You should create and have a business plan. The business plan should define your goals, like how much money you are willing to invest in your business and how much profits you expect to make in this venture. The business plan should also define your niche market and cattle industry.
It should also possess information on the livestock farmers or places you will be buying your cattle from and the places or markets you will be selling your cattle to. Most likely your target market will be in your local area so you have to store their business contacts as well.
If you will be looking for financing for your business venture, investors and lenders will require you to present to them your business plan before they can agree to finance your business. The business plan you give to them should also include the type of business ownership, marketing plan, type of business ownership, mission statement, financial management analysis, responsibilities of key personnel and duties.
Second Step
Choose the right type of cattle. When you get in the business of buying and selling of cattle it is essential that you buy the right type of cattle. In order to sell high quality cattle you should buy high quality cattle. Certain types of cattle tend to fetch a higher price at the market because of their large physiology thus producing high quality meat such as the Angus.
But you should note that even if a particular breed is of good quality that doesn’t automatically mean they are of high quality. If you want to check if a cow is of high quality then consider it’s yearly milk producing rate, that’s if it’s a dairy cow. Most cattle sellers will keep a record of the amount of milk their cattle produce plus their weight. Cows can produce different quantity of milk per year, some can only produce 200 to 300 gallons per year whilst others can produce as much as 500 to 1,000 gallons per annum.
Third Step
You should analyze the costs. While you are searching for profitable buyers you may need a place to rent when keeping your cattle. Other costs that you may have to cover include keeping your cattle healthy, paying employees that you may have hired to manage your livestock, and the costs of providing food and other expenses that deal with cattle management.
As an example, you may need to provide your livestock with some extra nutrients; you will have to cover the costs of supplements such as zinc, vitamin E, selenium and copper. These nutrients play a role in boosting your livestock’s resistance to common diseases such as mastitis which can cause inflammation of the mammary gland.
Forth Step
For your pasture to produce a variety of grains and grasses you should try to keep it fertile. Abundant pastures and luxuriant soils help in raising healthy cattle which in return will give you more profits. Your livestock should be monitored time to time and have a qualified proficient veterinarian to come check on them for immunization needs.
If your livestock farm is situated in an area where there’s very cold winter months, if possible you should temporally move them to a warmer site. The cattle should also be provided with good shelter so they can take cover when it gets very hot. Cattle shelter can be cheap and won’t cost you a lot in building one.
Fifth Step
When it’s spring time a lot of farmers hire additional farm workers. The reason being cattle usually give birth at this time of the year so you will need that extra hand to help you out. This is also the time of the year where you can sell your calves and make extra money.
Sixth Step
Be well prepared for trading herds and auctions. To get good returns in profits, you should keep an eye on the current market prices and compare it to your prices, so to make an estimate of how much money you can get from selling your livestock.
At auctions the prices may be different from market prices since buyers and sellers will be working down on a mutual price agreement. So as a farmer you have to be knowledgeable about how to price your cattle when bargaining. One other great way of making some money when selling your cattle at auctions, is to milk them and sell the milk to other farmers. This is also a great way to have them taste the quality of your cattle’s milk.
Extra Tip
To help you save on veterinary costs you should buy some basic equipment for vaccines such as sprays and other procedures like dehorning and castration. Educated yourself on cattle breeding, pregnancy detection, infusion pipes and ovulation.
A Warning
Livestock rustling and theft has always been and is still a major problem when it comes to cattle farming. You as a farmer can try to prevent this by securing the perimeter of the farm, branding the herd, frequently counting the herd and being involved in local crime-watch activities meant for livestock farmers.
