Maiden Heifer showing up incalf

Damo810

Hi folks,

Bought a batch of heifers off a dealer around 7 months ago, just noticed yesterday that one of them is fairly big and starting to bag a bit.

Where do I stand in relation to this? Is he obligated to take her back? Is there a rule of thumb for feed costs? Will I be wasting my time trying to chase him down Or have I any leg to stand on.

Thanks.

TooOldBoots

Usually they should take her back for the original price plus €3/day feed costs. The thing is for you now is the cost of the heifer 7 months ago might not value her today as from memory cattle prices were on the floor 7 months ago.
From my own experience its often not worth the hassle of chasing the mart and the farmer.

Lady Haywire

TooOldBoots wrote: »

Usually they should take her back for the original price plus €3/day feed costs. The thing is for you now is the cost of the heifer 7 months ago might not value her today as from memory cattle prices were on the floor 7 months ago.
From my own experience its often not worth the hassle of chasing the mart and the farmer.

Varies depending on what's being fed. A high ration diet v.s. outwintering with a bit of silage would have massive difference in costs.
You say you got her off a dealer, if so he may have only got her from someone else before passing her on to you. Bit of an annoyance then as it could go back to the original farmer in that case.

You could go back to the dealer & see what he says, he might take her & chance her calving himself. He could also sell on as an incalf heifer & let someone else take a chance on her. You have that option either, or you can put her on a diet & try her yourself.
Nothing set in stone regarding these cases, depends on how annoyed you are & how easy (or difficult) the original seller is to deal with :pac::D

But you definitely have a leg to stand on, once she was incalf before coming to you, she wasn't a maiden & therefore not sold as one.

Anto_Meath

Seen a case recently where it is costing the original farmer almost €2,000 between vets bills, feed bills at €3 a day plus the cost of the heifer back last August. It has turned into a right mess, original farmer couldn't take her back as his herd is currently restricted.
You bought a maiden heifer and she is now in-calf therefore you have a right to be compensated.
The following is what I have seen happen around here.
Send heifer back get a full refund plus €3 a day for feed plus all other expenses such as transportation, mart fees, dosing and vets fees.
Swap the heifer for one that would match her comrades now.
You keep the heifer and take a chance on calving her but you get a guarantee that the seller will cover any vets fees and possibly the loss of the heifer if goes wrong.

TooOldBoots

I agree, costs can vary. From my own experience the mart usually comes up with this figure. I've gone through the system twice now.

For me it wasn't the price or costs that was the problem, it was having to deal with the farmers and mart in question. One farmer insisted on coming to my place a few times to "see" the heifer, instead it ended up quite confrontational, I had to threaten to call the Gaurds on him.

Sheep breeder

Have being down this road a couple of years ago with three heifers with the neighbours bull breaking in to them on out farm, heifers returned to the mart and resold as incalf and rate per day worked by the mart at a Euro/ day and after sale and everything we were up 20 euros. The thing is if both parties and mart talk it can be fixed.

Damo810

Thanks folks!

I called him up and we came to a deal, tried to be fair enough with him, and he's meant to be taking her back tomorrow night.

Anto_Meath

That's good, most dealers would be willing to take a heifer back as for a start they will be passing her back to the lad they bought her off and secondly they would be hoping you would be buying off him again.