Back in the cattle business

Back in the cattle business

I had always planned on getting back into cattle when I retired, but I never expected retirement to burst in on me so suddenly. So after four months it dawned on me now is a good time to get back in the farming game. The problem is that cattle prices are very high. My favorite business strategy is buy high and sell low, so this may work out well. Anyway, I went to the sale barn today to have a presence in the barn for the Lord and the Cowboy Church on Wednesday the sale day. I sat down and a friend of mine named Coy Dan Blakemore came and sat beside me. We talked about Cowboy Church and of his up-coming trip to Alaska and our school reunion. Later we returned to cattle and I mentioned to him I was thinking about buying some old broken mouth cows (Cows with less than perfect teeth) and raising some calves. He said, he was selling exactly what I was looking for and we made a plan to meet at his farm later in the day to look them over. To cut to the chase we agreed upon a price and he delivered 8 cows who are supposed to calve in September. The idea is to get the calves on the ground and when the pasture is gone this winter to sell both calves and cows. Ideally the cows will sell for what I paid and the calves will be profit. If cattle prices fall I can keep both through winter and sell next spring when prices usually rise. The cows are big, black cows who really look good for Sr. Citizens. I will have to take really good care of them and supplement their grass diet when the calves come to keep their body weight up. I remember with great joy our former herd. We loved to see the new born calves romping and playing. We kept the calves for five years and were so blessed that we never lost an animal or even missed a pregnancy. We can only hope and pray that we are as fortunate with this group.