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Quite the wreck....what would you do?

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LCP

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I owned half a pen of feeder calves. Bought them last Dec 1 weighing 415. Were supposed to be fed for 2 lb ADG. They got on the truck last week weighing 525. :shock: That's about 0.6 lb ADG in case you were wondering.

The guy that fed them I was in the military with. Swears he fed them just what we had discussed. I don't know him to be a dishonest person. He fed another pen of calves across the fence that did just fine. Half of the calves in my pen came off a ranch, and he said quality was an issue. The were supposed to have been weaned (they weren't) and were quite an assortment of colors shapes and sizes. He went through quite a little draxxin during the first month, had the vet out to advise.

What I learned the hard way is that I need to go look at the cattle. Sounds obvious I know. At least I'd have some frame of reference. All I've got is the cattle buyer's word (that they were represented correctly) and the feeder's word (that they were cared for correctly).

I still owe the feeder $6000 for feed. It's been suggested that I don't pay it. My thoughts are this - I need to be $6000 sure that it was the feeder's fault in order to not pay him, and even if I come to that conclusion, I'd very likely losing a friend. I think he made some mistakes ( a few railers should have gone to town much sooner I think) but overall I don't think it really was all on him. I think I buck up and pay him for the feed & yardage.

What would you do?

This deal won't break me. It is an expensive education though. I remember why I never borrow money to buy feeder cattle. And I will ALWAYS remember to go look at the cattle.
 
I'd pay him. Then I'd do my own chores next time. Kinda like letting someone handle all the advertising and sale catalog and knowing they were dropping the ball. I paid them and after a week of stewing I had to call and voice my disgust though it seamed to fall of deaf ears. Next time I'll do ALL of it myself.
 
Did you resell them or turn them out on grass? I bet they explode on grass now with their age if they aren't stunted.
 
I would pay him and find a true friend. A business associate who would misrepresent a deal like this is not a friend.

As Denny says, doing your own chores leaves no assumptions.
 
Whether one goes to college or not, you pay for your education. Pay the man, be his pal, but refrain from ever doing business with him again. And always, always, look at the cattle...before purchase and especially while being fed.

In my life, I've had to take exactly 2 people to court to pay for hay they "bought" but never paid for. And I considered them friends at the time of the sale. Both times, the judge only had two questions for them: did you receive the hay? And, did you feed it to your stock? Upon hearing "yes" to both questions, all the judge had to say was "pay the man".
 
I was thinking the same thing; you'll likely get your gain on grass.

I think you may be legally obligated to pay for feed, but I don't think they ate enough feed to gain 2# but only gained .5#, and the winter was soft. Belly deep in mud explains poor gain, and stale cattle and sickness will kill you. You should have been notified in the middle of the night when they came off the bus if they came in stale. If I was getting paid for care, you'd have the option to turn the bas$&@&$ around before the bus left, if they came in like shippies.

Cattle that are supposed to gain 2# but only gaining .5# are obviously missing the mark and any competent feeder knows it everyday - every month. Btw, with modern genetics and $.06 corn, I'd be thinking closer to 3# then 2#,but that boat has sailed. The feeder should have been calling out the wreck all along, if he didn't, he can't justify his bill, and he should voluntarily adjust it a lot. Somebody is going to lose money here. I'm guessing the feeder should have turned them around before the bus left. Instead they were introduced to new fangled mud therapy and you are the one who is losing money here.
 
I'd pay him. But I would sit down and have a discussion with him and give him the opportunity to adjust
the bill. I think you both may have learned something and it really isn't right that you are the one who pays the tote financially. How much have you already paid him?

I have yet to understand anyone that has cattle that doesn't go check on them.
We put heifers in a feedlot once....great feed....but the guy had no idea what he was doing. We found
someone who did know.....and we took him along to talk to the man who had the feedlot. Luckily, he
was willing to listen and we got things straightened out. We heard later about all the
coccidiosis that occurs in that feedlot and all the sickness that had happened there. Ours didn't get sick at
all, but they were nutritionally sound going in. That is HUGE. And we made him keep them on our
mineral. We checked on them every 10 days.

Good luck. Hopefully you can come to a compromise on the feed charge. Let us know.
 
Big mistake to mix and mingle calves from different ranches unless they go on an extensive backgrounding/pre-conditioning program complete with ALL vaccinations and given a chance to build their immunities for at LEAST 30-60 days before going on full feed. Can't put estranged 415 wt calves in a close pen together and expect them not to get sick. Those calves should have also gone on a grazing program after pre-conditioning with the introduction of feed in slight increments to build the proper gut bacteria for feed. A good feedyard would have at least started them off on a diet of GOOD hay with a free choice protein supplement (if needed). Sounds like no one knew what the heck they were doing. Success in the feed yard depends on the proper preparation. You learned a lesson the hard way. Pay up, but tell him how you feel.
 
We've had it happen here. A pen of Pennsylvania calves. Couldn't get them to gain no matter what they were fed. We were one of the "lucky ones" to get a load of calves from Eastern about the time that deal went south. Fly-weight heifers. 30% death loss. We lived with them. Gave away Merle Haggard concert tickets to stay home with those calves. :cry:
I bought a load of 6weight bulls several months ago from a local sale barn. First thing I did was give each one a shot of Draxxin. Since they were still bulls, I figured they'd never been vaccinated. We knife cut them several weeks later. Zero death loss, zero health problems and those calves gained like crazy. We fed wet distillers grain and the junkiest hay I could buy.
You're lucky calf prices are high. That helps. Pay the feed bill.
I was recently presented with a bill for $6,580 by a local well driller who witched and drilled me two dry wells!
Sometimes you're the bug-sometimes you're the windshield! :tiphat:
 
Ditto. Learning is expensive, but those lessons are never forgotten. I only learn half as fast and retain it for 1/4 as long when things work. If you are accountable with the bill and your friend, he may even surprise you.
 
Thanks for the input everyone. I will be seeing the calves next week Wednesday as they have been moved to another lot. Talked to the guy who owns the other half, he looked at them yesterday and said there's nothing wrong with them quality-wise, and he knows feeder cattle as well as anyone I know. The new feeder said they were "starved-out" when they arrived but are doing quite a bit better, even though its only been a couple weeks. That's good for me, but it sure doesn't help the other guy's case.

I think I will pay the bill, and after I see the calves and talk to the new feeder, I'll have a heart-to-heart with the first guy. I hope he can learn something from this too.

Thanks again for the input everyone.
 
Just a thought I've fed whole shell corn at different times one time the bulls gained 3.50#s per day a different year they didn't gain hardly at all. I discussed this with my new feed man and he said that feeding whole shell corn between I think 15% moisture and 24% moisture had to hard of an enamel with no stress cracks so the enzymes in the stomach couldn't access the starch. I do know that the first year when it worked the corn was 13% moisture and the other year it was 18%. Either way I would grind or crack any feed grains to insure the best possible digestion of the purchased feed product. I'd call JR Feeds in Lake Norden SD they can make them grow. If the cattle have the potential to gain why hold them back.

Your guy may have fed them plenty of feed just in the wrong way. It took me 7 years of feeding bulls to find this company and I wouldn't jump ship for any reason.
 

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