Selling Last Years Calves

We had 12 calves last year and need to sell six this year. This is the most we have had to sell so far. We had 6 in 2010 and kept four heifer calves that were our black bull's daughters. They are having calves for the first time this year. We have kept 4 heifers and a replacement bull. And we are keeping one bull to butcher next summer. Our plan is to keep 4 heifers a year and then start selling the older cows through the years. We can handle about 24 breeding cows and their calves on our farm at one time.

Well anyway, we rounded up the calves and sorted them this morning to be loaded into the trailer to be taken to town to sell. We were up and out at the farm at 6:00 am. John took half a sack of feed into the dark....out into the field to round up the calves. I got the corral set up to sort the calves. The man with the trailer was coming at 7:00 and we had to be ready. We practise with the herd, getting them use to the corral and the head shoot for just this reason.

Well we were up early but the trailer didn't arrive until 8:30. That's the way it usually happens! But we got all loaded and on the way. They will be sold on today and we should receive a check on Wednesday. It is a very strange set-up. I guess we should go to a sell someday. But this is easier. And I like getting the check in the mail.

Everything we earn from the calves we put back into the farm. We build roads, ponds, fences, and barns. That is something we agreed to at the very start. So much has to be done tothe farm to get it into shape to really produce. We really aren't there yet but every year gets us closer.

We walked one of the bulls down to join the main herd and as we approached, our herd bull, Norbert, came up yelling. He was not very welcoming!! When we turned the young bull around and started back to the other field to join his year mates, he was ready to get away from Norbert! We learn something everytime we work the herd.