Steve move your calving date back to May/June and your life will be much better. I will take a live calf with the Momma standing in knee high GREEN grass any day over a dead calf in the bad weather of Feb., March, or April. The fellows that want to MAX the market are welcome to calve in the dead of winter if they want. I can turn just as much profit and have an easier life by calving later in the year. My bull goes into the pasture in Late July and early Aug. I am far enough north that the heat does not seem to effect the bull much any way too. He can work nights for all I care. LOL
Now the business side of the things. If your wanting to sell the BIG feeder calves in the fall then early calving does have SOME advantages on gross income. However I have seen the numbers show it is not as big of an advantage on the net profit as many cattle men think. Since you talking about keeping your calves for an entire year then the later calving will make even less of a difference. Now this assumes you have the calves ready for the feed yard at a year old. Meaning already on feed and all the vet stuff done. If you have uncut bulls at that age your going to get hammered. If they are just being grass feed and not bunk broke then you will lose more on a large calf too.
Now handling the later calves for a year later resale. Get them on feed ASAP. It does not have to be a heavy feed ration but get them on feed well before winter. For myself this is a CHEAP ration as it is mostly tub ground hay with a liquid supplement and some corn. It can be pretty crappy hay and it works because of the liquid supplement has a molasses base. I have even used good dry corn stalks if I am short on hay. Then when these calves are in the 700-800 lbs. range, market them. That is the size a lot of the confinement feeder guys want for the slat floor buildings. They have foot troubles with smaller cattle on them. These heavy feeder calves always have a good market here in Iowa. So if you live away, then market better than just selling at the local sale barn. So lock that bull up right now an let him in Late July and early August and then watch the neighbors suffer in the cold wet next spring. Then you can enjoy calving during better weather.
That is my way of business. I calve 100-120 cows each year, for over 35 years. So I may not know much but I like my way better than the early calving way.
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