Lowlines at auction

[jhm47]

I went to an auction barn in Minnesota today. During the sale, they sole about 12 - 15 Lowline cows. They were all tested bred, and weighed around 450 - 650 lbs. Seemed to be well cared for, and in good shape. Calving dates were next spring. Problem was that the price was in the $200 - $300 area per head. I thought this was rather on the low end, but I've never seen any sold before.

 

[ksalvagno]

Sounds like someone could have gotten a really good deal. Maybe a sign of the times and the bad economy.

 

[aggieterpkatie]

Wow, that does sound pretty cheap for bred animals.

 

[jhm47]

You must remember that this was an auction barn in the middle of beef cattle country. The goal of these farmer/ranchers is to produce the most pounds of beef as quickly as possible. These bred cows came into the sale ring immediately after a group of 1300 lb bred cows, and the lowlines looked totally like runts. They were in fine shape, and seemed to be very healthy, but in that environment, they were not appreciated.

 

[goodhors]

Hope someone who likes small cattle got them. Just a matter of being in the right place at the right time, cash in your pocket!

Always better to plan ahead, take action, instead of waiting, then having to dump all your animals at auction and take the losses. We see it happen often enough, seems you almost always lose at auction sales. We have been in the buyer seat sometimes and really LOVED the good deals we got.

With such specalized animals then you have to work harder, to get good sale prices in that wrong locale. I asked around for prices when selling my Dexter heifer, farmers told me I would be doing good at .90 the pound. EEKKK! No profit there!!

I did price checking on Craigslist, matched similar age, registered Dexter cattle in price. She sold quickly, within a day of listing her. We had a number of folks calling to ask about her. I think the big plus was good photos showing her training, looked NICE. She was thought to be bred, dehorned, trained and handled, while other heifers and cows were not handled at all. She came with more options!! I more than doubled my initial money investment in the 8 months we had her. She went to a nice family place. Yes it was a bit more work than auctioning her, but I got a much better price as well. Dexters are also a niche breed, they need some effort for selling them well.

 

[omran]

I went to an auction barn in Minnesota today. During the sale, they sole about 12 - 15 Lowline cows. They were all tested bred, and weighed around 450 - 650 lbs. Seemed to be well cared for, and in good shape. Calving dates were next spring. Problem was that the price was in the $200 - $300 area per head. I thought this was rather on the low end, but I've never seen any sold before.

Well here is the reality about the stock market:
there are many factors effect the price
1- if you guys up north it is already cold, and grass is gone for another 4 months
2- who ever sold them may be don't want to spend the money to feed them to the winter.
3- water is propoly frozen up north, if youi don't have a heater for your waterer or don't like to brake ice, then you will sell them too,
4- if there were not enough buyers at the auction, that also make the price go down.

that's just my openion.

Omran

 

[john in wa]

It would be my guess it is just the breed. I visit are local auction at least once a month. i see breeds like Minni Angus, herefords, Dexter's and long horns ect go for dirt cheap. well under $200. I also see them for sale on craigslist for $1000 to $2000 a head. there is a new add today for Minni Herefords @ $2000 a head for heifer calves. I will send them an E-mail in a month and see how many they have left. i don't know they might sale a couple to people on the west side around Seattle.

Just went to check the add again and they start @$2,500 per head. lol

 

[Bossroo]

Meat animals sell for what they are worth as meat. Pets is just another expensive proposition. When someone buys a mini cow... (s)he was a succer. Therefore one has to find another succer to get rid of one. A meat buyer will NOT pay anywhere near a pet price. Pure and simple.

 

[john in wa]

My thoughts exactly. For the $2,500 they are asking for these Minne Herefords i can buy 3 nice pure Angus cows. I raise my cows and calves to make a little extra money and i like playing with the cows. Now my sister on the other hand will buy stuff like the Minne breeds based on pure (its so small and cute) factor.