Raising Family Beef in Colville WA Area?

[Filson]

Hello all!

I will apologize in advance for what will obviously be some pretty newbie questions. I am both new to raising any livestock as well as the Colville WA area (originally from Western WA). I have to say I'm also a bit hesitant to even ask... I've read a number of different forum posts on multiple websites on grass-fed vs corn and all that, and it seems to be very personal preference (that sometimes gets a bit heated), so below I'll try to simply state the direction I'm interested in going first, and hope I don't come across as being rude or close-minded.

I would like to raise beef for my family (5 of us, someday perhaps another little one, but we'll see We are in the process of buying a hobby-sized farm (40 acres) in the greater Colville area and we will have roughly 20-25 acres of field.

The bulk of the information I've been able to find online is about lowering food costs by raising beef as cheaply as possible for the family. My interests on the other hand, is much more about raising organic beef, that is very high in marbling (better than what I'll be able to find anywhere locally). Both my wife and I like high marbling, and are very avid home-chefs that don't want "beef for the sake of filling the freezer". We want a mouth-watering treat. I've read a lot of 100% grass fed vs corn finished stuff online and I'm wanting to try corn-finished a few times first.

So firstly, my thoughts are that I would probably be able to supply our family with enough beef per year off just 1 steer if we went with a breed like Angus, Highland or Galloway. I've seen a lot of Angus in the area, but with the harsher climate up here I thought I would of seen more Highlands and Galloways that are known for their foraging ability and comfort in the snow, but I haven't. I could use some help on selecting a breed to go with.

While I think we'll only be slaughtering 1 steer a year, and have tried to think of a way to rotate when to pick up a new young steer and when to butcher the oldest one. If we butchered at 2 years old, then there would only be two in the field, depending on when the times are right, maybe only 1 for a short while, maybe 3). And so I think butchering at 3 years would be better to keep the numbers bouncing around 2-4. I've read that they can get lonely if alone, so I feel like the 2-4 route would be better for their well-being.

If we went with that plan, how much land would we need to allow summer/fall grazing/foraging? I know about needing to do some cross fences to rotate the cattle around to prevent to keep the fields healthy, but how much would I need to fence in ideally? The real estate agent we have, has never raised beef but said "about 10 acres for a few beef".

I've tried to calculate out how much corn feed I could grow in this area for finishing, but it really depends on how many bushels an acre I could expect. It sounds like 100-120 bushels/acre is average throughout the US, but with a shorter growing season and probably not the best soil quality, I'm assuming a fair bit less around here, but...? With a quick back-of-the-envelope calculation I was assuming around 2 acres of feeder corn would meet our needs. Thoughts?

Also... for feeding throughout the winter, what are my options? Raising hay vs purchasing some? Other ideas? I'm pretty in the dark here.

Anyway... as the old saying goes, I feel like I don't even know, what I don't know. So I could really use some basic guidance to help get started, the above ideas I have are based on the amount of information I've gained from reading online and reading 'Getting Started with Beef & Dairy Cattle' by Heather Smith Thomas which didn't seem very helpful to my situation.

As I said earlier, I hope I haven't come across as blunt or close-minded and would love to hear from you more experienced folks! Help me get underway!

[CIW]

Whether you get 1 or 20 animals you will need some kind of corrals to work the animals with.
Instead of looking for a pure bred animal you will likely be further ahead with a crossbred.
Hereford has some good qualities such as the marbling that you spoke of. When they are crossed with either red of black angus you can get qualities like resistance to pinkeye, smaller calves and vigorous growth rates . If you go with a limousine x you lengthen the body and add to the yield percentage. Charolais will give you structure/bone to build a larger animal on.
Will ad more later.

[Filson]

Originally Posted by CIW

Whether you get 1 or 20 animals you will need some kind of corrals to work the animals with.
Instead of looking for a pure bred animal you will likely be further ahead with a crossbred.
Hereford has some good qualities such as the marbling that you spoke of. When they are crossed with either red of black angus you can get qualities like resistance to pinkeye, smaller calves and vigorous growth rates . If you go with a limousine x you lengthen the body and add to the yield percentage. Charolais will give you structure/bone to build a larger animal on.
Will ad more later.

Thanks for the reply! Man, you can really "customize" what you have, can't you?

I'm assuming I'm asking a huge question here when I ask... How hard would it be to keep bull(s) and cross some breeds myself? I ask because of how rural we are, it'd likely be pretty difficult in finding very many breeds in the area to work with.

[Bret]

Go for it. Sometimes if good to not know things. Start little. Fence first to get going. Expand fence to keep going. Add water, salt, minerals from your farm store. Have some hay lined up if you need it. A few bales at the ready can buy thinking time if and when you need them.

Shade is good to escape extreme heat. Windbreaks are good for extreme cold and wind. If you knew everything that you needed to know all at one time, you may never start anything. Have fun. Add things that make it easy on you. Work towards a simple corral and handling chute. It will come handy for lots of things. You will be successful with grass fed or grain fed. You will learn what you like best.

[Molly Mckee]

One thing to take into consideration in this area is that the rainfall is minimal mid to late summer. There is a short growing season, and there are micro climates, mostly depending on elevation. Field corn is not grown much here because it doesn't get enough moisture, and irrigation is not done like it is in central Washington. You probably won't get a corn crop if you plant and there aren't many corn pickers around. I would plan on buying corn to finish the cattle. IMO, finishing on corn will give you better marbling, but I don't think you can count on growing it in that area.

One of the big drawbacks to Highland or Galloway cattle is that you will be docked if you sell them at auction. Horned cattle generally bring less than Angus or Angus cross, so look around at what the other people in the area are raising and talk to them about why. There are some good ranchers in the area, most have Angus or Angus crosses.

I would go slowly and not try to do everything at once or the work load may overwhelm you.

[Filson]

Thanks for the advise everyone. I *do* have the tendency to over-think things, and it sounds like I just need to start doing it.

I am a little worried about the moisture in the area (our place is around Rice). There is a natural spring on the property with a holding tank, how much that will help, I'm not sure yet... I'll find out this summer.

I should probably just start with Angus, as it is the most abundant around here. It'll be easier to get, and there will be people experienced with the breed in the area if I have questions.

[Molly Mckee]

Be sure that you have first water rights if you have any type of natural water that you are planning on using. Washington has some strict water rights laws and some that don't make much sense. We have had several places change hands near us and the new owner tried to claim the water rights he thought he bought with his property. The water was not on the new owners property, had been piped years ago and had not been used for over twenty years. That one ended up in court, he had two years to get the water running legally but could not afford it so he lost it. Be sure you know exactally what you are buying and be sure it is in writing and legal. Defending water rights is very expensive and time consuming.

[DJ in WA]

I live near Spokane, and Colville winters aren't that hard, compared to say, Montana where my brother lives. He said it was -31F this morning, worse with wind chill. His angus do fine there.

Anyway, Colville gets hot in summer, and cattle have more problem with heat than cold because their rumen produces a lot of heat. Black and long-haired cattle have the most trouble with heat. I would avoid Galloway and Highlands for that reason.

Red angus would be more available while avoiding black. I also like British Whites and Murray Greys, but they're less common.

As Molly said, not a lot of moisture in late summer, so if you can't irrigate, could really put a limit on pasture. Some spots can be naturally sub-irrigated, but we can't tell from the internet how your land looks.

I agree with Bret that it's good to try something, and you will learn quick. I have done pretty much everything wrong, but have enjoyed all of it. Build a corral or pen with panels, go get a few steer calves and keep them in the pen for a week or so until they decide they are home. Then let them into a larger area, hopefully with good fences.

Priority one for me is now docility. Ideally you could pick out some less flighty animals from a herd, though it can be hard to judge when there is a stranger among them riling them up. Everything is easier when you have gentler animals.

[Filson]

Thanks for the help you two.

I'll need to figure out water rights for sure, but there is an existing "spring" (must be underground because it's on a hillside with no little valley like you'd expect. It also has an underground storage tank as part of the system. When I seen it, it looks just like a little drilled well to me, but they call it a spring and I'm not a well expert, so hey. Anyway, I'll need to inquire some more about it.

They've raised sheep/goats on the property before, and have a very large (over an acre) garden. *shrugs* lol

[Filson]

Well, we're all moved into our new place. We have right about 22-23 acres of pasture, with 60 acres total. We've fixed a little of the fencing, but still have the majority of the work ahead of us.

The field was really over-grazed and burnt out when we first moved in. Today, the grass, weeds and everything else reaches up to above the knee. I was surprised stuff grows that fast around here, considering how little water this area gets.

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to everyone who's given me advice on here, and give you all a bit of an update. =) That's our house and shop down at the bottom of the pasture before the line of trees.

[G. Seddon]

That is still one of the most scenic properties I think I've ever seen. I hope you'll keep on posting photos, but not too many, or I might have to change coasts!

I think I'd have to mow everything, only because I'm a fanatic when it comes to mowing as it keeps the weeds down and I don't think it hurts anything. I might be wrong, but I do it anyway.

[Filson]

Originally Posted by G. Seddon

That is still one of the most scenic properties I think I've ever seen. I hope you'll keep on posting photos, but not too many, or I might have to change coasts!

I think I'd have to mow everything, only because I'm a fanatic when it comes to mowing as it keeps the weeds down and I don't think it hurts anything. I might be wrong, but I do it anyway.

Thank you, G Seddon!

Honestly, I don't know much about how to take care of a pasture yet. Trial and error will educate me over time though I suppose. One of the big things everyone here was telling me, was how over-grazed and burnt out my field looked earlier this spring, so I've been happy (perhaps wrongly lol) to see the field actually growing. I do not yet have a tractor to do any mowing anyway (buying the additional 20 acres and a new SUV has us pretty tight right now).

I've thought about offering a neighbor to mow it and keep all the hay he gets from it. I have no idea if that would be a worthwhile deal for him or not though.

[Filson]

I'm also trying to think of what I could do to keep water available in the field for cattle. I've thought about storing water from when we get snow and rain run-off. I've thought about having a well drilled with a windmill set up towards the top of the hill, and have piping deliver the water to a water tub of some kind towards the top of the hill. I could let the excess water gravity feed down to a couple other water tubs further down the hill to use as part of our rotation setup.

Just ideas, and like you all have said to me, trial and error will tell me what works best.

[G. Seddon]

Filson, have you spoken to these folks? They might have some helpful ideas you can use:

http://www.co.stevens.wa.us/cons_district/

[Filson]

Originally Posted by G. Seddon

Filson, have you spoken to these folks? They might have some helpful ideas you can use:

http://www.co.stevens.wa.us/cons_district/

I have not, thank you!