How we do it

Heidi (hope I spelled that right) over at the Milk Man’s Wife blog

http://themilkmanswife.blogspot.com/

has inspired me with her latest post about farms and milk cows. Go read it.

I decided that I need to do something similar and post more about what I do and why I do it here on our ranch. Please understand that I am not promoting what I do as the ONLY way to run a ranch. That is what is so great about ranching. We are able to do as we choose and run things the way we want. Many follow a similar pattern, but don’t always do everything the same.

We mostly run stocker cattle, otherwise known as yearlings yearling’s. They come in around the first of May and graze our land until anywhere from the end of July to mid November. How long they stay here depends on quite a few different factors. For instance, one couple I run cattle for, send heifers to be bred and made into range cows. There isn’t really a market for them until November or December, so they have no reason to take them home or to a sell these cattle until that time, as long as I have good feed for them. Others send steers or spayed heifers, that will be sold in late summer to early fall. These cattle are destined for a feedlot where they will be fed more intensively and then butchered for the final product, beef. The peak price for them is usually around  mid August to mid September, but what they weigh also makes a difference also. And the market can change and you don’t really know it it will go higher or lower. The idea is to put the most pounds on for the least cost and hope to hit the market at it’s peak. It’s a tough balancing act.

I will post more on this later. Please ask any questions you might have in the comments section.