Map of Beef Farms in Texas

Beef Cattle Farming for Beginners

Tips for Successfully Raising Beef Cattle on Pasture

The Livestock Book by West. R. Thompson and John McKinney, 1952, was intended as an introductory/overview of the potential of raising livestock as a career. Its sections on pasture, beef, dairy, sheep, and hogs were written by those who were considered to be among the foremost authorities in each area at that time.

The sections on pasture and beef offer the post-obit tips for beefiness cattle farming for beginners. While they are oriented toward someone considering a career as a farmer/rancher, many would withal apply to anyone homesteading today.

Tips for Beef Cattle Farming for Beginners

• The shortest route to prosperity is across dark-green pastures with livestock grazing them. Pastures make the best soil conservation crops. What is soil erosion and why is it important? There are several strategies that go into proper soil conservation, just at its core it is a combination of practices used to protect the soil from degradation, essentially treating the soil equally a living eco-system.

• You cannot wear a farm out in grass. The longer yous utilize it the better it gets.

• The way to restore a worn out farm is through maintaining the number of livestock which the bachelor forages will allow. Increment herd size only as forage quantity and quality permit.

• Beef cattle farming for beginners starts with planning your pastures. Brainstorm with a soil map (available from local Soil Conservation Services Part); perform soil contamination testing to make up one's mind the minerals and trace elements which may be lacking; apply sufficient fertilizer, other minerals and elements to get the desired results and seed the pasture to the appropriate forages for the blazon of soil and climate.

• Don't try to produce pastures on poor land without fertilizer (limestone, nitrogen, phosphate and potash). It won't pay off.

• Management is the hush-hush of keeping good pastures good. Information technology won't pay to fertilize and seed a pasture and then not manage information technology to go the most from the work and investment.

• A mower is one of the pasture's best friends. Mowing pays three means: getting off weeds and brush, clipping what the animals don't want keeps it tender and making hay from the skillful, extra grasses and legumes.

• Beefiness cattle farming tips that advance the learning process: one) Piece of work with cattle on your subcontract or on the farm of a good cattle producer, 2) Contact your county agent, society agent, agriculture teacher, extension livestock specialist and animal husbandry department of your land'south agronomical higher, iii) Visit and hash out your problems with successful beefiness producers in your area, 4) Read livestock journals, homesteading magazines that outline beef cattle breeds; and, from all this, 5) Report and select only what can be applied to your farm.

• The best fourth dimension of the year to purchase commercial beef cattle is in the fall. Well-nigh beefiness cattle and calves raised on pasture are marketed then and thus bred cows offered for auction are cheaper at that time than in the spring.

• Virtually can get-go out with either commercial or purebred beef cattle. Most should commencement out with grade cows (and breed upwardly through loftier-quality bulls). Grades have less upper-case letter, more animals are bachelor, mistakes are less costly, less experience and training is needed and there are more ready markets.

• If yous will treat beef cattle like you would similar to be treated, you and the beef cattle will become along and do fine. Be calm. Don't rush or fight them. This also applies to loading and hauling. Near wild, unruly cows or bulls are that style because no one took the time to get acquainted with them and to requite them practiced, kind treatment. (Cited every bit an example is the Brahman. Considered to exist rodeo bucking bulls in the U.S., in Bharat, where they are worshipped, they are and then tame they are actually a nuisance.)

• Several inches of sand makes fantabulous footing in a trailer. During hot weather condition, wetting it downward showtime will help keep the animals cool.

• Beef cattle can stand very cold weather condition, snowfall and hot weather. Wet, cold rains are difficult on livestock. Experiences in Tennessee showed that cattle left out on pasture all wintertime made better gains than those housed in barns. In the North, and under some other conditions, a low-priced cattle shed pattern with ane open side may pay.

• Don't use a minor bull on beginning-dogie heifers. This is the incorrect way. Grow the heifer out well, not besides fatty or too sparse. A rule of thumb is to not breed heifers earlier 15 months of age and weighing less than 700 pounds when bred.

• A skilful beef cow should take size. You lot don't want big, horsy or rangy cows. Neither are the minor "sentry-charm" kind desired. Pick medium-sized cows which, as nursing cows, counterbalance 900-1,200 pounds.

• Cull! Most of the fourth dimension a poor-producing cow one yr will keep to be in the future. The feed and labor toll no more than for a proficient moo-cow than for a poor ane and the return is much greater. (As Tom Lasater, developer of the Beefmaster brood, has been quoted as saying on difficult culling, "You lot may transport some adept ones down the road only you will get all of the lemons.")

• On the range an 80-90 percent dogie crop may exist good. On a subcontract no one should be satisfied with less than a 90 percent calf crop and should try to keep the average between xc-100 percent. (This would exist even more critical for a modest producer.)

• It is all-time to raise your ain replacements. At abode, the production, type, historic period, status, health and uniformity are known and can be controlled much ameliorate than past going out to buy.

• The best type of foundation moo-cow to start with is a "3-in-one" package of a two-to-five year onetime bred cow, with a skillful calf at her side, bought past private treaty from a respected cattle producer. They are worth the actress money and are the safest use of borrowed money in agronomics.

Everyone has to first somewhere, and now that you've decided to add livestock to your homestead, I hope this beef cattle farming for beginners guide will inspire yous to add beef cattle to your pastures.

Originally published in 2003 and regularly vetted for accuracy.

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Source: https://www.iamcountryside.com/cattle/beef-cattle-farming/