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February 2010 Articles

Reproductive Diseases Can Cost You
Herd Health Program for Meat Goats
• Preconditioning, Still a Good Option?
Fly Control Has Been Challenging This Year
Practice Cell-Phone Safety
Pre Trip Check List for Horse Trailers
TIPS for Controlling Mold in your barn
Bareback Riding Tips
Follow 7 principles for a sustainable landscape
The USDA Farm Values Post First Decline Since 1987
Economic, Environmental, Public Policy, and Production Issues are Important to
Forestry Situation
Disaster Preparedness for Louisiana Livestock Producer
Hot Chicken Cheese Bread
Third Important Lesson
Fourth Important Lesson
Fifth Important Lesson
Building Partnerships In Our Poultry Industry:

(18 articles found)

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Preconditioning, Still a Good Option?

Preconditioning, Still a Good Option? Brett Barham, Ph.D In times of increasing costs and decreasing revenue, does spending more money to produce a calf really make sense? The answer is yes, if that increase in cost is more than offset by increased revenue. Preconditioning calves is not some new trend that is going to fade away. In reality, it is now more the norm than the exception. Study after study has shown the financial advantage to preconditioning calves. A study from Colorado State that looked at 10 years of sales data from Superior Livestock Auctions video sales shows an average premium of $4.37 per hundredweight for calves that were vaccinated and weaned for 45 days. Others show similar results; even data from the 2005 Arkansas Sale Barn survey shows a $4.01 premium (Figure 1). That’s $22 extra for a 500pound calf using the $4.37 premium. The hidden profit from preconditioning comes from post-weaning weight gain. If weaned calves gain 2 pounds per day during the 45day preconditioning period, that’s 90 extra pounds of calf that you have to sell. For the last two years, the price discount associated with increasing weight has been very small compared to historical data. It was once common to see a $10 per hundredweight price drop when moving from a 500to a 600pound calf. For the week ending on July 24, 2009, this discount was less than $3. This should be encouraging producers to put more weight on their calves prior to selling them. So let’s put some calculations to this and see how it comes out. Study after study has shown the financial advantage to preconditioning calves. We will use a 500-pound weaned calf. The average selling price for that nonpre-conditioned calf was $100.82 per hundredweight for the week ending July 24, making this calf worth $504.10. If we preconditioned him for 45 days and he gained 90 pounds during this time, he now would weigh 590 pounds. The average selling price for a 600pound steer was $98.80 per hundredweight, making our example calf worth $582.92 or $78.82 more than before. If we add a modest $3 premium for his being preconditioned, that brings his market price to $101.82 or $600.62. This preconditioned calf is worth $96.52 more than the freshly weaned calf. There are expenses to preconditioning, so all this is not pure profit. I typically tell people that the premium alone should pay for the costs; the profit comes from the increased weight. In these times, it is important to explore every opportunity to increase revenue. Additionally, it is important to follow an established preconditioning program. Buyers are looking for these calves, but are not as willing to pay any premium for cattle that do not have any documentation on what has been done to them. It would also be beneficial to work with your normal market, and place your cattle in a special preconditioned sale as these tend to draw the greatest number of buyers who are looking for preconditioned cattle. Preconditioning your calves should strongly be considered for all beef producers. For more information on preconditioning, please contact your local county extension office.

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