B3o*Lancaster Farming, Saturday, March 7,1992 [ F A R MANAGEMENT DAIRY HEIFERS Luther B. Smith Multicounty Farm Management Agent A common question that is asked by dairy farmers is should I raise my own replacements or pay someone else do it for me? The only way to accurately answer that question is to compare what it costs you to raise a heifer to calving vs. having to pay someone else to do it. Don’t only consider the direct (variable) costs but also keep in mind the fixed costs and the oppor tunity costs. Opportunity costs are what it costs someone to do one thing as opposed to another. If you are considering having someone else raise your heifers on a contract basis, or you might be thinking of raising heifers for other farmers, the following example might be of some help. The source of some of my infor mation is the Penn State Farm Management Handbook, DHIA averages, and personal estimates. The three farm situations are the same farm. If an item, such as total debt load, is not mentioned it was the same for all three situations. The primary question to be addressed is “I need more cash flow. Should I expand the herd with or without heifers?” We focused on raising our own heifers vs. having someone else do it. So in our example, the heifers return to the farm they were bom on and V\ (£* For All