Chirpy
Loving the herd life
So, my city boy hubby who has become a country boy after I moved him to the country 
has decided that we need to raise our own beef next year. He's talked with one person who has a lot more acreage than we have and has a good experience doing this for a couple years. My relatives all had cattle when I was young and I know how difficult and dangerous they can be. I'm trying to be open minded here... I'd love to have our own natural beef BUT... I don't believe we have the appropriate setting. He wants 8 or so calves to run from spring to fall and then sell. The cost of selling the the extra ones covering the cost of the one we keep for ourselves.
Here's the situation: We have 40 acres; that includes a barn, house and a couple of outbuildings. It's divided into three sections. One roughly 9 acre area, one roughly 11 acre area and the front 20 (where all the buildings are). There is a sometimes pond in the 11 acre area.
The entire 40 acres is fenced: The back fencing is multiple strand barbless wire with one strand of barbed wire across the top. The two side fences are three strand barbless wire... part of the back and the 11 acre side has an additional 4x4ish square fencing on top of the barbless wire. The entire front of the property has only two strands of electric fencing. My horses went through it so I have little doubt that cattle would.
On top of this we have young children (four under the age of 12) running around all the time.
He wants calves in the spring that can reach market weight by fall? I don't think that's possible but... maybe I'm wrong. What breed would we want to get to reach that goal? I'm planning on calling our local extension office to get their input for our area also.
We have mostly Timothy and Brohm grasses (a little alfalfa up front) and our pastures certainly aren't lush but they are there. On good years we get a few hundred bales of hay from the front 20 acres.
I have llamas that graze the back 20 during the summer and then have free range over the entire acreage after hay. Or, like most years when we don't get enough rain for a hay crop or the hail takes out the entire hay crop before harvesting they are allowed free range over the entire 40 acres starting in the fall.
We do not have a shelter in the back pastures. The llamas are brought up to the barn in bad weather... They have free access to their barn stall during the winter months and usually chose not to come in. I don't know that I have a stall in the barn for cattle or that we'd be able to get them into the barn if I do figure out a stall for them.
We live on the west side of the eastern plains of Colorado. How many head do you think we could really support?
Realistically what type of medication (worms/lice, etc.) would we need to expect to need; remembering that we are wanting to do this as natural as possible. I'm assuming we would need a stanchion of some type to administer any meds needed? We don't have one, so any ideas?
Any other helpful information that we need to know before making this decision? (Yah, I know... there is tons to know... I want to hear as much as you can offer here.)
has decided that we need to raise our own beef next year. He's talked with one person who has a lot more acreage than we have and has a good experience doing this for a couple years. My relatives all had cattle when I was young and I know how difficult and dangerous they can be. I'm trying to be open minded here... I'd love to have our own natural beef BUT... I don't believe we have the appropriate setting. He wants 8 or so calves to run from spring to fall and then sell. The cost of selling the the extra ones covering the cost of the one we keep for ourselves.Here's the situation: We have 40 acres; that includes a barn, house and a couple of outbuildings. It's divided into three sections. One roughly 9 acre area, one roughly 11 acre area and the front 20 (where all the buildings are). There is a sometimes pond in the 11 acre area.
The entire 40 acres is fenced: The back fencing is multiple strand barbless wire with one strand of barbed wire across the top. The two side fences are three strand barbless wire... part of the back and the 11 acre side has an additional 4x4ish square fencing on top of the barbless wire. The entire front of the property has only two strands of electric fencing. My horses went through it so I have little doubt that cattle would.
On top of this we have young children (four under the age of 12) running around all the time.
He wants calves in the spring that can reach market weight by fall? I don't think that's possible but... maybe I'm wrong. What breed would we want to get to reach that goal? I'm planning on calling our local extension office to get their input for our area also.
We have mostly Timothy and Brohm grasses (a little alfalfa up front) and our pastures certainly aren't lush but they are there. On good years we get a few hundred bales of hay from the front 20 acres.
I have llamas that graze the back 20 during the summer and then have free range over the entire acreage after hay. Or, like most years when we don't get enough rain for a hay crop or the hail takes out the entire hay crop before harvesting they are allowed free range over the entire 40 acres starting in the fall.
We do not have a shelter in the back pastures. The llamas are brought up to the barn in bad weather... They have free access to their barn stall during the winter months and usually chose not to come in. I don't know that I have a stall in the barn for cattle or that we'd be able to get them into the barn if I do figure out a stall for them.
We live on the west side of the eastern plains of Colorado. How many head do you think we could really support?
Realistically what type of medication (worms/lice, etc.) would we need to expect to need; remembering that we are wanting to do this as natural as possible. I'm assuming we would need a stanchion of some type to administer any meds needed? We don't have one, so any ideas?
Any other helpful information that we need to know before making this decision? (Yah, I know... there is tons to know... I want to hear as much as you can offer here.)
