This week I've doing some training to gain qualifications as an assessor for Auctions Plus. Its been good to gain some new skills, and I'm looking forward to soon offering a new serve to clients looking to sell their cattle on line. However, today's Rayner Reckons isn't about my new service, but about some points I picked up over the two days.
Specifically, about the pregnancy status of your heifers and your cows. This isn't a new area for me to think about! One of the biggest issues for people buying cattle is the uncertainty of the pregnancy status of females they are buying.
In many ways you would think that people would know if their cattle are pregnant or not. However it actually appears most people are not really sure at all!
If you have a chance to chat to a feedlot operator and you're talking about feeding heifers, I reckon it won't be long before their concerns will be expressed! Many feedlots have run into issues with heifers coming onto feed that turn out to be pregnant.
This can cause a real issue for the feedlot. Looking after a new calved heifer and its calf places extra work and stress on the delete management team. Besides the concerns for the animal, a newly calved heifer isn't going to able to complete the feeding program and this can represent a big financial cost for the operator.
Being surprised by pregnant females isn't just something that happens to feedlot operators! Unfortunately many producers looking to buy replacement female with a specific plan in mind, such as joining at a more appropriate time for their region or to join to a certain bull, can also have their plans thrown into disarray by heifers calving unexpectedly or out of sync with the program.
Along those lines can be producers who have specifically purchase PTIC (Pregnancy Tested in Calf) females that have been joined to a certain breed of bull. The disappointment often occurs when those females calve down cross bred calves! Or calves clearly sired by the wrong bull!
So there are risks associated with purchasing females. Unfortunately the way many purchasers offset that risk is to offer a lower price on females or in the case of some programs (such as a number of feedlots) avoid buying heifers at all.
The issue for producers is that surplus females (both surplus heifers and cull cows) can make up to 30% of the income associated with a beef enterprise. Its no small amount, and its not something I reckon you would want to take an price reduction on.
So producers looking to sell surplus females really need to think about the expectations and needs of the people they may be selling to. A few things to consider include:
How old were the heifers at weaning? Was their any risk the were exposed to a bull before they were weaned?
This is an issue for people who have extended joining and calving times. Did the bulls go back in white there were heifer calves in the paddock? Some heifers can be cycling and fall in calf at 9 or 10 months!
Have you ever had a neighbours bull visit? Even if only overnight!
I know it is easy to blame visiting or wandering bulls, but it does happen. Bulls will jump fences and if your heifers are close to a boundary, or if you have ever noticed a bull close or even in with your heifers, you need to assume the worst!
How long has it been between pregnancy testing and sale time?
There are plenty of occasions where cattle have been pregnancy tested not in calf. Unfortunately there is a delay between pregnancy testing and sale. In that time the female has been exposed to a bull and is now pregnant.
I guess there are other things that do happen. No matter what the cause, when it comes to selling your unwanted females, surplus heifers or cows, you need to ask is there a risk they could be in calf. If you are unsure then you really need to organise to have them pregnancy tested before you offer them for sale.
If you think about your females as a buyer would, I reckon you would want to know whats going on with the feels your are about to buy. If you know and you can see a pregnancy test result and a date of the test, I'm certain you would bid with more confidence on those females. Its the certainty of a purchaser that is important in securing and possibly increasing the value of the females that matters.
So if you don't know what your heifers have been up to, or if you think there is a risk, then I reckon its worth finding out before you sell them! Spending that time to do some testing might actually increase your credibility and strengthen your reputation among cattle buyers. Sometimes thats the difference between an average sale and a great sale. More importantly its often the difference between a once off sale and repeat sales.