It has been an interesting year in the cattle business. Record winter temperatures followed by a long, cool spring, then several weeks of hot, dry weather, reminding us we are not out of drought conditions yet. Those of us who were able to get to the fields between showers this spring have plenty of hay; some of us were not so lucky. But, even with recent dry conditions, cattle ranchers are sitting pretty with cattle prices still in record territory, and grain and hay prices going down. But, we cannot sit back and relax. Now is the perfect time to better our herds so that come spring, we are in an even better market position. I am talking about culling our herds.
Culling is never a fun or easy job. There is always that cow or two that we do not want to get rid of, either for sentiment’s sake or historical performance. Right now, however, we should take a look at our herds, for two reasons – time of year and prices.
As we start moving into the fall and winter months, we need to evaluate the cost of feeding our herd through those months in order to keep them fat and healthy. Unless you have been able to stockpile enough pasture, you are looking at expenses in hay, feed and supplements. Is it worth it to keep that open cow or that cow whose calf just doesn’t quite make the cut? What if they don’t get bred this time around? Biologically, it takes a good 18 months for an open cow to produce any income. Can you afford to keep her this winter, and the next, before you sell that calf? Or would the resources spent on her be better spent on the cows who do have a calf and are producing income?
We all know cattle prices have gone through the roof, and then some. Just last week at the local stockyards, slaughter cows were bringing $113-$130 per cwt. At those prices, can you really afford to keep your non-performing cows over the winter? Or would it be better to sell them and re-invest the proceeds into your herd? Even poor performing cows being sold at the stockyards are bringing over $2,000 per head. I can remember when we were lucky to get those kind of prices for good cows at private sales.
I can hear some say that selling cows now means higher costs to replace them later, and they would be right. However, knowing the market adjustment that has to come sooner or later, for many this is the time to take a look at the herd and decide what adjustments need to be made. It may mean a smaller herd for now, or replacing two or three culls with one good (bred) cow, but the rewards are worth it. Culling is not fun, but it is a necessary tool for us to better our herds, and, ultimately, bring the best possible product to our customers.
