for these procedures? They are strong, and if you are wanting to poke or prod them, you ideally need a squeeze chute. You can jerry-rig something, but more often than not, you end up with a steer running across the field instead of held in place when ya do that.

I'm not saying any of this to discourage you, but just to make sure you are being realistic about how many head your land can carry, and about the hidden costs of raising beef. If you are looking to raise a steer for your freezer and want to know what he's been eating and how he's been treated, you will likely beat the cost of buying a grass fed (possibly grain finished) beef, especially if you can butcher and process the meat yourself. You may be able to sell a half and pay for much of your costs for the half you put in your own freezer, if you don't run into vet bills, hay costs or any one of a number of other ways you can find to spend money raising beef.

To find out how much feeder steers are selling for, check the auction prices on line. Google your local cattle auction barns and see if they have the prices paid the last week's auction. Track them for a while and you'll be able to figure out what a good price is. How much someone will pay for that beef varies a lot depending on where you live, time of year, and how you are able to market it.

[gundog]

What manygoats said. But, I have 8 acres and 7 of which are in grass pasture divided into four sections. My steers and one heifer weighting between 700-1100 give or take can't eat all the grass. I recently cut back three of my fields for fresh growth. During my first fall, I set aside (stockpiled) 2 acres for winter feed. I went through 7 ton of hay this winter and my stockpile helped. I would start slow with a few calves and work up and save some pasture for winter grazing. My calves are/were a motley lot, one crooked headed holstein heifer ($300), one one eyed holstein steer ($350), one jersey steer ($350) two jersey/wagu cross ($500 each) two normal holstein steer ($450) and one holstein steer that was kicked/steppted on when small ($300). Along with hay and pasture, I added (slowly) ten gallons of pellet cattle feed mixed with about a gallon of sweet feed. Both my vet and neighbor dairy farmer stopped by and both were amazed at the quality of my small herd. We have invested a total of $8,000 and will sell 6 in 4 months. We will be asking $2.00 a pound fresh hanging weight for the hoisteins, $ 2.25 for the jersey and $2.50 for the jersey/wagu steers. "If" everything works out, we will break even or have a little extra $ to play with and if not we will still restock and have two really nice steers in the freezer for the bargain price of sweat an a little change. Oh, no we didn't add in the cost of the squeeze shute, head gate, run, electric fence. If you are in it for the money, it could take years to see any.

[oxankle]

Unlikely to make any money on five acres of cattle. In most parts of the country five acres will hardly support one cow. There are all sorts of hidden costs in raising cattle, but as Manygoats said, if you know a little about cattle, can do your own minor vet work, if your fences are tight and you have shelter for the animals in bad weather, a source for hay if the pasture can't keep up you can probably raise some cheap beef for your table.

By minor vet work I mean can you do your own vaccinations and neutering? Syringes and needles are cheap, some vets will sell you a dose for one animal, you can buy small quantities by mail. You can buy castration bands and the tool to put them on cheaply, a one-time expense.

Then there is the question of "are you up to this"--do you know how to do these things and are you strong enough, or do you have a farmer neighbor who will help? Can you butcher your own animal or will you have to haul the animal to a slaughter house and pay for butchering, cutting and wrapping? Those slaughter-house costs alone are pretty steep. Don't forget that if you have to haul the animal to and from your pasture, even once, you must first have a trailer and a vehicle to pull it, and some means of getting a possibly reluctant large and strong animal into that conveyance.