Buy or Lease a Bull: What's Best for Your Operation?

With the turn of the calendar year, bull sale season hits the ground running across cattle country. But, be sure to consider all the options when it comes to attaining a bull.

Diving into a bull catalog, choosing “the best” bull for a herd might look different from what your neighbor or fellow cattle raiser does. From data in expected progeny differences (EPD) to the structure and frame of the animal, genetics of a sire are important to evaluate before attaining a bull to be used in the next breeding season.

Buying Vs. Leasing

When attaining a bull for breeding season, there are options. Traditionally, many ranches buy their bulls to be used for multiple breeding seasons. However, the option to lease bulls is also available. Experts at Kansas State University’s (KSU) Beef Cattle Institute share some of the pros and cons of each to help you determine which might be best for your operation.

Buying Bulls

There may be a reason why buying bulls is the more standard practice in ranching. Specifically, for large herds needing several bulls each season, owning the bulls is oftentimes the more economical option. The ability to use a bull for multiple breeding seasons reduces the cost per pregnancy. For instance, a bull that costs $5,000 and is used for five breeding seasons can be considered to cost the operation $1,000 per year.

However, there are disadvantages. Genetics can be limited in a few ways. Buying bulls takes capital, and if the capital is not there, lesser quality bulls might be the only animals that fall within budget, notes Phillip Lancaster, clinical assistant professor at the Beef Cattle Institute. Additionally, by owning the bull and saving replacement heifers within the operation, careful management must be used to ensure that a bull does not breed his daughter in future years.

Leasing Bulls

For smaller herds, only needing one or two bulls each season, leasing may be an economical and genetic-savvy option, says Bob Larson, DVM, professor of production medicine at KSU. Consider the cost of feed for the bull throughout the course of a year. While many bulls are active for 60 to 90 days each year, how much feed would be saved by not having a bull on the place for the other 275-plus days of the year? Could this allow the operation to breed an extra female or two?

Additionally, by leasing bulls, genetics can be improved on the operation. It may allow the operation to attain higher performing, genetically desirable sires at a much lower cost, Lancaster adds. For instance, a bull that would sell for $10,000 at a sale may be available to use for $1,500 on your ranch for a season. Also, since the bull will likely only be used on the ranch for one year, saving replacements will not be a management consideration down the line. 

However, leasing bulls does come with some challenges. If the bull has been used in other breeding seasons on one or more ranches, it’s extremely important to consider the biosecurity of your herd, Larson advises. Bulls that spend time on multiple ranches may pick up diseases that could be spread, such as trichomoniasis.

Operations needing a young, one- or two-year-old bull to breed upcoming first-calf heifers could capitalize on its advantages in genetics, economics and biosecurity (due to it being the bull’s first breeding season). 
It’s clear that there are both advantages and disadvantages to both owning and leasing bulls. However, there is another option.

Artificial Insemination

Without a doubt, artificial insemination (AI) is a more labor-intensive breeding strategy. Yet, it’s another option to consider, Lancaster adds.

Comparable to leasing, AI allows producers to attain high-quality genetics at a fraction of the price, Lancaster says. Additionally, the risk of biosecurity found in leasing is not an issue with AI, and it requires no feed costs compared to having a bull on the place. The use of a sire’s semen can also be changed or adjusted each year to avoid the breeding of a sire’s daughter.

However, as buying and leasing bulls have their disadvantages, so does AI. When it comes to labor, some ranches simply do not have the labor resources to efficiently and effectively use AI in their herd. Whether using controlled intravaginal drug release (CIDR) or heat detection, AI may require more time, labor and management resources than are available on a working ranch. AI also requires knowledge to administer properly, which may require an AI technician or veterinarian to complete. Lastly, AI is not always 100% successful in pregnancy rates, therefore, the ranch will likely still need to own a clean-up bull to breed any remaining, open females.

Making a Decision

There is not a one-size-fits-all solution. One or a combination of these options may provide the best return for an operation. Here’s some key considerations:

1.    Calculate the cost of a bull per female pregnancy. For instance, buying a bull for $5,000 that results in approximately 75 pregnancies (15 pregnancies over 5 breeding seasons) equals approximately $67 per pregnancy. A leased bull for $1,500 breeding 15 females equals $100 per pregnancy. A straw of semen can also be considered and can range in price. 

2.    Calculate the cost of feed and how much feed can be saved or used elsewhere by not owning a bull all year or during the breeding season.

3.    Consider the opportunity cost in genetic potential. How much are better, higher performing genetics worth to your operation? What is the operation's end goal? For instance, will the operation benefit from higher weaning weights or higher carcass quality?

4.    Consider the health of your herd and what biosecurity measures exist to ensure your herd remains healthy.

Before buying or leasing a bull or ordering semen, take the time to research, evaluate and determine what will be most beneficial for the operation now and in the years to come.