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Ranching for profit

There's alot to be learned by just simply observing what yer cows do. Hubby still laughs at me cuz I can load up my lil truck with a sack or two of cubes.....a couple cold dr peppers and just go out and sit amongst the cows for hours. But when it comes time to identify em...............who do they ask??? Lil ole me, cuz neither he nor his dad spend time out there like I do. I can tell ya by lookin at most of em, who there mama is, how many calves they've had, without ever lookin at their ear tag number or my record book.
 
Same here. Some people tell me our cows all look the same, but I see something different about each one that makes her unique and easy to identify without looking at her tag. Even at a distance.
 
I think I know where Soapweed was coming from in he earlier post about spending the time and money at home where you benefit from it, but I respectfully disagree with that as a blanket statement.

I was on the local NRCS board until recently, and we had an award and field tour every year, and they stll do BTW. I never had one stop that I didn't learn something useful, or a new idea I thought might be worth giving a try. I know we all can't always spare the time to take in all there is to offer, or we might never get our work done, and I bet we all know a producer just like that.

I also went to a seminar sponsored by Farm Credit Services years ago, that was done by a Tom Hogan. He specialized in low input ranching ideas, and had taken several ranches from the brink of failure and brought them back to prosperity. IMO a lot of ranchers don't think about options that they have available, and just do the same program year after year. Like for instance they might have a smaller cattle herd than their machinery lineup will cash flow, but they never consider any other possibilities of changing their operation. Tom Hogan said if you didn't run 1000 cows, you shouldn't own a tractor. That was a little further then I would agree with. Maybe way down south you could get away with that.

I read Kit Pharo's newsletter, and if nothing else he provokes thought. We fenceline weaned several years before it got popular, and it can work well.

I think change is here to stay whether we like it or not, and most times I do not. :wink:
 
the real jake said:
I think I know where Soapweed was coming from in he earlier post about spending the time and money at home where you benefit from it, but I respectfully disagree with that as a blanket statement.

I was on the local NRCS board until recently, and we had an award and field tour every year, and they stll do BTW. I never had one stop that I didn't learn something useful, or a new idea I thought might be worth giving a try. I know we all can't always spare the time to take in all there is to offer, or we might never get our work done, and I bet we all know a producer just like that.

I also went to a seminar sponsored by Farm Credit Services years ago, that was done by a Tom Hogan. He specialized in low input ranching ideas, and had taken several ranches from the brink of failure and brought them back to prosperity. IMO a lot of ranchers don't think about options that they have available, and just do the same program year after year. Like for instance they might have a smaller cattle herd than their machinery lineup will cash flow, but they never consider any other possibilities of changing their operation. Tom Hogan said if you didn't run 1000 cows, you shouldn't own a tractor. That was a little further then I would agree with. Maybe way down south you could get away with that.

I read Kit Pharo's newsletter, and if nothing else he provokes thought. We fenceline weaned several years before it got popular, and it can work well.

I think change is here to stay whether we like it or not, and most times I do not. :wink:
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You are right, "real jake", a person can always learn by keeping their eyes and ears open to new and good ideas. But this is another area in which a motto of "moderation in all things" can keep a person from plunging head first into the shallow end of the pool.

It's kind of like in the movie CROCODILE DUNDEE when it is mentioned that a person could pay for the services of a "shrink". Crocodile Dundee says, "Don't they have any mates?" That's the way I look at these high dollar seminars. They probably don't teach anything a person couldn't get for free by conversing with other people in the business of agriculture. There are just some things a person should never have to pay for, and this includes puppies and advice. :wink:
 
Soapweed said:
the real jake said:
I think I know where Soapweed was coming from in he earlier post about spending the time and money at home where you benefit from it, but I respectfully disagree with that as a blanket statement.

I was on the local NRCS board until recently, and we had an award and field tour every year, and they stll do BTW. I never had one stop that I didn't learn something useful, or a new idea I thought might be worth giving a try. I know we all can't always spare the time to take in all there is to offer, or we might never get our work done, and I bet we all know a producer just like that.

I also went to a seminar sponsored by Farm Credit Services years ago, that was done by a Tom Hogan. He specialized in low input ranching ideas, and had taken several ranches from the brink of failure and brought them back to prosperity. IMO a lot of ranchers don't think about options that they have available, and just do the same program year after year. Like for instance they might have a smaller cattle herd than their machinery lineup will cash flow, but they never consider any other possibilities of changing their operation. Tom Hogan said if you didn't run 1000 cows, you shouldn't own a tractor. That was a little further then I would agree with. Maybe way down south you could get away with that.

I read Kit Pharo's newsletter, and if nothing else he provokes thought. We fenceline weaned several years before it got popular, and it can work well.

I think change is here to stay whether we like it or not, and most times I do not. :wink:
Click to expand...

You are right, "real jake", a person can always learn by keeping their eyes and ears open to new and good ideas. But this is another area in which a motto of "moderation in all things" can keep a person from plunging head first into the shallow end of the pool.

It's kind of like in the movie CROCODILE DUNDEE when it is mentioned that a person could pay for the services of a "shrink". Crocodile Dundee says, "Don't they have any mates?" That's the way I look at these high dollar seminars. They probably don't teach anything a person couldn't get for free by conversing with other people in the business of agriculture. There are just some things a person should never have to pay for, and this includes puppies and advice. :wink:
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Concering puppies and advice or most anything else, you get what you pay for! :wink:
 
Soapweed,

I knew you weren't knocking learning or trying new things in your earlier posts. Paying big bucks for advice better return big results, or it is wasted money. Of course one could pay for good advice, and if it wasn't used it would be futile too.

Our accountant has been one place where a professional service has been well worthwhile. And I am sure there are others.

You have proven here to "think out of the box" yourself. Come to think of it there is a lot of good ideas here for free. Except for the time invested, that is. :wink: :D
 
Jinglebob, I will try to send you the pictures I promised you, but I haven't gotten around to it yet.
 
Cattle tours are a good place to learn new and innovative ideas. It is also an opportunity to see things that plain and simple don't work all that well. Heck, just driving down the highway is often a lesson in how to or how not to ranch.

I guess my main observation is that I haven't been too impressed with the results of "low input" ranching. Maybe the "profit" is there, but if you get turned into the humane society, what is the point? Poor scrubby cattle in plain sight of the general public just doesn't do the whole cause of ranching any good. We, as ranchers, should put our best foot forward and show others that we are good caretakers of animals, and that we deserve to be stewards of the Good Lord's land and livestock.
 
Low input ranching doesn't mean that cattle are being mistreated in any way shape or form. What's worse a cow grazing out a bit longer-or a high input cow busting her butt calving out a big birthweight calf in winter. Frozen feet and ears don't do our business any great favours-high inputs don't necessarily equate to greater husbandry-cows calving in pens instead of on the grass kind of turn my stomach-scouring calves from overcrowding do the same-guess you should tour up in god's country-home of healthy cows and thrifty ranchers.
 
Northern Rancher said:
Low input ranching doesn't mean that cattle are being mistreated in any way shape or form. What's worse a cow grazing out a bit longer-or a high input cow busting her butt calving out a big birthweight calf in winter. Frozen feet and ears don't do our business any great favours-high inputs don't necessarily equate to greater husbandry-cows calving in pens instead of on the grass kind of turn my stomach-scouring calves from overcrowding do the same-guess you should tour up in god's country-home of healthy cows and thrifty ranchers.
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There are good and bad operations in all parts of the country. I suppose that a "formal" by-the-book, low-input deal has some merit. But there are also the haphazard, low-input-because-it's-easy-and-cheap, without any "management" type of outfits that don't do anybody any good and reflect poorly on all ranchers. That is the kind of deal that puts a black eye on cattle ranchers in general, merely by association.
 
Never knew there was a book-I've seen some pretty horrific things on high input operations too-being a low input rancher is far from easy-to raise healthy cattle and turn a profit never is-but probably takes as much as more skill then the-I'm doing it right because I'm spending money group. Nothing more holier than thou than a guy who'd rather spend money than think of an alternative way of doing things. Blanket Condemnations of different management ideas don't do really anybody any good.
 
Soapweed I hate to burst your Bubble but from what you have posted on here I would say that you are a "HOLISTIC" operator. I haven't seen where you spend alot of money with out figuring out your returns. You make good use of your resources at hand and your pastures are in great condition. Heck you could go on the road as a "GURU" :cowboy:
 
Okay, Northern Rancher, I'll back off a bit. Maybe I'm confusing "low input" ranching with "very little management" ranching. There have been plenty of examples of the latter that I have witnessed in my lifetime. They were not pretty.

Probably going into "low input" ranching with rhyme and reason does have merit. I went to a Kit Pharo talk one time, and he did cause me to think. His topics were mulled over in my mind, but at this point I'm not quite ready to become one of his disciples.
 
I know what you mean about some of these guy's "THEORY'S". I went to, I think Dick Turners seminar one cold December day. He was just up from Arizona wearing white pants and penny loafers telling us how we should be wintering cattle in Snowy Sask.. I know all cows don't have to be fed bales every day of the winter as many use extended grazing seasons, swath grazing, corn grazing,balegrazing.ECT. but nutrictional needs do have to be met.
 
Even on the topic of AIing (artificial insemination), that seems like "high input" and a heck of a lot of hard work to me. Why deprive bulls of their only enjoyment and reason for being in life? This is probably one area where my operation is more "low input" than yours. By the way, I got my bulls sold today. Had to jew from my $1250 asking price to $1200, but "rent" for the breeding season only came to about $150 per bull, plus the grass they ate from May 1st until tomorrow morning.
 
Big Muddy rancher said:
I know what you mean about some of these guy's "THEORY'S". I went to, I think Dick Turners seminar one cold December day. He was just up from Arizona wearing white pants and penny loafers telling us how we should be wintering cattle in Snowy Sask.. I know all cows don't have to be fed bales every day of the winter as many use extended grazing seasons, swath grazing, corn grazing,balegrazing.ECT. but nutrictional needs do have to be met.
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Heck, if they want to have credibility as a cattleman, you'd think they'd at least try to look like one. I'll give Kit Pharo credit, at least he looks like a cowboy/rancher type, and I'm sure the system he has developed works well for him. Some of his clones don't do as well, because they lack the "master's touch".
 
Big Muddy rancher said:
I know all cows don't have to be fed bales every day of the winter as many use extended grazing seasons, swath grazing, corn grazing,balegrazing.ECT. but nutrictional needs do have to be met.
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Well said amen
 

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