A lot of how you'll do things depends on where your operation is located. Here we can raise feed rather easily and have access to multiple sale barns and veterinarians, though we use the one of each that we prefer. We're not in "ranch" country as its mostly farm country with pasture lands intermixed.
My brother and I run a cow-calf operation which is probably among the more labor intensive parts of the cattle biz. There is always keeping an eye on the cows as calving time approaches and then there is the caring for the calves and watching them carefully to make sure they're up and going. We're in the middle of transitioning from a spring herd--calving from February to April/May--to a fall herd--calving August through November/December. Mostly to avoid calving during the coldest months of the year and partly to avoid having to have a bull in the pasture through the summer months.
Buying weaned calves and feeding them up to 800-900 pounds (also known as backgrounding) is probably the easiest way to get started, though the profitability might be sketchy. A lot of gain can occur through the summer months when running them on grass with minimal inputs like mineral, salt, vaccinations, and just keeping an eye on them. At this age--six months to a year--they really don't need a whole lot of looking after
You'll get familiar with barbed wire and electric fence, Muck Boots, tractors, mud, bale feeders, manure, pickup, stock trailer, ATV (I prefer an ATV over a horse as it doesn't burn fuel (feed) when it's not in use), unpleasant odors, dart guns to apply medication when you can't round a critter up, lightning kills (carry insurance), the fun of seeing them run up when you bring their buckets of grain, having one or two that become near pets, having one or two that are skittish and will bolt at the slightest provocation (back to the fencing above), and the knowledge that you're not only caring for some of God's creatures but are working to provide a safe and stable food source for the rest of the population.
I suggest you join the AgTalk forum and hang around the Stock Talk section for a while. A lot of it will probably be over your head for a while (sounds like radio/electronics, eh?) and you'll start to get a feel for what people are talking about. If you can identify posts from your general area pay close attention as this will help you figure what may work for you.
Another idea is to work with a neighbor to some extent and ease yourself in slowly. Help with working the animals so you get familiar with handling them. As you work with the neighbor you can start to build your own herd over several years. Don't be afraid to ask questions! If something doesn't look or sound right with an animal, it probably isn't so get a more experienced person's opinion.
At the end of the day it's a rewarding life.
HTH
My brother and I run a cow-calf operation which is probably among the more labor intensive parts of the cattle biz. There is always keeping an eye on the cows as calving time approaches and then there is the caring for the calves and watching them carefully to make sure they're up and going. We're in the middle of transitioning from a spring herd--calving from February to April/May--to a fall herd--calving August through November/December. Mostly to avoid calving during the coldest months of the year and partly to avoid having to have a bull in the pasture through the summer months.
Buying weaned calves and feeding them up to 800-900 pounds (also known as backgrounding) is probably the easiest way to get started, though the profitability might be sketchy. A lot of gain can occur through the summer months when running them on grass with minimal inputs like mineral, salt, vaccinations, and just keeping an eye on them. At this age--six months to a year--they really don't need a whole lot of looking after
You'll get familiar with barbed wire and electric fence, Muck Boots, tractors, mud, bale feeders, manure, pickup, stock trailer, ATV (I prefer an ATV over a horse as it doesn't burn fuel (feed) when it's not in use), unpleasant odors, dart guns to apply medication when you can't round a critter up, lightning kills (carry insurance), the fun of seeing them run up when you bring their buckets of grain, having one or two that become near pets, having one or two that are skittish and will bolt at the slightest provocation (back to the fencing above), and the knowledge that you're not only caring for some of God's creatures but are working to provide a safe and stable food source for the rest of the population.
I suggest you join the AgTalk forum and hang around the Stock Talk section for a while. A lot of it will probably be over your head for a while (sounds like radio/electronics, eh?) and you'll start to get a feel for what people are talking about. If you can identify posts from your general area pay close attention as this will help you figure what may work for you.
Another idea is to work with a neighbor to some extent and ease yourself in slowly. Help with working the animals so you get familiar with handling them. As you work with the neighbor you can start to build your own herd over several years. Don't be afraid to ask questions! If something doesn't look or sound right with an animal, it probably isn't so get a more experienced person's opinion.
At the end of the day it's a rewarding life.
HTH
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