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Neighbors combining resources cow/calf, backgrounding questions
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Kautzman
Posted 8/16/2017 18:39 (#6191348)
Subject: Neighbors combining resources cow/calf, backgrounding questions


First off want to say long time lurker and reader on here, first time poster. Have learned a lot and gotten a lot of different view points and ideas from operators and different parts of the country and even the world. So thanks for that.

I'm a young operator that has a cow/calf herd that also backgrounds my calves. I've been doing this for nearly a decade, and the biggest obstacle for me so far has been finding a place to calve cows out in the spring. I'm currently on my folks place but it isn't big enough for expansion and isn't the best of places to calve out in the spring as it is poorly drained. The other limiting factor is that I am by myself so I don't have anybody readily available to help when having issues or watch cows during the day when I'm at work.

What I've been brainstorming over lately is combining resources with a neighbor and how a person would go about doing it that would be fair but also allow both of us to expand. He's got a good area to calve cows out in the spring and we work well together.

My biggest available resource is that I have ample fall/winter grazing (weather permitting) on combined crop and grassland that also works as a good area to feed the cows at. My neighbor does not have that capability and generally has to start feeding pretty early in the winter. He also doesn't work off the ranch so he'd be available to check cows during the day and we'd work together when needed.

We'd run our herds together and our management practices are different but similiar where they need to be (ie calving date). Our herds would go our own ways when it comes to summer pasture turnout. We'd have our own cows and buy our own genetics. We'd both be able to raise most of our own feeding most years for both of our herds. In fact, right now he generally has more hay than needed and I usually buy all of that.

So what I'm thinking is this, something where we combine resources to benefit the both of us. We'd run our cows together on my fall/winter pasture where I'd feed them. I have some feeding equipment that he doesn't have that would make it more effecient and probably end up saving him some feed, plus we'd have plenty of grazing in those mild falls/winters where he could save himself a considerable amount of feed. Feeding is pretty much a one man job so I'd take all that responsibility. Then we'd move the cows in the spring during calving to his place where he's got the facilities and place to calve out the cows. Both of us would work together on this, he'd take day shift when I'm at work and I'd take night shift.

We both background our calves, but he really doesn't have a great place to feed them. My folks place actually is a nice place to feed calves in the winter time, just doesn't work in the spring. So together we'd wean the calves and I'd invest money at my folks place and build a mini-feedlot to background the calves and house the bulls. Again I got some feeding equipment that he doesn't that should make things more effecient for him. We'd seperate the steers and heifers, and feed them seperately.

Which gets back to another thing, heifer retention. I haven't been holding back heifers in my herd although I should be because it just isn't viable to buy good genetics for 10-12 heifers, which is what I'd hold back and I don't have the pasture. But together we could run our heifers together in the summer pasture, which would be around 25-30 and together we'd select and buy good bulls that fit our collective needs.

Is something like this viable?

What I'm proposing is combining resources, both of our strengths to make the both of us better. I'm younger and would be willing to do more of the work, I wouldn't mind doing all the daily chores and feeding for both the cows and calves in the winter and would take night shift during calving. He's older and has a family and likes to do a fair share of traveling so me taking on the daily responsibilities in the winter would free him up, all the while he'd be there to watch and help during calving.

So how do your propsose something like this, and how do you put an economic scale on something like this on paper to see how it could potentially all work out for both sides?

Any suggestions, ideas are greatly appreciated ahead of time. Any questions or further info just ask.
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