Every villager at least once thought about starting a livestock business. But many do not even want to try to create their own small farm, they are afraid that the business will be unprofitable. Can bulls be turned into a profitable business? Yes, if you follow the advice of experienced farmers.
Buying calves
If the farmer is already selling milk from his cows, then his own calves must be fed for meat. Every year, Burenka brings offspring that can be raised. Starting a business with your own calves is profitable because you do not need to buy them.
But not all budding farmers have personal cows. How to raise gobies for meat in this case? Young growth can be bought. Here, inexperienced farmers often make the main mistake - they get the first cheap calves that come across. Often young growth, which is given for nothing, is sick with something or just very weak. Milk bulls are inexpensively sold; they gain weight poorly even with intensive feeding.
Sometimes unscrupulous farmers sell to the population weakened calves, which soon die. Also, the seller can cheat with the age of the animal and its breed. For each bull, the buyer must provide a veterinary certificate. Before acquiring, you need to examine the calf: it must be active and clean.
Where will the bulls live?
The room for keeping calves can be both brick and wooden. The main thing is that there should be no drafts and dampness in it. Before construction, you need to determine the number of goals. In the barn, places should be allocated for the storage of feed and equipment. An area of 6 square meters is enough for one bull.
If the farmer plans to keep animals in the barn in the winter, then you need to think about a heating system. The cowshed must be equipped with an exhaust hood, calves growing in rooms with an influx of fresh air are usually healthier.
On top of the barn can be arranged hayloft. This will make the room warmer, and it will be more convenient for workers to get dry grass to feed the calves. Indoors, you need to make windows for natural lighting, this will help save on electricity. Near the cowshed there should be pastures for walking young animals.
Grooming
Proper calf maintenance is half the battle. Never gobies who live in an old damp cowhouse will give tangible gains. The room in which animals are kept should always be dry. Therefore, it is recommended to clean the floor of manure at least 3 times a day. If due to employment the farmer does not have time to do the cleaning so often, then the procedure can be more rare, but very thorough.
How to raise gobies correctly? Without good health, there are no high gains, so a veterinarian should regularly inspect cattle. If an epidemic of an infectious disease begins on the farm, the farmer will lose profit. Gobies must be vaccinated and treated against parasites.
It is impossible to expel calves for grazing on wet grass, this threatens to stop the scar. Gobies can be kept on a leash in corrals, in which case they are given food several times a day. If calves are allowed to walk, then in hot weather they need to be run under a canopy.
For a tribe or for meat?
Before raising bulls, the farmer must decide what he will do it for. If the calves are later planned to be handed over for meat, then it is better to give preference to breeds that easily gain impressive body weight:
- Simmental
- Herefords
- limousines.
These bulls will spend less time on fattening and will better absorb feed. Meat breeds are more expensive, but their live weight will be higher with the same feeding than dairy. Such animals are less whimsical and have a great appetite.
Is it profitable to raise bull-calves per tribe? Yes, but only if there is a shortage of good productive animals in the area. Then, to the bull, which transfers its daughters high milkiness, there will be a line for coverage. But now artificial insemination is mainly used on farms, so the producer is unlikely to be in demand. Therefore, in the villages, calves are usually kept for meat.
Breeding bull diet
The nutrition of animals raised for reproduction has its own characteristics. How to raise bulls on the tribe? Manufacturers need good care and a balanced diet. If the owner cannot pick up the feed on his own, then he needs to consult a livestock specialist at the nearest farm. You can also discuss the calf's diet with a practicing veterinarian.
For a small bull calf, the ratio of protein to carbohydrates is ideal 1 to 4, in older animals - 1 to 5. Cattle should not be deficient in vitamins and minerals. It will be good if the farmer adds a quality premix to the diet. Especially for future manufacturers, a sufficient amount of vitamins E and A is important.
Fattening the calf for meat
In order for the bull to gain good weight, its digestive tract must absorb a large amount of nutrients. A healthy calf with a developed stomach will quickly reach sufficient body weight than its painful neighbor. When developing a diet, the owner should take into account that animals under the age of 4 months should receive approximately 2 kg of grain per 100 kg of weight daily.
The nutrition of a young bull is 25% protein, 17% fat, the rest is carbohydrates. In the diet of the calf for fattening, a quality premix is necessarily introduced. If the bulls were born in spring or summer, then after a few days they begin to release them on the pasture with their mothers. There, the kids get both fresh grass and milk at the same time. If the farm uses a safe method of keeping young animals, then gobies are more likely to be accustomed to fodder for adult animals. Calves kept in individual pens gain weight faster than those who go to pasture.
Does castration affect the weight of a bull?
Males, growing up, begin to create problems for the owner. They can show aggression to people, carry a barn, turn over feeders. To pacify a grown bull, castration is used. This procedure violates the sexual function in males, they become more docile and calm.
Farmers noticed that castrated bulls absorb more food, but they gain muscle mass worse than full-fledged individuals. However, their meat is valued more, since it does not have a specific smell and is more delicate in taste. Castrated gobies gain fat better than muscle mass. In order to get a good carcass, farmers carry out an operation on animals after 1 year. The dry season is most favorable for castration. After the operation, the owner must monitor the cleanliness of the litter of the bull, it must always be dry to avoid infection.
Keeping a bull under a cow
On large farms, calves are immediately taken from their mothers after birth and are no longer found. In the villages, calves are often left under the nurse's cow. Burenka is able to raise not only her calf, but also a few other strangers. Usually, 2-3 calves are left with a cow. They go with a nurse for several months, and then they are separated.
This method of growing bulls at home is very convenient for the farmer. The owner does not need to spend time feeding the young, and the calves are always full and satisfied. Gobies with this method of growing drink plenty of milk and quickly learn to eat adult food, looking at the cow. Closer to the time the babies are weaned from the mother, the farmer must make sure that they eat enough roughage. Separating calves that only drink milk from a cow is undesirable. How to raise gobies for a farmer who has little free time? In this case, the method in which the calves are kept with a cow nurse is ideally suited.
Cold growing method
How to grow a bull for meat to a farmer who does not have free premises? The cold method of keeping young animals is suitable. Gobies, several days after birth, are planted in individual houses that are in the fresh air. The only condition is that the calves must be healthy. If the animal does not eat well or vilifies, then the cold method of rearing is not suitable for him at this stage.
On the third day after birth, healthy calves are transferred to individual houses with a platform for walking. If the goby was born in winter, then it is kept on a deep litter. The advantage of the cold content method is the absence of ammonia vapors, which are harmful to the calf's lungs. How to grow a bull-calf healthy? Living outdoors, the calf is tempered, its protective functions work at full capacity. According to farmers, in gobies grown by the cold method, disease resistance is 10% higher. Thanks to this technology, the owner receives healthy calves, the maintenance of which is much cheaper.
The use of medicines
How to grow gobies for meat with maximum benefit? There are veterinary drugs that will speed up muscle gain and help the calf cope with diseases. During fattening, 2 groups of medicines are used:
- Medicines that increase the immunity of the bull and allow it to develop faster.
- Drugs that accelerate muscle growth, without the cost of internal resources of the body.
Some farmers give antibiotics, for example, Penicillin or Oxytetracycline, as a preventive measure. The use of these drugs has a beneficial effect on the digestive system: the intestines are lengthened, all sections of the stomach increase. Even the weight of the heart and other internal organs in these calves is greater than those who were not given antibiotics. But before starting the use of these drugs, the farmer should consult a veterinarian, their independent appointment is unacceptable.
Is it possible to make money on gobies?
The animal feed business is popular in the countryside. Is it profitable to grow gobies for meat? Yes, but subject to certain conditions. If the farmer plans to chase calves for grazing, then he must take care of the availability of meadows. It is undesirable to build a farm on wetlands or in the mountains. If the pasture is far away, then this will negatively affect the gain.
Growing gobies for meat is beneficial if there are at least 10 animals. The farmer will not feel the profit after the delivery of one animal. But proper calf rearing is a long process. It would be better if the farmer buys his own agricultural machinery. This will make it possible to harvest feed for the winter.
Gobies can be cut on their own or surrendered to resellers. The first option will bring more profit than the second. If the breeder decided to feed the gobies, then he must understand that he will receive the first money no earlier than in a year.
Tips from experienced farmers
How to raise gobies at home and make a profit? First of all, you need to responsibly approach the choice of young animals. From sick calves, the farmer will receive only losses. When examining animals, you need to pay attention to their appearance. If the calves have dull hair, a large swollen stomach or contamination from liquid feces in the anus, then you can not buy them. Healthy gobies have clear eyes, a clean nose, and a neat appearance. Calves should be active and with good appetite. You should never buy sick animals out of pity, they are likely to die.
If the farmer plans to grow bull-calves for sale, then he must competently balance his diet. It is important for calves to get everything they need, including premixes. If the farmer cannot make the correct diet on his own, then he needs to consult a veterinarian or a livestock specialist.