Additionally, the spring purchase is six months closer to a cash flow than the fall purchase. This is important with borrowed money. Producers with the luxury of having an inexpensive winter feed program might benefit from the fall purchase of bred cows as opposed to those operations with a higher winter feed cost. You really can't determine how much you can afford to pay for a cow unless you have a handle on your ranch's total annual cow cost. When determining annual cow costs, cattlemen need to include all cost, real and hidden.
Many producers fail to include opportunity costs on the value of land, equipment and cattle.
They fail to include their labor, depreciation, taxes, overhead and incidental costs such as extras for day help. Eventually these costs must be covered whether it's when the bailer needs replacing or a drought hits and you have to purchase hay. When Purchasing It is essential for you to know in advance the vaccination and health history of the cows you intend to buy. Many cattlemen have brought a reproductive or other disease to their ranch through purchased cows. Many veterinarians recommend quarantining purchased cattle upon arrival to minimize the threat of spreading disease to resident cattle.