Another Example of a Cooperator Herd System

Breeder A loans a bull to Breeder B and conditions a buy-back option on a set number of animals. Breeder B gets paid for the cost of the females he uses in addition to the value of the animals produced. He also gets to keep a set number of offspring from that calf crop. Breeder A gets the benefit of having his bulls mate with genetics different from his operation, and does not have to worry about keeping all of the progeny, only the set number of animals of his choice. Also, he does not have to pay for all of the animals, only the animals he elects to buy back. In this situation he may want to buck everything and select the ones he wants. Both producers benefit from this in different ways. There will always be cost and expense involved, but the goal of cooperator herds is to maximize benefit for both parties involved.

This situation may not be the most ideal for everyone out there. However, this has been successfully used in many different scenarios and in many different industries. You shouldn’t jump into anything blindly, and as mentioned before, make sure both parties have a solid understanding of the agreement. This can be a great way to increase the diversity of genetics in the industry, it can incorporate many new breeders into the industry and it can maximize the land and animal resources available to you.