Setting Up a Farm (chicken, cost, horses, land)

[Silvermouse]

Originally Posted by tambre

. The realtors we dealt with to buy the property are both also cattle farmers, (one raises purebred polled Hereford, and one raises Gelpvieh sp?)and they said they would be glad to teach us about raising cattle. They also have farms in the 'hood.
Tambre

Yeah, I bet they would just love to sell you some of their overpriced cattle. Black cattle sell better than either of those breeds anyway. If I were you I would just start out backgrounding a couple of calves - G2095 Backgrounding Calves: Assessing the Opportunity, MU Extension

That way you can get used to their vaccines, feeds etc. plus if they lay down and die (which they do sometimes just for the fun of it) you won't be out a lot of money.

Your land is beautiful and looks perfect for raising cattle. I found another mini donkey for you the other day - 8 months old and $300. Too cute! I need to quit looking at these critters or I'll wind up with one myself!

[tambre]

Originally Posted by Silvermouse

Yeah, I bet they would just love to sell you some of their overpriced cattle. Black cattle sell better than either of those breeds anyway. If I were you I would just start out backgrounding a couple of calves - G2095 Backgrounding Calves: Assessing the Opportunity, MU Extension

That way you can get used to their vaccines, feeds etc. plus if they lay down and die (which they do sometimes just for the fun of it) you won't be out a lot of money.

Your land is beautiful and looks perfect for raising cattle. I found another mini donkey for you the other day - 8 months old and $300. Too cute! I need to quit looking at these critters or I'll wind up with one myself!

Hi Silver,

Thanks for the backgrounding article. Do you raise cattle? It sounds like you've become "smitten" by those adorable mini donkeys, too. There is just something about them that is almost irrresistable. Glad the pictures of the land showed up finally, and thanks for your compliment, and reassurance that it would be a good place for cows. Happy mini-donkey shopping!

[Silvermouse]

Originally Posted by tambre

Hi Silver,

Thanks for the backgrounding article. Do you raise cattle? It sounds like you've become "smitten" by those adorable mini donkeys, too. There is just something about them that is almost irrresistable. Glad the pictures of the land showed up finally, and thanks for your compliment, and reassurance that it would be a good place for cows. Happy mini-donkey shopping!

My husband has raised cattle all his life and we have about 100 cows right now. Cow/calf operations are a heck of a lot of work. We are horse poor (with 5 of the darlins'). If I brought home another hay burner, I'd probably be living in the barn with it!

[Driller1]

We had beef cattle when I was a kid. I showed AQHA horses for year. No one ever talks about the vet bills, they are huge!!!!!!!!!!

[tambre]

Originally Posted by Silvermouse

My husband has raised cattle all his life and we have about 100 cows right now. Cow/calf operations are a heck of a lot of work. We are horse poor (with 5 of the darlins'). If I brought home another hay burner, I'd probably be living in the barn with it!

Hi Silver,

That's a large amount of cows...do you practice management intensive grazing? You mentioned black cows...are they black angus? Sorry, that's the only black breed I've heard of. How many acres does each cow need? What kind of horses do you have? Do they stay in the pasture with the cows? It sounds like you might have enough room for a few mini-donkeys, lol.

Tambre

[tambre]

Originally Posted by Driller1

We had beef cattle when I was a kid. I showed AQHA horses for year. No one ever talks about the vet bills, they are huge!!!!!!!!!!

Hey Driller,

I've always been a horse lover, but that was before having kids, which are equally expensive. What kind of showing did you do...pleasure, barrel racing, etc. Being from the east, I learned how to ride English, so I'm not really familiar with Western riding. A few years back I saw some quarter horses at a barn. Those quarter horses were a totally different confirmation than when I was a kid...they seemed to look more like thoroughbreds. Maybe that was just an isolated circumstance. What breed(s) of cattle did your family raise?

Did you find any well maps of the area?

[Driller1]

Originally Posted by tambre

Hey Driller,

I've always been a horse lover, but that was before having kids, which are equally expensive. What kind of showing did you do...pleasure, barrel racing, etc. Being from the east, I learned how to ride English, so I'm not really familiar with Western riding. A few years back I saw some quarter horses at a barn. Those quarter horses were a totally different confirmation than when I was a kid...they seemed to look more like thoroughbreds. Maybe that was just an isolated circumstance. What breed(s) of cattle did your family raise?

Did you find any well maps of the area?

No well logs. Ask at your local heath department. Their system must not be compatible with Michigan. It worked during Karina to cross reference, I will keep trying.

I raised foals to show and sell. The cattle were beef, Herford I think.

[marmac]

tambre---I just retired from dairy farming in Minnesota (son now rents with option to buy).

I have used rotational grazing for 14 years and am a great advocate of it.

I will be happy to answer any questions and share my experiences with you.

[Silvermouse]

Originally Posted by tambre

Hi Silver,

That's a large amount of cows...do you practice management intensive grazing? You mentioned black cows...are they black angus? Sorry, that's the only black breed I've heard of. How many acres does each cow need? What kind of horses do you have? Do they stay in the pasture with the cows? It sounds like you might have enough room for a few mini-donkeys, lol.

Tambre

We have a fair number of acres so we practice rotational grazing. We both work and intensive grazing would just be too time consuming. Angus are the black cattle of choice. Notice the CAB sticker on meat in the store - that's for Certified Angus Beef, no other breed has that kind of recognition (brilliant marketing from the Angus Breeders Assoc). Comparable cattle that have the black hide just sell better (even if they aren't angus). Hereford/Angus cross do well too - they're called black baldies because they are black with white faces.

We need horses for ranch work and my husband also team ropes, so our's are quarter horses, except for my haflinger (my guys make fun of his gait and says he runs like a big dog - pffft). If the cows aren't in calving season sometimes we will run them together, but mostly we keep the horses in a smaller pasture so they are easier to catch. Some horses have been known to chase cattle, so you have to watch for that.

It might be helpful to contact your local extension center. They can help you with lots of farm related question. Here is the website for the state extension center: http://extension.missouri.edu/ and here is one for the local office in Wright county: http://extension.missouri.edu/wright/index.shtml I think Ted Probert is still working out of the Wright county office and he is very knowledgeable about cattle.

Whew! I wrote a book!

[GregW]

I suggest you learn all you possibly can about running a farm. Then lease your land to someone already farming. You then get the costs covered and can watch the work being done by somebody else.