HOW CAN I COMPETE WITH THE BIG GUYS?

HOW CAN I GET THE BEST PRICE FOR MY CATTLE?

THESE ARE THE QUESTIONS I GET ASKED THE MOST BY NEW BREEDERS AND SMALL BREEDERS ALIKE.

THE OLD MODEL, BIG, FAT HIGHLY PROMOTED PEDIGREED CATTLE, HAS WORKED FOR A FEW, LARGE BREEDERS FOR A LONG TIME BUT EVEN THEY COME AND GO. THE REAL QUESTION IS, HAS IT WORKED FOR THE MAJORITY OF THE BREEDERS AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, HAS IT WORKED FOR THE BETTERMENT OF THE BREED? YOU BE THE JUDGE!

BETWEEN 1987 AND 2007, BEEFMASTER REGISTRATIONS DROPPED 52% WHILE ANGUS INCREASED 146% AND RED ANGUS INCREASED 419%. THE INCREASE IN ANGUS/RED ANGUS CAN BE AT LEAST PARTLY EXPLAINED BY THE ADVENT OF HIGH MARBLING MARKETING PROGRAMS, WHICH MAY ALSO EXPLAIN SOME OF THE DECREASE IN BRAHMAN/AMERICAN BREEDS.

I ASK YOU, HAS THE OLD MODEL WORKED FOR THE BREED AND THE MAJORITY OF OUR BREEDERS?

IT HAS BEEN SAID THAT “DOING THE SAME THING OVER AND OVER EXPECTING A DIFFERENT RESULT” IS THE DEFINITION OF INSANITY. IS IT TIME TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT?

IT SEEMS TO ME THAT IT IS WAY PAST TIME TO DO SOMETHING DIFFERENT! THIS IS THE MAIN REASON FOR OUR “HEIFER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM”.

FOR EVERYONE OF US WHO PARTICIPATES, WE WILL HAVE THE REAL CARCASS NUMBERS FOR OUR CATTLE WHICH GIVES US THE OPPORTUNITY FOR A NEW BEGINNING FOR OUR BREED BY IDENTIFYING THE CATTLE THAT MEASURE UP WITHIN A LARGE, DIVERSE GROUP OF CATTLE.

CAN I AFFORD TO PARTICIPATE IN THIS “HEIFER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM”?

IF YOU WANT TO BE A SEED STOCK PRODUCER, CAN YOU AFFORD NOT TO HAVE YOUR CATTLE IN A DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM THAT WILL MEASURE THEIR ABILITY TO GAIN AS WELL AS THEIR CARCASS TRAITS?

THERE ARE A COUPLE OF PROGRAMS THAT YOU CAN PUT YOUR BULLS IN LIKE GARY FRENZEL’S YEARLY PROGRAM WHICH HAPPENED TO DO PRETTY WELL THIS YEAR, INDICATING AN INCREASE IN INTEREST IN PERFORMANCE CATTLE. HOWEVER, I DON’T KNOW OF ANOTHER PROGRAM AVAILABLE FOR HEIFERS UNLESS YOU ARE A LARGE BREEDER AND CAN DO IT YOURSELF AND AFTER ALL, HALF OF THE GENETICS IN YOUR HERD IS CONTRIBUTED BY YOUR FEMALES.

MORE AND MORE OF THE LARGE BREEDERS ARE BEGINNING TO UNDERSTAND THE NEED FOR THE DATA TO IMPROVE THEIR OWN HERDS, THE BREED AND THE ABILITY TO MARKET THEIR CATTLE.  

IF YOU DON’T COLLECT THE DATA ON YOUR CATTLE YOU WILL HAVE TO COMPETE WITH THOSE WHO DO.

 IF YOU AREN’T SERIOUS ABOUT BEING A SEED STOCK BREEDER, THAT’S OK. YOU STILL HAVE THE BEST BREED OF CATTLE IN YOUR PASTURE BUT IT IS STILL UP TO YOU TO DETERMINE HOW GOOD YOUR CATTLE REALLY ARE GOING TO BECOME.

HOW ABOUT THE COST?   YES, YOU CAN FEED YOUR HEIFERS FOR THE WINTER FOR LESS, BUT NOT MUCH LESS. YOU HAVE THE ADDED LABOR OF USUALLY FEEDING DAILY, NOT TO MENTION THE BAD WEATHER. YOUR HEIFERS WON’T BREED NEXT SPRING IF YOU DON’T GET ENOUGH GAIN TO EQUAL 65% OR BETTER OF THEIR MATURE BODY WEIGHT. TOO MANY TIMES OUR HEIFERS DON’T BREED WHEN THEY SHOULD BECAUSE WE SKIMPED ON THEIR WINTER FEED. SO, JUST HOW CHEAP IS OUR WINTER PROGRAM FOR OUR HEIFERS IF WE CAN’T GET THEM ALL BRED?

THE COST FOR OUR PROGRAM IS $3.50 PER HEAD PER DAY PLUS $17 TO $20 PER HEAD FOR THE ULTRASOUND PLUS ANY VET COSTS.  HOW ABOUT MARKETING VALUE?   WHEN YOU CONSIDER THE COST, YOU SHOULD ALSO CONSIDER THE ADDED VALUE THE PROGRAM PUTS INTO YOUR CATTLE.   LET’S NOT FORGET THE FIELD DAY AT THE END OF THE PROGRAM WHERE YOU HAVE THE OPTION TO SELL YOUR CATTLE AT PRIVATE TREATY.

WHY EVEN BOTHER?

1. YOU WILL FIND OUT HOW PROFITABLE YOUR CATTLE REALLY ARE, ON THE SCALE AND UNDER THE HIDE.

2. YOU WILL KNOW FOR REAL WHICH CATTLE TO KEEP AND WHICH ONES TO CULL, MAYBE FOR THE FIRST TIME.

3. YOU WILL HELP THE BREED BY HELPING TO BUILD A DATA BASE OF THE MOST PRODUCTIVE CATTLE.

4. YOU WILL MAXIMIZE THEIR GROWTH ON FORAGE WHICH SHOULD GIVE YOU THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF HEIFERS BRED.

5. YOU WILL FIND OUT HOW YOUR CATTLE COMPETE WITH THEIR PEER GROUP.

6. YOU WILL ADD VALUE TO THE CATTLE WITH GOOD GROWTH AND CARCASS TRAITS.

7. YOU WILL IMPROVE THE VALUE OF YOUR HERD WHEN YOU CULL THE NONPERFORMING HEIFERS AND THEIR DAMS AND ESPECIALLY THEIR SIRES.

8. YOU WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO MARKET YOUR CATTLE TO A GROUP OF INTERESTED BREEDERS AT NO COST.

9. IN ORDER FOR ANY OF US TO STAY IN BUSINESS AS A SEED STOCK BEEFMASTER BREEDER, OUR BREED MUST PROVE THAT IT CAN COMPETE WITH ALL OTHER BREEDS FOR FEED EFFICIENCY AND CARCASS TRAITS AND THIS CAN’T BE DONE WITHOUT THE DATA ON AS MANY HERDS AS POSSIBLE THAT THIS PROGRAM WILL PROVIDE.

10. NOW IS A GOOD TIME TO DECIDE IF YOU WANT TO BE A SEED STOCK BREEDER OR NOT!

THANKS TO THE BREEDERS WHO PARTICIPATED THIS YEAR.  WE WILL BE ULTRASOUNDING SOON AND ANNOUNCING A FIELD DAY SOMETIME IN APRIL.

IF YOU HAVE ANY INTEREST IN PARTICIPATING NEXT YEAR, LET US KNOW SO WE CAN MAKE PROPER PLANS.

TO LOCATE A PERFORMANCE BREEDER NEAR YOU, GO TO HOME PAGE AND CLICK ON  "SEARCH FOR BREEDER".

THANKS,

 RICHARD HAZEL

HAZEL BROS. H BAR BEEFMASTERS

903-312-6741

EMAIL AT richard@etcable.net.