Each beef cattle enterprise has different resources: land, labor, capital, feed and management. To raise beef cattle profitably, you must manage these resources to maximize returns. Below are some guidelines to make this enterprise successful. A large amount of information is available on beef production through books and magazines. With the electronic age, you can also access information over the
internet from many universities and in particular, their Extension systems. For copies of printed information, you can also visit your local Extension Office. Other suggestions for developing a working knowledge of beef production are to join a local beef producers organization and visit with other local producers. Most producers are more than happy to share their knowledge. Be sure to visit their operations also for ideas on handling, management, and breeds. Another important person to gain knowledge from is your veterinarian. Discuss health concerns and management suggestions with your vet. What Type of Cattle Should I Raise? Normally, the sole source of your income from a beef operation will come from the calves produced each year. So, it is important that your cows produce a calf at least every 12 months. Be conscious of selecting as well as keeping good productive cows who will produce a calf every year without assistance, maintain their body condition without becoming overly thin or fat, and raise a calf with an average weaning weight that meets your goals. Other considerations to make when choosing cows are the breed and what type of operation (purebred vs. Breeds of Beef Cattle
Beef cattle are generally divided into two different groups: maternal breeds vs. Generally, maternal breeds are known for their milk production and mothering ability while terminal breeds are known for their growth and meat producing ability. As with anything in life, there are some exceptions to this rule. Some breeds are also known as dual purpose breeds because they combine muscling for meat production with excellent maternal characteristics. For more information on breeds of beef cattle, visit the Oklahoma State Beef Breeds Directory. Crossbreeding can help you to combine the best attributes of individual breeds into one package. Choose traits that are important to you and then seek a breed or a crossbred that exhibits those traits. Type of Operation
Before you get started in the beef business, you will need to ask yourself what type of operation you would like to run. Some of the typical options are cow/calf, backgrounding feeder calves, or feedlot. The cow/calf producer keeps a herd of cows to produce calves. The backgrounder buys weaned calves and turns them out on pastures until they reach 800 to 900 pounds. The feedlot operator purchases weaned calves or backgrounded calves and feeds them to market weight. If you choose to become a cow/calf operation, you will also need to decide whether you would like to run a purebred or a commercial operation. A purebred operation typically raises cattle of one breed. Often a purebred operation will have all registered cattle that can also be sold through purebred sales. A commercial operation may have unregistered purebred cattle or they may have crossbred cattle. Commercial producers can have the benefit of hybrid vigor which is simply the ability of crossbred offspring to increase in productivity over the average of the breeds that were part of the cross. This means that a crossbred calf could grow faster and thus weigh more at a certain age than either of its parents. Many purebred sales are held across the country throughout the year. Sales may offer only one breed or they may offer a large variety of breeds for sale. Also, you may want to become familiar with trends in the beef industry when choosing breeding stock. Choose bulls that will compliment the outstanding traits in your cows and improve their weaknesses. Cows for a commercial operation can be bought at a purebred sale and then used in a crossbreeding program or you can contact individual producers to buy larger numbers of heifers that could be purebreds or crossbreds. Another option is to buy animals through an auction barn. Be aware however, that you are more likely to buy problem cattle through an auction barn. Unless a producer sells all his calves through the auction, he may be selling only cull calves. Beef producers who purchase calves to background or place in a feedlot often purchase calves directly from a cow/calf operator. They may also purchase calves through feeder calf sales. Most buyers will pay more for calves that have been weaned, dewormed and vaccinated because the likelihood of calves getting sick is greatly reduced. Beef Operation Management
Management of a beef operation depends largely on the interests of the producer as well as the resources available such as land, feed, facilities, and others. Management systems will vary depending on the climate. Operations that have hard winters will want to provide access to shelter for the cows during extremely cold weather and during periods of cold rain. Facilities
Facilities for beef operations will vary from fencing to barns, sheds or shelters. Again, facility requirements will depend on whether your operation runs cattle only through the summer months or all year. Any operation should have some type of handling system that allows a producer to easily catch and restrain an animal for routine health care procedures. The handling system should include a corral system with a chute that leads to a head-gate. A beef facility may also need feeding facilities. This could be as simple as a mineral feeder for a backgrounding operation. Or, it may include barns and grain and hay feeders for the cow/calf operation. In addition, a feedlot operation will need to account for adequate bunk or feeder space for the number of animals that are being fed. A general rule of thumb for feeder space is to provide 18 to 22 inches for calves up to 600 pounds, 22 to 26 inches per head for calves 600 pounds to market weight, 26 to 30 inches per head for mature cows, and 14 to 18 inches per head for calves. If you have feed available at all times, these sizes can be decreased.
