Good Afternoon,
As someone who has tried playing the big stock market as mentioned in Profitable Homesteading: How to Thrive in a TEOTWAWKI World, by Dusty, I’d like to add the following caution. Don’t quit your full time job if you want to try this option. For the past year or more we in Central Texas have been in exceptional drought conditions. I have a small herd of Dexter cows. Due to the lack of grass in my sixty plus acres of native pastures I have been forced to rely on 1000 lb bales of hay and local co-op 20% protein pasture cubes. My five adult Dexter cows and three unweaned calves consume a $150 bale of hay in approximately a week ( roughly $21/day). The hay is supplemented with two sacks of cubes a day at a cost of $17 pr day. Due to the drought we have been feeding for almost a year in an effort to sustain our small herd of breeding stock until the rains return. Please note that this one year cost of $13,870 for feed alone requires that we have an outside source of income to maintain our homestead lifestyle.
Just as you gamble putting your money into Wall Street stocks, you gamble with large livestock. While your gains can be great – your losses unless you are willing to sell your stock at the local sale barn as soon as you run into trouble can be catastrophic. If you are trying to build a sustainable herd of large stock you have to have sufficient capital or a well paying full time job to see you through the hard times.
Sincerely, – Pete in Central Texas