Bruce
Herd Master
Definitely figure out if there IS a spring market, what those people are looking for and what they are willing to pay. Nothing positive about trying to sell something no one wants to buy.
I agree with the economic advice. You NEED to know what it is going to cost BEFORE taking out a loan. That is best done with your current flock as mentioned. Put off the "winter feedlot" thing until next year so you can (if it looks reasonable) go in with a decent idea of how much money you can make. Work up what a loan would cost as if your current flock were purchased under the "winter feedlot" plan. The interest you would pay has to be added into your current flock's "cost" to get a complete financial picture. I'm not sure how you come up with equivalent feed costs though since a quantity of lambs won't eat the same amount per animal as your adults. Perhaps there is someone around who does "winter feedlot" lambs that can help with that.
Don't forget to pay yourself on paper for the work needed, including the time spent on paperwork! If it is a ton of work and you make little, you have to really love it because you can make more money working 40 hours a week for someone else.
I agree with the economic advice. You NEED to know what it is going to cost BEFORE taking out a loan. That is best done with your current flock as mentioned. Put off the "winter feedlot" thing until next year so you can (if it looks reasonable) go in with a decent idea of how much money you can make. Work up what a loan would cost as if your current flock were purchased under the "winter feedlot" plan. The interest you would pay has to be added into your current flock's "cost" to get a complete financial picture. I'm not sure how you come up with equivalent feed costs though since a quantity of lambs won't eat the same amount per animal as your adults. Perhaps there is someone around who does "winter feedlot" lambs that can help with that.
Don't forget to pay yourself on paper for the work needed, including the time spent on paperwork! If it is a ton of work and you make little, you have to really love it because you can make more money working 40 hours a week for someone else.
