Two of the largest manageable expenses include supplemental feed and grazing costs. Areas where improved pastures are grazed and hayed during the summer and that hay is then fed during the winter can usually be characterized as more expensive cow-calf country. Supplemental feed costs have varied greatly also. If feed costs need to be reduced, targeting specific classes of cattle may help. Cattle that need the extra nutrition, such as first calf heifers, can be identified with the assistance of a vet or nutritionist.
Overhead expenses are one of the most frequently overlooked.
Overhead includes depreciation, hired labor, hired management, taxes, and family living withdrawals. After working with many ranches and expressing these items on a per cow basis, managers are usually surprised at what they are expecting a mother cow to pay for. Without a doubt, the next couple of years will continue to challenge the cow-calf industry. For ranchers selling cash price weaned calves, the former has been taken out of our hands. The latter two are still manageable by the ranch operation.