Yeah but the problem comes when there's no place to process your cattle. Doesn't matter how cheap or effective you are at raising it when there's no way to take it to market. That's the goal they're aiming for.
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Private sales.
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Your post reminded me of this tweet.
Is this guy on to something about these invaders effecting our food supply with their stupid customs?
https://x.com/WomanDefiner/status/1950350839249293481
Is this guy on to something about these invaders effecting our food supply with their stupid customs?
https://x.com/WomanDefiner/status/1950350839249293481
Can you take pictures of your grass at various stages and explain this stuff?
No.
I will sketch it out for you, though.
* If the ground is barren, you ain't got no grass. That means you can't graze it.
* If you got little tiny bits of grass, then it is just starting to grow. I would classify a typical American lawn as grass in this stage.
* Once it gets tall, it will start to put on a seed head. At that point it is the best time to graze. You want the animals to just take a bite and move on. Leave the rest for nature. You probably shouldn't come back for at least 30 days -- until it has fully recovered.
Some notes:
* Look at what is ahead of you. If you are running out of grass, you have too many animals and you need to sell early before everyone else figures out there is a drought. (Or you're just overstocked.)
* Look at what is behind you. Is it recovering quickly or slowly? Are weeds growing up over the grazed grass? You are probably pushing the animals too hard and need to give them more forage.
* Each type of grass is very different. There is no rule of thumb for all grasses. For instance, in my climate, I get ryegrass that explodes in April and May but by June it is all gone. From June to October I get plenty of bermudagrass and dallisgrass which I graze differently than ryegrass. In autumn, the ryegrass comes back, but if I graze on it, it doesn't do well in the spring.
I will sketch it out for you, though.
* If the ground is barren, you ain't got no grass. That means you can't graze it.
* If you got little tiny bits of grass, then it is just starting to grow. I would classify a typical American lawn as grass in this stage.
* Once it gets tall, it will start to put on a seed head. At that point it is the best time to graze. You want the animals to just take a bite and move on. Leave the rest for nature. You probably shouldn't come back for at least 30 days -- until it has fully recovered.
Some notes:
* Look at what is ahead of you. If you are running out of grass, you have too many animals and you need to sell early before everyone else figures out there is a drought. (Or you're just overstocked.)
* Look at what is behind you. Is it recovering quickly or slowly? Are weeds growing up over the grazed grass? You are probably pushing the animals too hard and need to give them more forage.
* Each type of grass is very different. There is no rule of thumb for all grasses. For instance, in my climate, I get ryegrass that explodes in April and May but by June it is all gone. From June to October I get plenty of bermudagrass and dallisgrass which I graze differently than ryegrass. In autumn, the ryegrass comes back, but if I graze on it, it doesn't do well in the spring.
My family and I were sitting around the dinner table and talking about what career we would pick out of the three given: Pilot, Gym teacher, Farmer.
My son picked Gym teacher (god knows why, he's 8, lol), my wife picked Pilot, but I picked farmer.
I grew up in a rural-ish area, but rural enough that we had horses, goats, chickens, and 4H clubs. My family grew corn, tomatoes, and squash over the season. Not commercially, but we ate well in the late summer. We also had chickens, so plenty of eggs year round.
Anyway, I'm not sure I'd do cattle. I know ranching is a "man's" profession, but I wouldn't get tired of growing corn or other crops. I think it's cool that you actually are a farmer dude. I miss the country. I live in a megacity now and sometimes I drive out to my old childhood neighborhood and just take in the silence and sound of the evening. The setting sun as the insects buzz, into the night when the crickets start chirping. The smell of horses and manure, the smell of the dusty hay barn, chickens clucking as they roost for the night. I miss it so much.
My son picked Gym teacher (god knows why, he's 8, lol), my wife picked Pilot, but I picked farmer.
I grew up in a rural-ish area, but rural enough that we had horses, goats, chickens, and 4H clubs. My family grew corn, tomatoes, and squash over the season. Not commercially, but we ate well in the late summer. We also had chickens, so plenty of eggs year round.
Anyway, I'm not sure I'd do cattle. I know ranching is a "man's" profession, but I wouldn't get tired of growing corn or other crops. I think it's cool that you actually are a farmer dude. I miss the country. I live in a megacity now and sometimes I drive out to my old childhood neighborhood and just take in the silence and sound of the evening. The setting sun as the insects buzz, into the night when the crickets start chirping. The smell of horses and manure, the smell of the dusty hay barn, chickens clucking as they roost for the night. I miss it so much.
What guides/info would be best to get the most foundational information about rearing livestock and growing their feed. Many thanks
You'll never find enough information in books and magazines. You have to get practical experience. After you've read up all that you can, you need to get your hands dirty. Thankfully, cattle guys are very friendly and helpful and if you're willing to learn and be respectful they'll teach you what they know.
What kind of land is good for herding cattle? rolling plains?
What sort of zoning laws do i have to worry about? Does it have to be zoned for agriculture? Any way to get zoning classifications changed?
What are the start-up costs? for example, what size herd do i need to start with? What are veterinary fees?
What sort of zoning laws do i have to worry about? Does it have to be zoned for agriculture? Any way to get zoning classifications changed?
What are the start-up costs? for example, what size herd do i need to start with? What are veterinary fees?
> land
You're looking for land that is not good enough for row-cropping (corn, soy) but isn't so poor that it is only good for timber. I recommend avoiding areas that don't get a lot of rainfall. (IE -- the West.)
> zoning laws
In the rural areas, there are no zoning laws. County governments are two guys and a secretary. There are no inspections. If you're in a county that doesn't guarantee all but absolute freedom, you're in the wrong part of the country. Property prices are probably too high to make it work anyway.
> start up costs
Like any business, you have your fixed costs and your unit costs.
The fixed costs are the land, the fencing, infrastructure (water, electric fence) etc...
The unit costs are feed, minerals, etc.. for each cow.
The trick is that you'll probably never run enough cattle to make a mortgage payment on any land.
Ideally you'll lease the land from someone rather than buy it.
If you're tight on money, you'll run sheep rather than cattle. I calculated that they bring in about 8x as much profit over cattle. It's a lot more work, and it's not as hands-off as cattle, but you can make a lot of money in a short amount of time.
Back to cattle -- there are various operations you can run. Cow-calf is what most people think of, but in some ways that is the most expensive and really only available to people with cash coming out of their ears. Stocker operations are much more efficient. Look into the different kinds of operations and see what works for you.
You're looking for land that is not good enough for row-cropping (corn, soy) but isn't so poor that it is only good for timber. I recommend avoiding areas that don't get a lot of rainfall. (IE -- the West.)
> zoning laws
In the rural areas, there are no zoning laws. County governments are two guys and a secretary. There are no inspections. If you're in a county that doesn't guarantee all but absolute freedom, you're in the wrong part of the country. Property prices are probably too high to make it work anyway.
> start up costs
Like any business, you have your fixed costs and your unit costs.
The fixed costs are the land, the fencing, infrastructure (water, electric fence) etc...
The unit costs are feed, minerals, etc.. for each cow.
The trick is that you'll probably never run enough cattle to make a mortgage payment on any land.
Ideally you'll lease the land from someone rather than buy it.
If you're tight on money, you'll run sheep rather than cattle. I calculated that they bring in about 8x as much profit over cattle. It's a lot more work, and it's not as hands-off as cattle, but you can make a lot of money in a short amount of time.
Back to cattle -- there are various operations you can run. Cow-calf is what most people think of, but in some ways that is the most expensive and really only available to people with cash coming out of their ears. Stocker operations are much more efficient. Look into the different kinds of operations and see what works for you.
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