1. Join a cattle marketing group or sell on the web/local

• sale barns have a small group of buyers’ interest in mind. 

• why do they sort the way they do? 

• load – lots matter, don’t have a $900,000 hobby.

2. Be in the top ½ of the buyers (money/spent) when buying bulls

• not the top seller, but not the bottom 1/3 either

• let the owner of the bulls help you select a group of five to pick from

• They can help you select your goals and know the numbers

• Are you keeping heifers back, yearling weight needs or carcass characteristics matter

3. Angus cattle are mixed genetically to get the size they are today. 

• Consider that 1400 wt. cows are small in many areas

• Don’t keep the 1700 wt. cows, they have too large of livers and eat too much for the calf they raise

4. Weight of calves at 5 – 7 months of age, and cull the poor cows based on % weaned of their (cows) weight

• a cow can wean a poor calf one year but not two

• treat cows as if they work for you when feeding and selecting

• What are your labor costs?

5. Calve in a short window, 45 days is plenty to have 90% of the cows calved

• heifers should start 14 days early and be done before the cows

• when preg checking, sell the lates – they fit someone else but not you

• are the cows gaining weight at the time of breeding? Are they 60 days post–partum?

• do you synchronization tools? (One time down the alley for a prostaglandin and fly control) 

6. Use feed resources that are available, control waste, don’t let cows get below a BCS 4.5 

• can distillers be used or are stalks, residues, cover crops available?

7. Utilize the power of heterosis and age. Keep older, larger, crossbred heifers.