September Profit Picture 2020 by American Gelbvieh Association

THE

PROFITPICTURE THE

SEPTEMBER 2020

VALUE OF

VERSATILITY

2020 NWSS GRAND CHAMPION BALANCER BULL & FUTURITY CHAMPION

TJB REBEL YELL 804F

TJB DOMINIC 844F | 2019 LOT 23 1ST GELBVIEH BULL EVER SELECTED BY ST GENETICS

We were humbled last season to have produced these two outstanding individuals that were so greatly received by our fellow breeders and industry leaders. TJB Gelbvieh maintains a strict fall calving schedule, and our females must comply to our standards. We believe fertility is the most economic influencer in the beef industry and that our Gelbvieh & Balancer cattle do it better than any other. Consider utilizing our bulls in your herd to incorporate our “Maternal Magic”. tjbgelbvieh.com TODD, ALISA, & KATELYN BICKETT, BO & KELSIE WILSON 455 BROTHERTON LANE • CHICKAMAUGA, GA 30707 • (423) 667-3799 RUSS PRINC, RANCH MANAGER • (423) 802-8347

30th Annual Judd Ranch

Gelbvieh, Balancer® & Red Angus

Cow Power Female Sale

Saturday, October 10 • 12:00 noon • Pomona, Kansas One hour SW of Kansas City • Free Trucking in U.S. on Purchases of $20,000+

125 Homozygous Polled Females Sell

There are cows; then there are females like this beautiful Judd Ranch first calf heifer with her powerhouse bull calf. The difference: fertility, maternal ability, performance, eye appeal, teat and udder structure. The list goes on and on, including Judd Ranch being honored 21 of the past 23 years (1998-2020) as the breeds #1 Dam of Merit/Dam of Distinction breeder and owner. Plus cows that produced 298 bulls that sold in our March bull sale, with an 81 lb. average birth weight/834 lb. actual weaning weight off dams! Please join us on Saturday, Oct. 10, at the Ranch when 100–plus Judd Ranch (spring & fall/bred & open) females will be sold at auction. A vast majority of the offering will be homozygous polled and every female is Judd Ranch born and raised. Call Cattlemen’s Connection Toll-Free 1-800-743-0026 for your sale catalog. Catalog online at www.juddranch.com

Judd Ranch Inc.

Dave & Cindy Judd Nick, Ginger Judd & Family Brent, Ashley Judd & Family 423 Hwy. K-68 • Pomona, KS 66076 785/ 566-8371 or 785/566-3770

Visit our web site: www.juddranch.com

“The Complete Package” • Calving Ease • Growth • Carcass • Fertility

CONTENTS FEATURES Gelbvieh and Balancer® Influence Offers Versatility Throughout the Beef Production System................. 6 Cattle producers from across the country have utilized Gelbvieh and Balancer® genetics for years because of the breed’s innate ability to excel in maternal traits and superior growth. By Rebecca Mettler Over the Fence with Dan and Carol Sharp, Sharp Ranch, Boise City, Oklahoma................................. 12 Learn how Gelbvieh and Balancer influence has helped this operation in the Oklahoma Panhandle improve performance of calves both on the ranch and beyond. By Tom Strahm Crossbreeding that Counts............................................................................................................... 38 Crossbreeding provides several benefits including heavier weaning weights, higher fertility, and greater lifetime profitability through heterosis, or hybrid vigor. By Malerie Strahm Is More Always Better?................................................................................................................... 44 Learn the effects of selecting genetics for increased milk production and how that impacts an operation’s bottom line. By Rebecca Mettler

NEWS Updates to IGS Multi-Breed Evaluation............................................................................................. 16 AGA’s 50th Anniversary Celebration............................................................................................... 24 AGA Members Recognized at Beef Improvement Federation Research Symposium............................. 38 Pass Along Valuable Information to Prospective Buyers by using Feeder Finder................................... 46 Gelbvieh and Balancer® Foot and Leg Trait Evaluation..................................................................... 46

The Profit Picture is the commercially-focused publication published in February and September by the American Gelbvieh Association focused on issues relevant to the commercial cow-calf producer.

REQUEST YOUR FREE SUBSCRIPTION Sign up to receive your free subscription to The Profit Picture by subscribing online or completing this form and mailing to American Gelbvieh Association, attn: Profit Picture, 1001 S. 70th St., Suite 215, Lincoln, NE 68510. Comments and feedback welcome to info@gelbvieh.org or 303-465-2333. 2 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Name___________________________________ Address: _________________________________ City, State, Zip: ______________________________ Subscribe online at www.gelbvieh.org/news/publications/ profit-picture/

E PR

EdAGLE AGLE PASS RANCH << << i s pASS e r sa ANCHl 700 HEAD SELL

[total + complete]

of the

GELBVIEH BALANCER® AND

cowherd

11.30.2020 at the ranch - Highmore, SD

HERD BULLS, DONORS AND BRED COWS, 3-IN-1 PAIRS, BRED HEIFERS + OPEN REPLACEMENT HEIFERS *2020 BORN BULL CALVES WILL BE RETAINED FOR 2021 BULL SALES* AMGV: 1272465

AMGV: 1393854

donor

CTR LASS 3200A AMGV: 1345933

AMGV: 1298721

donor

EGL LASS E3200 AMGV: 1387269

donor

EGL VIVIAN C1083

donor

EGL VANNA B281 AMGV: 1470124

herd bull

CHIP EXHIBITION 7283E SON OF EGL VIVIAN C1083

retained for in-herd use - he sells!

EGL GUINNESS G046 SON OF EGL VANNA B281

sold in 2020 Spring Sale for $11,000

<< For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. - Ecclesiastes 3:1 >>

EAGLE PASS RANCH

HIGHMORE, SOUTH DAKOTA • PHONE: 855/303-BULL

W W W. E A G L E PA S S R A N C H . C O M [T EXT 605/521-4468 TO REQUEST A CATALOG]

MORE INFORMATION : AJ MUNGER 605/521-4468 ANDY LEDOUX 785/527-3188

CONTENTS EDITORIAL

IN EVERY ISSUE

Survival of the Fittest ....................................... 10

By Dan McCarty, AGA President

Events of Interest............................................. 62

The Value of a Breed Association...................... 18

Ad Index........................................................ 72

By Megan Slater, AGA Executive Director Choosing the Right Selection Tools Based on Your Operation’s Goals.......................................... 22 By Tonya Amen, Ph.D., AGA Breed Improvement Consultant The Success of an Operation Begins with a Successful Cow............................................... 26 By Will Fiske, AGA Breed Growth Specialist How does the Gelbvieh and Balancer Breed Impact the Commercial Beef Sector?........................... 36

BREEDERS CORNER SECTIONS Western Breeders........................................... 64 Upper Midwest Breeders............................ 64-65 Southeast Breeders......................................... 66 Northeast Breeders......................................... 66 Southern Breeders.......................................... 67 Midwest Breeders...................................... 68-69 Service Center................................................ 70

By Cade Cameron, AGJA Secretary

CONTACTS

1001 S. 70th St., Suite 215 Lincoln, NE 68510 Main phone: 303-465-2333 Fax: 303-465-2339 www.gelbvieh.org info@gelbvieh.org Facebook: American Gelbvieh Association Instagram: americangelbvieh

ASSOCIATION STAFF Megan Slater Executive Director megans@gelbvieh.org

Barb Standage Office Operations Coordinator barb@gelbvieh.org

Tom Strahm Commercial Marketing Director tom@gelbvieh.org 785-547-7999

Rebecca Mettler Editorial Content Coordinator rebeccam@gelbvieh.org

Taylor Buckley Data Service Coordinator taylorb@gelbvieh.org Will Fiske Breed Growth Specialist will@gelbvieh.org

Jake Renner Member and Youth Activities Coordinator jake@gelbvieh.org Malerie Strahm Multimedia Coordinator malerie@gelbvieh.org

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Dan McCarty, President (2017) Rifle, CO • 970-481-5217 mccartycattle@hotmail.com

Derek Martin, Treasurer (2017) Bucklin, KS • 620-397-6752 dmartin@kinsleyfeeders.com

Klint Sickler, Vice President (2019) Gladstone, ND • 701-483-5250 klintsickler@hotmail.com

John Carrel, Secretary (2019) Columbus, MT • 406-322-5991 lauriecarrel@live.com

DIRECTORS Dustin Aherin (2017) Phillipsburg, KS • 785-302-1252 dgaherin@vet.k-state.edu

Andrea Murray (2018) Kingfisher, OK • 405-368-9601 murrayfarm@pldi.net

Todd Bickett, DVM (2018) Chickamauga, GA • 423-667-3799 todd@bickettgenetics.com

Lowell Rogers DVM (2017) Seminary, MS • 601-270-4152 lrdrsmiley@gmail.com

Leland Clark (2019) Barnard, KS • 785-792-6244 prcc@twinvalley.net

Randy Sienknecht (2018) Gladbrook, IA • 319-290-3763 rmsink1209@msn.com

Mark Covington (2019) Montrose, CO • 970-209-1956 covinginc@hotmail.com

Jeff Swanson (2018) Oxford, NE • 308-290-3763 swansoncattleco@yahoo.com

Jeff Loveless (2017) Spanish Fork, UT • 801-623-8308 olranch@aol.com

Tom Vehige ( 2019) Billings, MO • 417-772-2002 tbarscattle@gmail.com

Lori Maude (2018) Hermosa, SD • 303-809-3789 lori.maude@gmail.com

4 | SEPTEMBER 2020

CRAN Fiona F812 ET

Champion Female | 2019 NAILE Open Show Res. Champion Female | 2020 NWSS Jr. Show Congratulations to Casey Martin, IL! Sired by CIRS Overdrive

DLW TPG Jackpot 7551B

EGL Roundhouse B019

Join Us!

CIRS Overdrive

Young Dale Believe 46B

S Whitlock 179

17th Annual Genetic Progress Sale SATURDAY / MARCH 27, 2021

We look forward to seeing you in Rugby for our annual bull and female sale! More than 50 bulls by

Rugby Livestock Auction / Rugby, ND

as an outstanding group of replacement females and several show prospects. Please call us to request a sale catalog or visit our website to view the online sale catalog. Canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be with us on sale day? Real time bidding is available! Visit DVAuction.com for details.

ROBERT AND BILL ARNOLD â&#x20AC;¢ ESMOND, ND

WWW.CRANVIEWGELBVIEH.COM

FEATURE

Gelbvieh and Balancer® Influence Offers Versatility Throughout the Beef Production System By Rebecca Mettler Commercial cattle producers want genetics that can work on the ranch, in the feedyard, and on the rail. Cattle that check off all the requirements throughout the beef production system must exhibit versatility at each level. With versatility comes the opportunity for profitability. Versatility is a foundational trait in Gelbvieh cattle. Cattle producers from across the country have utilized Gelbvieh and Balancer® genetics for years because of the breed’s innate ability to excel in maternal traits and superior growth.

Gelbvieh-Influenced Females Maternal efficiency equates to maternal profitability. Efficiency in the cowherd encompasses many factors. Reproductive productivity and genetics are two key factors of maternal efficiency. For years, Gelbvieh and Balancer seedstock suppliers have been providing producers with genetics that directly impact economic efficiency.

6 | SEPTEMBER 2020

The number one factor that impacts profitability on the ranch, is the fertility of the cow. Without a calf each year, that cow costs the rancher money. The Gelbvieh cow is a solution to that problem. Fertility is one of the most valued traits in the Gelbvieh cow. When commercial Gelbvieh and Balancer producers are talking about their cowherd and why they stay with those genetics, a large majority of producers cite exceptional cowherd fertility as a standout trait. “We have beautiful heifer calves to put back in our herd. They have nice udders, good dispositions, and great milking ability,” said Jennifer Jensen, Jensen Ranch, Lewistown, Montana. “They mature into good, thick and deep cows that have fertility and longevity. We still have 12 and 13-year-old cows who are still producing calves that wean average or even slightly above. Cows that raise heavy feeder calves for many years is what puts money in our pockets!” Another major factor that impacts a commercial producer’s bottom line is the efficiency of the cow. The

Gelbvieh cow is known for her moderate mature size and weaning off heavy calves. Gelbvieh ranks number one for smallest mature cow size and are the earliest to mature of the seven major beef breeds according to U.S. Meat Animal Research Center. Producers across the country are finding the benefit of Gelbvieh and Balancer®-influenced females as a part of their breeding program to maintain a moderate framed female without forfeiting calf performance.

Feedyard

FEATURE

Gelbvieh cattle are not only known for their maternal capabilities, but also for their post-weaning growth. Combine the Gelbvieh breed’s positive post-weaning traits with the power of crossbreeding and you have a force to be reckoned with. The advantage of crossbreeding is apparent both in the feedyard and on the rail. Gelbvieh and Balancer bulls have the ability to sire steers that hang a heavy carcass complete with industry demanded quality grades without sacrificing yield. “Balancer cattle that we’ve had the opportunity to feed have stayed healthy throughout the feeding period, they’ve gone on feed fast, they’ve performed very well, and they’ve hung up on the rail as good as any that we’ve fed,” said Jesse Landin, McClymont Feedyard, Holdrege, Nebraska. Producers who have retained ownership of their cattle through the finishing phase often report average daily gains of 3.75 pounds/head/day, or even higher. Feedlot operators who have purchased Gelbvieh and Balancer-influenced feeder cattle have also experienced similar performance. “People that have purchased our steers have been pleased with their performance. They’ve outperformed what their rations were designed for,” said Rodger Schroeder, Chugwater, Wyoming.

Post-Weaning Genetic Trends The AGA offers tools to select animals with exceptional performance both in the feedyard and on the rail. These tools include several carcass trait expected progeny differences (EPDs) and more, including the economically focused FPITM (Feeder Profit Index) and Efficiency Profit

FEATURE

Index (EPI), which indicate potential profit of Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle in the feedyard. As illustrated in the graphs, the 10-year trends for both indexes continue to move in an upward trajectory.

On the Rail Not only do Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle perform well in the feedyard with increased efficiency and growth, Balancer cattle make the grade and deliver the value on the rail, adding to the breed’s versatility. Many feeders have reported Balancer-sired cattle that grade 85% Choice or better with 90% Yield Grade 1, 2, and 3. In today’s marketplace where higher quality grades yield a premium, Gelbvieh and Balancer-influenced cattle meet those modern industry demands. In addition to quality grade, Gelbvieh and Balancerinfluenced cattle have been proven to excel in percent retail product. According to the U.S. Meat Animal Research Center progress report #22, Gelbvieh rank #1 for percent retail product.

The AGA is committed to continually strengthening Gelbvieh and Balancer carcass value on the rail. In December 2019, the AGA took on a large step toward fulfilling the commitment to carcass quality with the release of the Carcass Data Collection Project. The Carcass Data Collection Project is a joint effort of the AGA and American Gelbvieh Foundation (AGF) and is designed for AGA members and their customers. The focus of this project is to provide vital genetic information to re-charge the carcass database and enhance the predictability of current selection tools.

The Whole Picture With performance, productivity, and profitability throughout the beef supply chain, it’s evident that versatility is cemented in Gelbvieh-influenced genetics. They become cattle that the commercial cow-calf producer, the feeding industry, and the packer wants and demands. FF

PERFORMANCE CATTLE FOR THE REAL WORLD DEDICATED TO GELBVIEH FOR 45 YEARS 50 years of continual whole herd AI Over 35 years of Performance Testing

A nnual Production Sale – March 18, 2021 Western Livestock Auction • Great Falls, MT

For your next herdsire or female purchase, look to Kicking Horse Ranch Kicking Horse Ranch

1285 Nine Mile Road

Olimont, Montana 59466

Jim & Kathy Bjorkman 406-937-4815

www.kickinghorseranch.com krankin@northerntel.net

Jeanette Rankin 406-937-3728

8 | SEPTEMBER 2020

40th AnnuAl

SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 2021 AT THE RANCH – SELBY, SD

THORSTENSON’S Lazy TV Ranch

PRODUCTION SALE

Stop By for a visit anytime! No masks Required! These mamas really enjoy visitors so we can’t guarantee social distancing.

MATERNAL TRAITS MATTER Lazy TV Ranch consistently ranks in the top two herds in the nation for Dams of Merit and Distinction

--Rigid culling for DISPOSITION, UDDER QUALITY & STRUCTURE --FERTILITY — 60-day breeding period with NO second chances --We select for the same economic traits as the commercial cattleman

SELLING 200 BULLS BALANCER (RED & BLACK) & BLACK ANGUS BULLS

• Feed-EFFICIENCY Tested • Bulls are UNCONDITIONALLY GUARANTEED through first breeding season • Volume DISCOUNTS and FREE Delivery

12980 Cedar Rd, Selby, SD 57472

BALANCERBULLS.COM

Lazy TV Ranch

VIEW FROM THE BOARD Survival of the Fittest By Dan McCarty

s I sit here in my office this morning, I am gazing out the window to the west watching the plume of a 30,000-acre wildfire rise into the horizon. The most shocking thing about the fire is that fire officials say it was started by a lightning strike about a week ago â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and I am amazed that there was ever enough moisture in the air this summer to even cause a lightning strike. The National Weather Service Climate Information site this morning says since January 1 we have received 1.41 inches of precipitation in our area of Colorado. I certainly knew it was a dry year, but even I was shocked to see the actual number. Just two years ago in 2018, the valley we live in marked the driest year in recorded history. We immediately followed that in 2019 by one the best moisture years anyone can remember. It was an amazing turnaround, considering the drought of 2012 took years to climb out of. It is not uncommon for us in the high mountain desert of the Colorado Plateau to experience drought conditions every 10 years or so. Since 2002 was a bad year, the drought

10 | SEPTEMBER 2020

of 2012 was not out of cycle and many cattlemen were prepared and expecting the worst. The horrible dry year of 2018 caught many of us off guard, even more so when only two years later it is equally dry, if not worse. In 2018, I was also paying very close attention to the weather on the east coast. My wife Morgan went on the adventure of a lifetime in the summer of 2018 when she hiked the entire Appalachian Trail, all 2,189 miles, from Georgia to Maine. She had the time of her life, even though much of the experience was a soggy affair. From May through July of 2018, much of the East Coast, especially the Mid-Atlantic, observed rain up to 300% of normal. NASA and NOAA both reported that it was the third wettest year since 1895, when record keeping began. Many of my cattle producer friends, including many Gelbvieh and BalancerÂŽ breeders, on the East Coast that I talked to in 2018 expressed frustration about their cattle not having a dry place to lay down for months. Cattle were covered in mud and performance suffered because of the horrible conditions. It was difficult for this Westerner to understand exactly what was going on and the struggles faced by those fighting the mud and wet conditions as we

out West struggled to keep stock water supplied to our cows and feared the worst as grass and forage, even in the high country, turned yellow and brown in mid-June. As weaning and preg checking season approached in the late summer and fall of 2018, I expected the worst. I was sure the calves would be light and was very concerned about how many open cows we would be shipping. The calves were a little lighter at weaning, but our breed up was right on our long-term average. Approximately two weeks from today, we will find out how we did this year. I know it has been a tough, dry year but I am not as concerned as I was in 2018, because I know what our cows can do and have full confidence in the maternal power of the breed. I have been fortunate in the past 15 years to travel to many areas in the United States and visit cattle operations of every shape and size. The maternal ability and adaptability of the Gelbvieh and Gelbvieh-influenced female is second to none. Gelbvieh influenced cattle thrive in the Coastal Plains of Texas, to the prairies of North Dakota; from the coulees of the Northwest, to the Flint Hills of Kansas. While we all will face our challenges with Mother Nature, there is one constant we can count on: the Gelbvieh female will adapt and perform â&#x20AC;&#x201C; because she is The Mother Breed of Beef. FF

245 head in 2020- 98% Quality Grade Choice or Higher & Average Yield Grade 2.6

#2 Active Cow Herd in the Gelbvieh Breed

NWSS 2020 Champion Pen of 3 Balancer Bulls

31st Annual Production Sale February 1, 2021 Quality Beef Genetics Since 1980

M Taubenheim Gelbvieh M Mike & Renee Taubenheim - 308-233-4704 Justin & Janelle Taubenheim - 308-293-0692 Tanner & Kelli Taubenheim - 308-224-7196 23685 Sartoria Road-Amherst, NE 68812

www.taubenheimgelbvieh.com

Over THE

Fence

he Sharp Ranch is a commercial cow-calf outfit located TOklahoma in the rough, arid country of the western end of the Panhandle. Texas, New Mexico, Colorado

and Kansas are all only a “stone’s throw” away. The ranch is owned and operated by Dan and Carol Sharp who bought the place and moved there in 1983. The Sharps use Gelbvieh and Balancer® bulls on their commercial Angus-based cowherd.

12 | SEPTEMBER 2020

with Dan and Carol Sharp, Sharp Ranch, Boise City, Oklahoma By Tom Strahm

Dan grew up in Texas, while Carol was born and raised in New York. They met in college while attending Otero Junior College in La Junta, Colorado. The couple has now been married for 53 years! They have two daughters who are both married and have a total of five grandchildren. After graduating from college and getting married, they ranched in Colorado for several years along the Purgatoire

River. Eventually, they were looking to purchase a different ranch and found and purchased the property that they have called home since 1983. The elevation is higher on this ranch than a person might expect. The elevation ranges from approximately 4,200 – 4,800 feet. The average rainfall in this area is approximately 14 inches per year, but it sure seems like it’s been too long since they received that much precipitation. Both Dan and Carol enjoy history, and there are several unique historic features on the Sharp Ranch. This includes approximately 10 miles of Santa Fe Trail remnants. Autograph Rock and Signature Rock are both located along Cold Spring Creek. Travelers on the trail would chisel their names in these sandstone bluffs.

When and why did you start using Gelbvieh and Balancer genetics? “About 20 years ago we sold our calves in the Future Beef Operations (FBO) L.L.C. program. After the feeding performance and carcass data was analyzed, we received some feedback and suggestions for our operation. One of those suggestions was to incorporate some Continental influence into our genetics and breeding program,” Dan says. “We wanted to improve the growth and performance in our calf crop. We also wanted to increase the retail product yield without sacrificing marbling and product quality.” “We used some of the other Continental breeds as well. We felt that the Gelbvieh bulls provided us with the most balanced and complete package of traits that we were looking for.” “At the same time, we started using Gelbvieh bulls, we also moved the beginning of our calving season back to start a little later in spring. One of my

friends was really concerned about that and how it would decrease our calf weights,” Dan says. “However, we actually saw an increase in weaning weights on those later born calves due to heterosis and the benefits of crossbreeding.”

What are some of the traits and characteristics that are important to you when buying bulls? “We are looking for moderate framed bulls that are heavy muscled and have some fleshing ability. In this country, it’s critical that the bulls are structurally sound with good feet and legs. We have been buying our bulls in the fall of the year, and that gives them time to become better acclimated to this environment before spring breeding season. Getting the new bulls here several months before using them has decreased the amount of lameness we see, and the bulls stay in better condition through the first breeding season.” “We want to keep our calf crop black in color, so we purchase homozygous black bulls,” says Carol. “We also prefer to buy bulls that are homozygous polled.” “We want performance in our calves,” Dan continues. “We want bulls that have good growth, and good actual performance along with good growth EPDs. We want them to have moderate birth weights and good calving ease EPDs. We aren’t particularly concerned with the milk and maternal numbers of the bulls, because the Gelbvieh breed is inherently strong for those maternal traits.”

What do you do for your replacement females? “Because we have limited resources of available feed and limited labor, it is economically advantageous for us to buy bred heifers for our replacements,” Dan explains. “We have been buying bred heifers from the same closed herd in Wyoming for several years. Those cattle are raised in an environment that is more like ours than people might realize. It can get cold here in the winter, especially when the wind is blowing. The females have been working out well. Some of the traits they focus on include female longevity, and feed efficiency, which are also very important to us.”

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 13

Over THE

Fence

How do you manage and market your calves?

“We are all spring calving here. We start in March and then are finished calving in May, with most of the calves born in April.” “At branding time, all the calves are given a complete round of vaccinations and the bull calves are castrated. We observe and practice Beef Quality Assurance guidelines,” Carol says. The calves are all given BoviShield Gold, 7-way, MultiMin, and Ivomec. The calves are shipped off the cows in middle to late September and marketed through Superior Livestock Auction. The Sharps have been participating in independent third-party verification with IMI Global for several years and the last two years they have enrolled in the Balancer® Edge program. These programs include documentation for source and age verification, NHTC, and verified all natural. “Of course, we want the calves we raise to perform well for the people that buy them,” Dan affirms. “We decided to participate in some of these value-added programs to make our calves attractive to as many buyers as possible. It also gives the buyers more marketing opportunities on their end.” “We don’t always get the opportunity to receive feedback

14 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Dan and Carol Sharp with Autograph Rock in the background. about the performance of our calves after they leave here. We appreciate it when we do, and it helps us to adjust and improve our management practices. We were pleased to hear that the cattle feeder who bought our steers last year was happy with the cattle.” The health was excellent, and the performance was good throughout the entire backgrounding and finishing periods. The carcass merit was very acceptable with the cattle earning premiums on the grid at harvest. The cattle feeder specifically noted that they were quite pleased with the higher dressing percentage and significantly higher hot carcass weight yield than usual. Dan and Carol agree, “That’s why we started using Gelbvieh genetics to begin with!” FF

Post Rock Cattle Co.

CED 12

BW 0.9

WW 90

YW 137

MK 4

TM 49

CEM 9

YG 0.05

CW 45

REA 0.52

Program Genetics with a Plan, Purpose and Goal

MB FPI EPI 0.73 97.40 152.20

EGL Game Changer D136 Homozygous Black Homozygous Polled 38% Balancer EGL Game Changer first started making waves in the Gelbvieh breed as one of the high sellers and most sought after sire prospects of the 2017 sale season. His sons dominated the 2019 AGF Steer Challenge in his first calf crop. His sons at Post Rock and Eagle Pass were the high selling and most sought after sire groups a year ago. Game Changer will have the largest and equally impressive sire group again this year. His first daughters came into production last spring and our breeding program has moved to “all-in” on Game Changer.

CED 13

BW -0.2

WW 70

YW 105

MK 24

TM 59

CEM YG 8 0.12

CW 41

REA 0.22

CED 15

BW -0.2

WW 66

YW 95

MK 9

TM 42

CEM YG 9 -0.05

CW 35

REA 0.61

MB FPI EPI 0.25 73.33 94.36

DCSF Post Rock Blk Bal 315F8 Homo Black Homo Polled 58% Balancer An example of the performance-strong, extremely eye appealing sons of the featured sire group sired by Young Gun that were sale highlights in the 2020 sale. He was purchased by Matthews Farms, and his powerful dam and her three flush sisters from the Post Rock Twila 245W2 x 10X flush sell as sale features in the female sale this year. Young Gun will be back with another large and impressive sire group in 2021.

MB FPI EPI 0.43 80.72 93.07

TOG Twin Oak Pay Weight 839F ET Homo Black Homo Polled 50% Balancer Last year’s high selling bull to Hilltop Gelbvieh in Missouri. 12 direct sons of the Angus legend Basin Payweight 1682 sell in 2021, including 7 ET flush brothers to this elite herd sire that are extremely impressive on their own merits at this point. The 2021 sale is shaping up to be our most stacked offering of elite homo-black, homo-polled Balancer herdsire prospects ever.

CED 12

BW 0.7

WW 83

YW 131

MK 7

TM 48

CEM 8

YG 0.13

CW 36

REA 0.24

MB FPI 0.54 88.52

EPI 140.17

DCSF Post Rock Black Bal 52G8 Homo Black Homo Polled 38% Balancer This featured bull sired by EGL Game Changer was purchased by Cedar Top Ranch in Nebraska in the 2020 sale. His combination of pedigree strength, actual performance data, and elite curve-bending profile combined with real cowmans’ demand for soundness, muscle mass, and fleshing ability is what sets the Game Changers apart. His Dam of Merit dam sells as a sale feature in the female portion of the 2021 sale. She sells with a full sib at side to this breed changer.

Cowman’s Kind Bull and Female Sale

POST Post Rock Wilma 340B8 Black Homo Polled 75% Balancer One of the most popular females the kids ever showed during their junior show careers. 340B8 ended her show career as the supreme champion bred and owned female of the 2016 AGJA Junior National. We annually sell every sound six year old as a sale feature, and she’s among the elite in this year’s sale group. She’s been equally impressive in production and is a sale highlight in a really strong group of sale cows offered this year.

February 27, 2021 200 Lots Sell

CED 12

BW -1.0

WW 50

YW 84

MK 18

TM 46

CEM YG 4 -0.08

CW 21

REA 0.34

MB FPI EPI 0.35 72.37 89.28

3041 E Hwy 284, Barnard, KS Office 785-792-6244 Leland Clark 785-392-0888 Fax: 785-792-6250 email: prcc@twinvalley.net Website: www.postrockcattle.com

“Where calving ease, performance and eye appeal come together”

thought for the month

If the plan doesn’t work, change the plan but never the goal

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 15

NEWS

Updates to IGS Multi-Breed Evaluation In the life of any National Cattle Evaluation, periodic updates are needed to make the best use of all available information and technology. The evaluation which generates the expected progeny differences (EPDs) published by American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) are no exception. Over the last couple of years, the team at International Genetic Solutions (IGS) initiated a massive research project to modernize the evaluation of growth traits (birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weight and milk). Below, is a brief description of each update followed by the impact of these collective changes on AGA EPDs. These changes were made to the evaluation in mid-August. Be assured these EPDs and updates have been reviewed and examined by AGA breed improvement staff, AGA tech committee, and the board of directors. The changes made include: 1. A new definition of contemporary groups based on the age of the dam. Calves born to first-calf females will be placed in a separate contemporary group (CG). Given the vast majority of producers actually manage this age group separately, it is reasonable to define their calves as their own CG. Handling these as separate CG will reduce the environmental noise caused by different management strategies and biological constraints for this age group. 2. Setting the genetic correlation between weaning weight maternal (milk) and weaning weight direct to 0 (compared to 0.3). There has been debate in the scientific literature about the degree and direction of genetic

16 | SEPTEMBER 2020

correlations between direct and maternal weaning weight. Previously, the IGS evaluation used a moderate negative correlation. This meant that young, unproven animals with high growth potential often saw negative impact on their milk EPD when their own growth data was submitted or when a genomic test was done. The correlation in the new model will be set to zero. This should impact animals with low accuracies the most. 3. Different variances for different sexes (heterogeneous variance). Bull calves typically have higher growth potential than heifers, which means the variation in their weights is also greater. The new model will account for this difference. 4. New DNA Marker subset. Since BOLT-powered EPDs were released, many more animals have been genotyped, and many more performance records have been submitted. As a result, new, more informative markers were able to be deciphered. The new EPDs will employ this new, larger marker set. 5. Accounting for different birth weight collection methods. Upon closer analysis of birth weight data, it became apparent that different reporting and collection methods were being used. These methods ranged from reporting in 2lb or 5lb increments, to data that was obviously from hoof tapes

instead of scales, to clearly fabricated data. New methods allow for the identification and proper accounting for these various collection methods. 6. Not including genomic effects for weaning weight maternal (Milk). The current genetic evaluation includes marker effects for both WW and Milk. However, with some of the updates that were made in the new evaluation, it was discovered that the evaluation solved more effectively when genomics were removed for Milk EPDs. Therefore, the decision was made to remove the genomic component for Milk. Even with the removal of this information, work done to judge the efficacy of EPDs shows that the resulting EPDs from the updated model are an improvement over the previous evaluation. IGS has put a considerable amount of work into testing if these updates improved growth trait predictions. The results from this validation work show the evaluation updates have higher correlations to phenotypes than the previous growth trait models. In the table below, you will find a comparison of the genetic trend graph these lots for the Selling current growth suite of EPDsand vs the genetic trend for the new suite many more, along with of growth EPDs (labeled WO1). FF

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FROM THE CORNER OFFICE The Value of a Breed Association By Megan Slater In an industry climate where profit margins are continuing to become tighter and tighter, even for the most successful beef cattle operations, producers are constantly looking for ways to improve their bottom line. At times like these, producers may be asking whether being a part of a breed association is worth the cost. Since the formation of breed associations in the United States in the early 1900s, one important role of these associations has been to track pedigrees of purebred animals. Overtime however, this role has transformed and associations of today help producers offer much more information on their cattle than just a lineage. Expected progeny differences (EPDs) through genetic evaluations are now a significant part of what breed associations offer. Breed associations have evolved to store and process huge amounts of data used for large-scale genetic evaluation on every animal in the database. Such evaluations are beneficial for every sector of the beef industry, as high performing seedstock for economically relevant traits can speed genetic improvement in commercial animals bound for the food supply chain.

few), making the search for the right bull even easier for commercial producers. This genetic evaluation, powered by BOLT technology, uses the advanced single-step method, which better incorporates genomic data directly into the evaluation. Single-step genetic evaluation is the most advanced technology currently available for the genetic evaluation of beef cattle. Efficiently utilizing the vast amount of genomic data on animals within the evaluation to higher accuracy selection tools for producers. High accuracy genomicenhanced EPDs benefit commercial producers by reducing risk when it comes to buying young bulls for breeding. Genomic enhancements are often the equivalent of several calving records, making the performance of animals more predictable.

Economically relevant traits have grown to include not only end-product traits, such as carcass weight or rib eye area but also include traits to measure cowherd efficiency, such as stayability or heifer pregnancy. These traits are vital to the bottom line of any operation, ensuring the most efficient animals possible remain in production. Efficiency in this way decreases the cost of production by decreasing input cost derived from developing heifers who don’t breed or buying replacements for animals that remain in the herd only a short amount of time.

In today’s data driven society, collecting data from all segments of the industry has become even more valuable. Associations are finding new ways to collect data from the commercial sector and all sectors of the industry can benefit from the collection of this data. As more information flows into the genetic evaluation, it leads to even more accurate selection tools to accelerate genetic improvement. The AGA, for example, recently released our Carcass Data Collection Project to gather more carcass data on Gelbvieh and Balancer sired calves. In addition to collecting the carcass data, these animals are also being genomically tested. Carcass data is a good example of information that isn’t commonly submitted to breed associations. Data that measures some of the economically relevant traits I mentioned earlier, such as marbling and carcass weight, is extremely valuable to the evaluation. Collecting this in combination with the genotypes will help to again increase the accuracy of the genetic tools producers can use when selecting registered Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle.

To better serve the commercial producer, the American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) is a part of the International Genetic Solutions (IGS) multi-breed genetic evaluation. Being a part of this evaluation allows for Gelbvieh and Balancer® growth and carcass trait EPDs to be directly comparable to other breeds within the evaluation such as Red Angus, Simmental, and Limousin (just to name a

Genetic evaluations through a breed association have the benefit of cutting-edge technology, input from industry leaders in animal breeding and genetics, and continuous research into novel economically relevant traits. A multibreed genetic evaluation, just as the IGS multi-breed genetic evaluation, allows the AGA and other breed associations to provide reliable, easy to use selection tools

18 | SEPTEMBER 2020

FROM THE CORNER OFFICE

to the commercial producer for industry-wide genetic advancement.

In addition to genetic evaluation, associations also offer various marketing tools and programs to assist breeders and commercial customers. The AGA offers a feeder calf tagging program in partnership with IMI Global, called Balancer® Edge. Balancer® Edge is a source and age verification program for feeder calves sired by Gelbvieh or Balancer bulls. Producers also have the option to participate in additional program levels such as NHTC and verified natural. In addition, the AGA also helps producers to market load lots of Gelbvieh and Balancer-influenced feeder cattle via email through the AGA’s Feeder Finder

Service. A description of the load, where and how they are selling is sent to a list of feedyards across the countries. This is a free service provided by the AGA. Producers interested in these and other programs are encouraged to contact the AGA at 303-465-2333. So, while some producers might be questioning if it’s worth the cost to be part of a breed association, maybe the real question is: can they afford not to be? More importantly, can our commercial beef industry stakeholders afford to miss out on the valuable genetic information breed associations provide to maximize efficiency in their operations? FF

GELBVIEH MATERNAL POWER It’s been dry this year in western South Dakota, but the Gelbvieh cows are raising some great calves. We aim to optimize, not maximize to fit our environment. Reproductive efficiency, sound feet & legs, and gentle disposition are critical to remain in the herd.

Call or email today to be added to our mailing list.

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WATCH FOR CJ&L LIVESTOCK CONSIGNMENTS IN THE FOLLOWING SALES: • 2ND ANNUAL FROM THE ROCKIES TO THE PACIFIC GELBVIEH AND BALANCER ONLINE SALE

• 7TH ANNUAL CJ&L LIVESTOCK GELBVIEH & BALANCER BULL SALE, DEC. 21, 2020

• BLACK HILLS STOCK SHOW, FEB. 4, 2021

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 19

FAST FACTS Who we are:

The American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) is a beef cattle breed association dedicated to recording, promoting, and improving Gelbvieh-influenced cattle. The AGA was started in 1971 and now consists of approximately 1,000 members with a registry database that contains over one million animals including approximately 40,000 currently active Gelbvieh, Balancer®, and Gelbvieh-influenced cows. The Strengths of Gelbvieh: The Gelbvieh breed is well known throughout the industry for their maternal strengths and superior growth. With these attributes, Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle fit well into a crossbreeding system and provide genetics that work for the commercial cattle business. The high costs associated with the development or purchase of replacement females make sustained production in a herd essential. Gelbvieh females are proven to stay in the herd longer.

What is a Balancer®? Balancer cattle are registered hybrid seedstock that have documented pedigrees and expected progeny differences (EPDs). The American Gelbvieh Association was the first beef cattle breed to recognize and include a hybrid animal as registered stock. Balancer animals are 25 to 75 percent Gelbvieh with the balance of Angus or Red Angus. Balancer cattle combine the Gelbvieh growth, muscle, leanness, fertility, longevity and low yield grading ability with the carcass qualities of Angus. Balancer cattle offer a simple and powerful way to maintain hybrid vigor and a profitable blend of British and Continental genetics without a complicated crossbreeding system. These cattle fit well into all aspects of the beef industry including commercial cow-calf operations and on the rail. How do Gelbvieh and Balancer® crossbred females perform better? It’s all in the heterosis, or hybrid vigor, described as the increase in performance of the crossbred animal compared to the average of the straight-bred parents. Heterosis impacts traits with low heritability, e.g., reproduction. Producers with crossbred cows can see a higher percentage of their cowherd breed back on the first cycle due to maternal heterosis. Individual Heterosis Individual heterosis is the improvement in performance by the individual crossbred animal above the average of its parents. Increased calf livability, weaning weight, yearling weight and carcass traits are examples of individual heterosis in crossbred calves.

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20 | SEPTEMBER 2020

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FAST FACTS

Maternal Heterosis Maternal heterosis leads to the combined improvement in traits from the dam that cause increases in the performance of her and of her progeny. Examples of maternal heterosis in a beef cow include younger age at puberty, increased calving rate, increased survival of her calf to weaning; longevity and pounds of calf produced in her lifetime.

Looking to Buy Bulls this Fall?

If you’re a producer looking to purchase new genetics for your herd this fall, use Gelbvieh.org as your go-to resource for Gelbvieh and Balancer sale information. The upcoming events calendar can be found under the Marketing tab on the website homepage. Also, don’t forget to check out the sale catalog page on the AGA website at www.gelbvieh.org/exchange/sale-catalogs to view upcoming sale catalogs posted by AGA members.

Watch “The American Rancher” Mark your calendar for Monday, October 5, to watch the premiere of the AGA’s new episode of “The American Rancher” on RFD-TV (Dish channel 231 and DirecTV channel 345).

AGA’s Commercial Marketing Staff

The American Gelbvieh Association has outstanding marketing staff that understands both the beef business and the Gelbvieh breed. They are available to help commercial cattle producers find Gelbvieh or Balancer genetics to fit your program or assist in marketing Gelbvieh-influenced breeding animals or feeder cattle. To contact AGA’s commercial marketing staff simply call the AGA office at 303-465-2333.

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THE PROFIT PICTURE | 21

DATA BULLETIN

Choosing the Right Selection Tools Based on Your Operation’s Goals By Tonya Amen, Ph.D., AGA Breed Improvement Consultant

In addition to the benefits offered by crossbreeding, Gelbvieh and Balancer® cattle offer breed advantages that make them logical for meeting the production goals and improving profitability of commercial farms and ranches. Long known for their value in crossbreeding systems, Gelbvieh sires add pounds and carcass value, and their crossbred daughters will have longevity, fertility, and maternal ability in the cowherd. With the American Gelbvieh Association’s (AGA) participation with other world-wide beef breeds in International Genetic Solution’s genetic evaluation, it has

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never been easier to select Gelbvieh genetics to meet the needs of your operation. In fact, looking at a catalog on sale day or perusing a semen catalog can be overwhelming due to the amount of data contained and the number of traits reported. So, before you ever get started on your search for a new herd sire, taking the time to reflect on the goals of your operation and to establish breeding objectives is crucially important. What traits are important to you? Do you really need to maximize? Or is a more moderate amount of performance for that trait more suitable for your environment? Once you have established your breeding objective, then it is important to understand the information available to help you meet that objective. Often, sale catalogs have not only expected progeny differences (EPDs) and indexes, but also performance data and ratios, and sometimes even stand-alone genomic results. While an animal’s actual performance data (weights, for example) may be fun for coffee-shop bragging rights, those numbers only tell us animal’s performance for a trait without taking into account the environment, which makes them fairly uninformative for genetic selection purposes. Even ratios, which do help compare animals within a single contemporary group do not allow us compare animals outside of that specific group in that specific year. EPDs use much more information, including the animal’s own performance, pedigree data, progeny data, and in some cases, even genomic markers. Contemporary grouping also allows us to use EPDs to compare animals across years and herds. EPDs are our best estimate of an animal’s genetic worth as a parent and allow you to compare bulls based on their anticipated progeny performance for various traits of interest. EPDs can be used to increase, decrease, or optimize performance of a certain trait. You’ll find the percentile rank tables for various classes of animals on the AGA website at Gelbvieh.org. Remember, Top 1% might be good for bragging, but does it meet your breeding objective? I recognize that there are many EPD to look at – and usually, selection for more than one trait that will be needed to meet the goals of your organization. With so

many traits to look at, choosing the correct traits to put emphasis on while still practicing multi-trait selection can be challenging. This is where use of a selection index may be useful. Selection indexes, in general, are used to simplify genetic selection decisions by incorporating multiple traits into one number, allowing for simultaneous change in those traits through the use of one easily interpreted number reported in dollars. Typically, these indexes take into account the outputs considered on the revenue side of the profit equation, but they also consider the input, or expense, side associated with the production phase of interest. Indexes incorporate both genetic components (EPDs) and economic terms relevant to feedlot performance, carcass merit, and cow-calf production. However, before using any selection index in your breeding decisions, it’s really important to understand the traits underlying the index. If the trait EPDs used in the computation of the index are not those that are important for the production goals and needs of your ranch, using them as a selection tool may not yield the desired result. The AGA currently has three indexes for use in selecting your next bull:

1) $Cow index represents the genetic value of a female if retained as a replacement.

2) FPITM focuses on feed yard performances, and carcass traits

3) Efficiency Profit Index (EPI) focuses on selecting for more feed efficient cattle that still have acceptable amounts of gain.

For each of these indexes, a higher number represents more profitable genetics. $Cow will serve producers in selecting bulls that will sire daughters with stayability and reproductive efficiency as well as other traits that lead to profitability in a production system, such as milk, calving ease, moderate mature weight, and the ability of calves to gain. A female’s genetics also influence the performance of her calves in the

DATA BULLETIN

feedlot and at slaughter, so traits such as feed efficiency and carcass value are also included in $Cow.

FPI, which stands for Feeder Profit Index, was designed to aid producers in selecting sires whose progeny will perform in the feedlot and are sold on a grade and yield standpoint. Well ranking sires for FPI have higher marbling and carcass weight than their contemporaries. As a terminal index, little emphasis is put on maternal traits such as stayability and calving ease. Efficiency profit index (EPI): An economic selection index developed to aid producers in selecting for more feed efficient cattle that still have acceptable amounts of gain. The EPI provides slight negative pressure on intake, while keeping gain at a constant value. By selecting on this index, producers will be able to find those animals that gain the same amount as their contemporaries while eating less. So, when you’re ready to select your next sire, I would encourage you to remember your breeding objective and the traits that are actually putting money in your pocket – find the EPDs, or preferably, the index that will help you meet that objective. FF

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Feed Efficiency • 22 years of carcass and feed efficiency data gathered. • RFI data gathered on sale bulls through GrowSafe systems.

Genetic Data • Ultrasound data collected on bulls and heifers. • Every bull sells with Genomic Enhanced EPDs.

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THE PROFIT PICTURE | 23

NEWS

AGA’s 50th Anniversary Celebration The American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) will host the 50th Annual AGA National Convention December 2-4, 2020, in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Downtown Hotel. The event marks the association’s 50th convention and celebrates its 50th year in operation. The AGA was formed on June 28, 1971 in Oklahoma when the founders concluded the signing of the articles of incorporation. From its beginnings in 1971, spurred by the potential impact found in importing Gelbvieh semen from Germany, the AGA has grown into a progressive beef cattle breed association whose members produce genetics fit for today’s beef industry. The AGA encourages all of its members to attend convention where they have the opportunity to learn more about the happenings of the AGA and be involved in shaping the future of the association at various convention events. These events include committee meetings, which all members are invited to attend, and of course the annual meeting where the election of the AGA Board of Directors as well as other important association decisions are made. To further celebrate the AGA’s golden anniversary, the convention will also play host to the release of the AGA’s official history book, which is an American Gelbvieh Foundation project. In addition, there is a meet and greet event planned with instrumental individuals from the breed’s history. At convention, members and commercial customers also have the opportunity to enhance their knowledge of important topics in the beef industry

24 | SEPTEMBER 2020

by listening to industry-leading speakers during the Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup, which will be held in the afternoon of Thursday, December 3 at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Downtown Hotel. In its sixth year, the Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup will be packed full of key information to help commercial and seedstock operations alike create more value throughout the beef supply chain. Convention rounds out with the awards banquet to celebrate the recipients of the commercial producer of the year and breeder of the year awards as well as honors individuals who have made a lasting impact on the Gelbvieh breed through the AGA Hall of Fame induction ceremony. Oklahoma City, The Modern FrontierTM, is known for its combination of Native American history and Western culture. The convention hotel, Sheraton Oklahoma City Downtown Hotel, is just steps from Bricktown’s wealth of dining and entertainment opportunities, which makes it a unique and exciting convention site to host AGA’s golden anniversary celebration! Make plans to join the AGA in Oklahoma, December 2-4, 2020, as we continue to plan for a bigger and better future for the AGA’s next 50 years and beyond. Convention registration is now open on Gelbvieh.org on the Convention page under the Membership tab. The AGA is continuing the monitor COVID-19 guidelines surrounding the safety of hosting an event of this size. We will keep the membership and other Gelbvieh and Balancer® stakeholders informed of any changes to the event. FF

Two Sales! One Day!

The Complete Dispersal of Oak Ridge Farms & Seedstock Plus Showcase Sale XV September 19, 2020 * 1 p.m. Kingsville Livestock, Kingsville, MO

Oak Ridge Farms was originally scheduled to disperse in May as the ‘Opportunity Knocks’ sale but was postponed to fall. We will also offer the elite consignments from the Seedstock Plus members as the Showcase portion of the sale! Offering 3 Herd Sires from Oak Ridge Farms * Reds & Blacks! * Open heifers, Bred heifers & Pairs * Picks of the herd * Purebred Gelbviehs & Balancers! * Videos of sale cattle at www.seedstockplus.com or www.dvauction.com

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Fall Bull & Female Sale

October 17, 2020 * 12 noon Joplin Regional Stockyards, Carthage, MO

Selling 150 - 18 month old BLACK Gelbvieh, Angus & Balancer bulls & BLACK females - registered & commercial

RED REWARD ‘Fall Edition’ Bull & Female Sale

November 7, 2020 Wheeler Livestock Auction Osceola, MO Selling 40 RED Gelbvieh, Balancer bulls & RED females registered &commercial!

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OUT IN THE FIELD

The Success of an Operation Begins with a Successful Cow By Will Fiske

Today’s beef industry continues to evolve at a rapid rate. Innovations from the technology space has led to the development of products/tools designed to improve production and enhance the efficiencies of modern beef systems. New advancements are creating new questions for producers who are searching how to implement products on their farms and ranches in a manner that improves their bottom line. While the strategies of implementation are understandably different based on the unique environmental and managerial constraints of each operation, the goal remains the same: improve profitability. Keeping the cowherd profitable secures the financial viability of the operation. And more importantly, a profitable operation secures livelihoods and provides families with the rewards of growing up in agriculture. The same question in the context of implementation has long been asked by producers, “What are the right genetics I should invest in to improve my cow herd’s profitability?” Before searching through an endless number of bull sale catalogs to find the genetics you want, your time is better spent identifying the genetics you need. Remember the timeless principle, “We cannot improve what we do not measure.” One of the most important production measures for a cow-calf producer is calf crop percentage. Calf crop percentage reflects production factors of both inputs and outputs. Main inputs include genetics, nutrition, and various management practices across production seasons. Main outputs include reproduction and reproduction’s influence on the total pounds of weight that can be sold at weaning. Ultimately, calf crop percentage is influenced by the number of cows that become pregnant and the number of pregnant cows that wean calves. Calf Crop Percentage is calculated by: (Number of calves weaned)/(Number of cows exposed for breeding)=Calf crop % Annually calculating calf crop percentage describes the

26 | SEPTEMBER 2020

cow herd’s production with a performance benchmark and allows producers to take a deeper look into the factors that collectively attribute to calf crop percentage. Of the factors having the highest influence on calf crop percentage, reproductive efficiency ranks at the top. Compared to the profit potential from premium carcass traits, reproduction and maternal ability are still the MOST economically important trait category for commercial cow-calf producers (Melton, 1995). The importance of reproductive efficiency can also be observed in the calculation of breakeven price. Where the denominator is directly determined by reproductive success or reproductive failure. Breakeven price is calculated by: (Annual cow costs)/((average weaning weight) x (Calf crop %))=Breakeven price The fundamental equations of calf crop percentage and breakeven price allow cow-calf producers to begin to understand the underlying variables that effect their herd’s profitability. The Gelbvieh breed has a long reputation of being the reliable source of maternal genetics. Continuing to raise the bar, Figures 1 and 2 illustrate Gelbvieh’s genetic progress over the past 20 years. Significant genetic improvement continues to be observed across the reproductive and maternal traits of Total Maternal (TM), Heifer Pregnancy (HP), and 30-Month Pregnancy (PG-30), illustrating Gelbvieh’s unmatched dedication to providing commercial cattle producers a profitable package of maternal superiority. Total Maternal (TM) EPD predicts the total difference in weight of bulls’ daughters’ calves at weaning – due to both the maternal ability of the daughter (Milk EPD) as well as the genetics for growth that she passes on (1/2 the weaning weight EPD). Because it includes both direct and maternal impacts on growth, TM is the best predictor of how daughters of a bull will perform in terms of weaning heavier calves. This EPD is expressed in pounds, where the higher value is more desirable.

OUT IN THE FIELD

being more favorable meaning a higher percentage of a sire’s daughters will calve at three years of age, given they calved as first-calf heifers.

Figure 1. Heifer Pregnancy (HP)- Predicts the probability that a bull’s daughters will become pregnant as first-calf heifers in a regular breeding season, expressed as a percent. A higher value of this EPD is favorable, meaning that a higher percentage of a sire’s daughters get pregnant as first calf heifers compared to other sires in his contemporary group. 30-month pregnancy (PG30)- Predicts the probability that a bull’s daughters will become pregnant and calve at three years of age, given that they calved as first-calf heifers. This EPD is expressed as a percent, with a higher number

Figure 2. Cow-calf producers looking to improve the reproductive efficiency of their herd should consider using TM, HP, and PG30 before purchasing their next bull or set of replacement females. These genetic selection tools allow producers to wean more calves, sell more pounds, and be more profitable by utilizing the maternal advantages of Gelbvieh cattle. FF

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FEATURE

Five Generations Strong Dynneson daughters keep family tradition going Rooted in family tradition — five generations to be exact — the Dynneson family, a 21-year North Dakota Stockmen’s Association (NDSA) member, operates a custom backgrounding feedlot, cow-calf ranch and heifer development operation while farming small grains, corn and hay on their ranch north of Sidney, Mont.

Family tradition

Dennis Dynneson began farming and ranching on the current farmstead in 1906. He raised Hereford cattle and small grains with his wife Katherine. In 1961, his son, Sherman, returned to the farm and took over the operation with his wife Marlys. The couple transitioned their cattle herd to primarily Charolais and continued to grow their operation. In 1984, Sherman’s and Marlys’ oldest son, Keith, returned to the operation. Keith began to incorporate Gelbvieh genetics into the herd in 1985. “I started to bring Gelbvieh genetics into our herd for their maternal traits,” Keith said. “Today, we utilize

28 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Hereford and Angus genetics as part of our crossbreeding program, but the majority of our cows and bulls are Gelbvieh and Balancer®.” In 1987, the Dynneson Ranch began raising registered Gelbvieh and continued to offer high-quality seedstock until the early 2000s, when the Dynnesons turned their focus to their cow-calf operation and custom feedlot. They have grown the feedlot from a mere 600-head capacity to a now more than 3,000-head capacity. The feedlot specializes in backgrounding and heifer development. Keith and his wife Tammy were married in 1989 and raised three daughters on the ranch, Lacey (Erik Volkman), Katelyn (Russell Larson) and Alexis. Katelyn and Alexis both joined the operation after college and help manage the operation alongside their parents. Lacey’s and Erik’s children, the fifth generation — Colter, age 10, and Rylan, age 7 — are growing up with the same passion for agriculture as the rest of the family. “With the girls working on someday taking over the operation full-time and my grandkids helping out around the ranch, it is important that our cattle are docile and easy to handle,” Keith said. “We have found that with Gelbvieh genetics.”

FEATURE

The Dynneson family includes (back, L to R) Keith Dynneson, Erik and Lacey Volkman, Katelyn and Russell Larson, (front) Marlys, Tammy and Alexis Dynneson and Colter and Rylan Volkman.

How things work

Staying involved

Their heifers begin calving in mid-March with the rest of the cowherd following behind. The whole family works together to tag and vaccinate.

The Dynnesons pride themselves as being strong advocates for the agricultural industry and are 21year members of the NDSA. They are also members of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, Montana Stockgrowers Association and MonDak Area Stockgrowers Association. They are also all very actively involved in the Richland County 4-H Club, serving as mentors for anyone who wants to know more about raising livestock and helping youth find 4-H steers or other livestock to raise and show.

“Everything we do is very much as a family on this place,” Katelyn said. “Family is a very important aspect of our life on the ranch.” The cow-calf pairs go to pasture in May, and the calves are weaned in October or November, depending on the year and the number of cattle in their feedlot. Once cattle enter their feedlot, they are fed to 850 to 900 pounds. The Dynnesons feed a mix of corn silage, hay, small grains and supplements to the cattle in their feedlot. After they reach the desired weight, the cattle are shipped to Phelps County Feeders in Holdredge, Neb. “The Gelbvieh genetics in our cattle allow us to wean big calves that are very feed efficient when they enter our feedlot,” Alexis said. “We always have a really high rate of gain on our ranch-raised calves.”

“For us, being active members of the NDSA is important because we work with a lot of North Dakota producers and everything that happens in North Dakota affects us here on the border,” Katelyn said. “Agriculture is in our blood and being active members of an association that cares about the future of agriculture as a whole ensures that our family tradition can continue for years to come.” FF Reprinted with permission from the North Dakota Stockmen’s Association.

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 29

FEATURE

Making Heifer Development Work for Your Operation By Laura Handke A conundrum as imposing as its answer, the age-old question of raised replacement heifers versus purchased replacement heifers has never carried more weight in the cattle industry than it does today—the answer: It depends. The cost of replacement heifers exceeds monetary considerations and must factor in the long-term goals of the operation; its size and scale; and the land and labor resources needed. And those costs begin accumulating as soon as a heifer calf hits the ground. “It all starts with what it costs to raise a calf,” says Stan Bevers, professor and extension economist for Texas A&M, “Whether I’m doing that myself or I’m paying someone else to do it, it costs so much to raise and wean a calf.” Bevers, who is also known for his ranch management consultation and ranch key performance indicators (KPI) model, shares that his work shows a $950-$1150 cost to wean a calf. “That calf isn’t going to bring much money on the

market today—really good heifer calves weaning at 550 have been bringing between 900 and 950 a head; most calves aren’t bringing that, though. Those price points make it tough to invest another year to make target weight and then hope she breeds,” he says. The additional expenses add up fast and are compounded by those heifers that come up open and then again by those heifers that fail to deliver a live calf. To compensate for these expenses, Bevers’ KPIs incorporate those reduction losses and subsequent culling proceeds as expense reducers for the remaining percentage of the herd of replacement females. “By the time a replacement heifer weans a calf, less the reductions from both cullings, that number is what the accumulated expenses are,” Bevers says. “That number has been between $1,200 and $1,700 bucks (on the ranches Bevers works with) when she’s finally added to the balance sheet. So, by the time you have accumulated all of those expenses, and averaged things out over a few years, you’re looking at $1500 heifers by the time they are placed into service, and that’s with you doing the work.”

Developing heifers is a business that every member of the Pacheco family is involved in.

30 | SEPTEMBER 2020

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FEATURE

Right now, Bevers says producers have to decide where they want their loss to be, and while he wouldn’t tell anyone that they shouldn’t raise their own heifers, the economics don’t lie. “When I started looking at KPIs for beef cow herds about 35 years ago, it cost about $365 a year to keep a cow. Today, that number is $975, and that’s average. If you do the math, that’s a 2% inflation rate. It makes sense, but it isn’t any easier to swallow,” says Bevers. Bevers shares that, from his perspective, raising replacement heifers makes sense on larger commercial herds—those herds who are looking at retaining 500+ replacement heifers every year. He says that a couple of factors become hard to accommodate when producers of that size start looking at purchasing their replacements: quantity and quality. Commercial operations—all operations—need to source the type of heifers that move their herd forward in quality and sustainability, and that can be a challenge as the number of replacements needed climbs. Whether a producer is saving their own replacement heifers or purchasing them, outsourced heifer development programs are an attractive option. In the Flint Hills of Kansas, Arturo and Wrenn Pacheco own and operate a custom heifer development business that incorporates the fundamentals of a solid replacement female. “Right now, the heifers we are developing are all seedstock, but we are usually 50/50 seedstock and commercial,” Arturo says, noting that the operation has developed heifers from all backgrounds. “We have had some heifers that come in from big country and have only seen a person a few times. Those are always challenging; it takes spending a lot of time with them to make them gentle. We always send back heifers that are gentle, but it’s a lot easier starting with heifers that are gentle to begin with,” he laughs. Arturo says that the goal of the development program is always dependent on the goals of the herd the heifers are cycling into. “Most of the time what we are seeing and what we recommend for commercial operations, is a set of heifers

32 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Arturo on horseback: Acclimating heifers to the process of being worked from horseback and dogs. with balanced EPDs, docility, and genetics that can reach potential in the environment they are headed to. Balance will return a good calf, and pounds of beef is the goal of a commercial operation,” he says. The Pachecos make an effort to treat every heifer “like a cow” to show her resilience and ability to adjust and cycle the following year without the special care and attention of the development program. “We try to treat them like a cow,” Arturo says, “We develop heifers on a forage-based system, but if they aren’t performing well, we will feed them a little more aggressively to see if we can improve BCS (body condition score) to get more cyclic activity.” Those heifers are noted, and that information is shared with the owner for consideration of culling based on her performance. Additional to the nutrition and disposition, the Pachecos also synchronize and artificially inseminate as part of the development package, using a customer provided cleanup bull. The cattle are managed on a flat per-day fee with the only additional charges seen from medications that may be needed. “We enjoy developing heifers,” says Wrenn, “We take pride in what we do and it’s rewarding to see a gangly heifer walk off the trailer and be able to send her back to a herd a nice, gentle heifer.” FF

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EDITORIAL

Adding Value to Cull Cows Stephen Boyles, Ohio State University Extension Beef Specialist

pproximately 10 to 20 percent of the returns to a cow-calf operation are from selling cull cows in the fall. There are four factors that need to be considered to obtain profit from feeding cull cows. First, the cows have to be thin but healthy. Second, the buy/sell margin should be positive. Third, cost of gain should be relatively cheap. The odds of a profit are increased whenever these three conditions are present. The final requirement needed involves financial solvency. Only producers that can absorb financial risk should feed cull cows for short time periods.

Factor 1: Cows Should Be Thin But Healthy

Cows often lose up to 20 percent of their weight during periods of under-nutrition. Cows culled during a drought may have even greater weight losses. Thin cows offer an opportunity to add weight rapidly through compensatory gain. Healthy, thin cows gain weight faster than normal condition cows. Compensatory gain from thin cows should result in the highest conversion rate and gain, thus reducing the cost of gain. Some thin cull cows are young and still growing. Most have weaned a calf and are thin due to the demands of lactation. However, some thin cows may not be able to return to slaughter cow composition for several reasons. Cows that have lung damage may appear thin and unthrifty. Cows with heavy parasite loads will be less efficient unless treated. Cows with infectious conditions such as lumpy jaw should be avoided. Older cows (greater than 4-year-old) can be fed but expect the rate of gain to be less than that of younger cows. Information on the use of ionophores and implants in cull cows is limited. Weight loss of animals is normally a composite of fat and protein with protein normally regained at a slower rate than fat. Cows that are in normal or higher condition will tend to add more fat as weight gain, resulting in lowered feed conversions. Economy of weight gains will vary inversely with initial cow condition. As cows improve in body condition, economy of gains will decline. Once cows have regained a â&#x20AC;&#x153;normalâ&#x20AC;? body condition, further feeding and weight gains become increasingly less efficient because of

34 | SEPTEMBER 2020

the increasing proportion of fat deposited. Knowing when to quit feeding cull beef cows is important because of the dramatic changes occurring in the economy of gains. Outlets for excessively fat cow carcasses is and has always been very limited. Based on Kansas research, most beef cows are fat enough for slaughter once they attain a body weight of 22 pounds per inch height at the cowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s withers. While this simple formula may not precisely describe the most optimum end point for feeding and slaughter for every type of genetic combination of cow, it is reasonably appropriate for the great majority of cull beef cows being fed to slaughter. Monitoring the weight-toheight ratio of a random sample of cows during the feeding period and periodically body condition scoring the group will prevent excessively fat cows from becoming a problem. Sometimes the cattle feeder who has not seen the market rise sufficiently, by the time the cows are ready to sell will hold onto the cows, awaiting a market improvement. Rarely, however, is such an upswing adequate to recover the extremely high cost of gain for the over-finished cows.

Factor 2: The Buy/Sell Margin

Most cows are culled in the fall of the year at weaning time, so they usually are worth less per pound than at other times of the year. Prices usually rise from the fall selling period of October- December into the winter and spring periods. Prices peak in March-May and decrease throughout the summer. This price pattern is based on historical averages. Feeders, however, need to evaluate profit potentials every year that cull cow feeding is being considered. Approximately half of the profit potential will be determined the day cull cows are bought or started on feed and will be based on the purchase price, body condition, and health of the cows. Cow feeding experience dictates that a neutral buy/sell margin (purchase price=selling price) or a positive feeding margin (sell cows for more than was paid for them) is essential to show a profit from feeding purchased thin cows. The ideal situation for feeding cull cows is if Utility cow prices are relativley high and feed prices are relatively low. This offers the potential of costs of gain being lower than selling price. Normally, costs of gain are higher than selling

price and a positive buy/sell margin is needed to make a profit. If costs of gain are less than selling price, you can have a negative buy/sell margin and possibly still make a profit. Other livestock costs such as veterinary and medical expenses farm utilities, power and fuel and marketing expenses can be around 10 cents per pound of gain. Interest cost on the purchase price of the cows can add another 6 cents per pound of gain. Excluding labor, management and facility, costs per pound of gain can run in the 45 to 50 cent range. Another method of feeding cull cows is to initially feed high roughage rations through the winter. Gain per day is lower than if started on a grain-based diet. However, cost of gain can be relatively low if hay or grazing resources do not otherwise have a ready market value. Slaughter cow prices vary not only over time but also with quality grades. The best prices are normally attained for Commercial grade. Since mature cows may come off pasture in poor condition, they may sell as Canners or Cutters at substantial price discounts to Utility grade. Cows in thin condition are capable of higher gains, which can also raise quality grade. The producer must calculate the difference between any expected increase in value and cost of feeding to determine profitability. If cows come off pasture in good condition, no quality enhancement is expected, cost of maintenance may be high and revenue comes only from price increase.

Factor 3: Feed To Gain Cheaply

Feeding cull cows grain-based diets for only 30 days will result in the most rapid and efficient gains. However, the producer is subject to very short-term price changes. If the price situation is unfavorable, thin cull cows can be fed for a longer period of time. Feeding for approximately two months should also reduce the number of Cutter grade carcasses and increase the number of Utility grade carcasses. Increasing the gain within this 2 month time period will further improve carcass quality and reduce cost of gain. Longer feeding of grain-based diets should further reduce the incidence of yellow fat. There is a hypothesis that feeding barley (lower carotene content) instead of corn (higher carotene content) will further “whiten” the carcass fat. Feeding cull cows grain-based diets much longer than 2 months will significantly increase feed cost per pound of gain. Also, marbling score and quality grade may not

EDITORIAL

significantly improve after 2 months on feed. However, this must be balanced against the historical increase in cow prices that occurs over the period from October-November to March-April. The length of time that cull cows can be efficiently fed grain-based diets at an economical cost of gain will vary depending upon their initial body condition. Assuming the cows are healthy and not debilitated, thin cows can be fed longer than fleshier cows. In one study, cull cows were fed for 108 days with no significant drop in feedlot performance. Based upon previous research, it would appear that this time period may range from 2 to 4 months. The most profitable feeding management scheme is affected by the cost of feed inputs. Slower gains over the winter may be profitable if the cost of hay or grazing resources are relatively cheap. Expect the dry matter intake of cows fed grain-based diets to be approximately 2.5 to 3.0 percent of body weight. Normally, there should be at least 60 to 80 percent concentrate in a grain-based diet. One can expect gains of 3 pounds or better if the diet contains 80 percent grain and compensatory gain is expected. The feed to gain ratio will be under or near 10 when shorter days on feed and higher grain diets are utilized. The protein requirement of cull cows does not appear to be particularly high. Crude protein levels of 9.5 to 11 percent are probably adequate. Keep in mind that the mineral supplementation program for grainbased diets and roughage-based diets are not the same. Calcium supplementation will be higher than phosphorus supplementation if feeding a high grain ration.

Factor 4: Financial Solvency

Cow-calf producers might consider feeding their cull cows through the winter to produce a “value added product”. A common practice is to feed roughage-based diets through the winter and then feed grain 30 to 50 days in the spring. This scheme is a viable option if hay or grazing resources are sufficiently cheap and the extended time of ownership can be justified. The alternative is shortterm feeding of grain-based diets to cows after being culled from the herd. In economic terms, short-term cow feeding is a high-risk enterprise. A feeder is typically in and out of the market within 50-90 days. There is virtually no way to pass the financial risk to anyone else. The advice to any potential cull cow feeder is that if financial risk can be absorbed, feed cull cows. FF

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 35

JUNIOR EDITORIAL

How does the Gelbvieh and BalancerÂŽ Breed Impact the Commercial Beef Sector? By Cade Cameron

ver the years, Gelbvieh and BalancerÂŽ cattle have developed tremendously. The breed, which originated in Germany, is widely recognized for maternal strengths such as fertility, quiet temperament and longevity that all provides the basis for profitability. Gelbvieh cattle also exhibit muscling and growth along with feed efficiency that make Gelbvieh influenced cattle valuable in all aspects of the beef industry. Fertility is one trait that Gelbvieh cattle excel in that can be of help to the commercial beef industry. Without cows producing calves each year, a commercial producer is not going to be very profitable. They rely on those calves in

36 | SEPTEMBER 2020

order to have a product to sell. Gelbvieh cattle are one of the most fertile cattle breeds. They can be bred earlier than most breeds and are able to handle the weight of stronger more muscular calves at birth. When we think about the commercial beef industry, we can understand that its main goal is producing meat. However, they want to be able to produce it fast, but still with great quality. This is where the Gelbvieh and Balancer influence has its advantages. Adding Gelbvieh genetics to your commercial herd gives producers heavier calves at weaning that will continue to excel along their stages of growth. This is important to have because calves that perform at a high level at weaning and beyond are more valuable to the beef supply chain. In adding Gelbvieh genetics to your commercial herd you will see that outcome.

JUNIOR EDITORIAL Moving on into the feedlot sector, Gelbvieh and Balancerinfluenced cattle are backed by proven performance. These cattle will continue to grow and grow, with possible rates of gain of 3.5 lbs per day or higher. With Gelbvieh and Balancer-influenced cattle, commercial producers have started to notice more uniformity within the feeder calves. Another factor that Gelbvieh and Balancer genetics can add to a commercial herd is that when harvested the carcasses can be the ones to top the charts. Gelbvieh and Balancer-influenced cattle have added muscle, and

several progressive commercial producers and feedyards have reported 90% of their cattle grading Choice or above coupled with a majority of Yield grades 1, 2, and 3. All of these traits and qualities mentioned above make is simple to understand just how impactful adding Gelbvieh and Balancer genetics to your commercial herd can be. You will have added growth, more muscle, better fertility, and overall great meat quality. So, when you are thinking about what genetics to add to your commercial herd, choose Gelbvieh. FF

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THE PROFIT PICTURE | 37

FEATURE

Crossbreeding that Counts By Malerie Strahm

merican ranchers have been crossbreeding cattle for decades and it’s easy to see why. Crossbreeding provides several benefits including heavier weaning weights, higher fertility, and greater lifetime profitability through heterosis, or hybrid vigor. Heterosis is described as the increase in performance of the crossbred animal compared to the average of its straightbred parents. It impacts traits with low heritability, e.g., reproduction. Producers with crossbred cows can see a higher percentage of their cowherd breed back on the first cycle due to maternal heterosis. “I think commercial producers should seriously consider crossbreeding to increase the efficiency and productivity of their commercial cow herds,” said Tom Strahm, American Gelbvieh Association (AGA)

38 | SEPTEMBER 2020

commercial marketing director. “Gelbvieh excels in some of the lowly heritable traits as far as fertility and reproduction and they reach puberty early. Females that breed earlier the first time and raise a calf, remain in the herd longer over their lifetime and contribute more to overall profitability.” Commercial producers who incorporate crossbreeding, Bryon Powles and Jana Jensen of Powles Gelbvieh Ranch in Bingham, Nebraska, find Gelbvieh genetics fit their program in the Nebraska Sandhills. “We introduced Gelbvieh into our herd mainly because we wanted to try a change and the Gelbvieh genetics, once we got them changed everything for us,” said Powles. “Once you introduce hybrid vigor by crossbreeding, you’re going to maximize both breeds versus the straight-bred.” “We were really impressed with the overall package that the Gelbvieh breed offered us,” said Jensen.

FEATURE Another commercial producer, Loren Fischer of Fischer Cattle Company, Butler, Missouri, is also reaping the benefits of crossbreeding by using Balancer® bulls in his herd. “We started using Balancer bulls about five years ago and have been keeping replacements out of them. We feel like there’s been some real advantages in crossbreeding and getting away from some of the straight-breeding we were doing,” said Fischer. According to Fischer, there’s been an improvement in getting cows bred and keeping them bred as well as putting pounds on calves. In addition, he’s seen improved stayability in cows that are lasting longer in the herd. “Gelbvieh has a lot to offer in regard to breed complementarily, they cross very well with the British breeds so you get the best of both worlds. You get the strengths of Gelbvieh and the strengths of whatever breed you’re crossbreeding them with,” said Strahm.

The AGA recommends crossbreeding Gelbvieh with Angus or Red Angus to develop what is known as Balancer cattle. Registered Balancers are 25 to 75% Gelbvieh with the balance of Angus or Red Angus that have documented pedigrees and EPDs. Balancer cattle combine the Gelbvieh growth, muscle, leanness, fertility, longevity and with the carcass qualities of Angus. These cattle perform well in all aspects of the beef industry including commercial cow/calf operations, in the feed yard and on the rail. “We try to use Balancer bulls on our cows so that we have that Gelbvieh and Angus cross because that’s what we feel like our customers that we sold to on the Superior Video Auction for 20 years, are after,” said Powles. “Those calves are going to go on to the feedlot and their feed conversion is going to be great, those calves are going to put on weight, and make the finished product our customers want.” FF

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 39

MANAGEMENT

Sweetclover Hay Can be Toxic By Ellen Crawford, NDSU Extension Service

weetclover can provide good nutrition to cattle because it is high in protein and energy when not mature.

However, sweetclover can become toxic to cattle if fed as hay, North Dakota State University Extension livestock systems specialist Karl Hoppe cautions. Sweetclover is a biennial legume that lives for two years. It is a prolific seed producer because the plant will die after producing seed during the second year. New sweetclover plants must grow from seed. The wet fall conditions of 2019 in many parts of the state created the perfect conditions for the first year’s growth of sweetclover. As a result, the easily recognizable yellow or white blossoms of sweetclover are a common sight this growing season. Without the blossoms, sweetclover leaves look similar to those of alfalfa, except sweetclover leaves are serrated around the entire leaf edge, whereas alfalfa leaves are only serrated at the tips. Sweetclover grows rapidly, and the best time to hay it is early in the growing season when the plant is short, according to Hoppe, who is based at NDSU’s Carrington Research Extension Center. Sweetclover matures quickly, becoming tall and stemmy. The stem is hard and has low palatability, so cattle will not readily consume it at this stage. Grazing sweetclover in pastures doesn’t usually cause digestive problems, although the possibility of bloat can occur. Sweetclover contains a substance called coumarin when sweetclover is baled too wet. Mold can grow and convert coumarin into dicoumarol. Dicoumarol is a blood thinner (anticlotting agent) and will cause hemorrhaging. Simple bruises turn into large hematomas (large bulges underneath the skin that are filled with blood and fluid). At higher concentrations of dicoumarol in the feed, cows can abort, blood can drip from the nostrils and/or sudden death may occur. The toxic effect may last for a month in a pregnant cow even after feeding toxic hay for just a few days. Visual observation of mold in the hay bale is not a good indicator of toxicity.

40 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Small amounts of mold can result in toxicity. Testing for dicoumarol concentration in hay is available at the NDSU Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory. When sweetclover haying conditions allow for a quick dry-down with no rain or dew, and hay is stored away from moisture, coumarin does not get converted to dicoumarol, so toxicity should not be an issue. “However, weather rarely cooperates and dicoumarol is usually present,” Hoppe says. “Pure stands of sweetclover are at most risk for toxicity simply because the hay is not diluted with other grasses. The risk also is increased when the plants are mature because the dense stems make drying difficult.” Producers should pay close attention to grass hay with some sweetclover present because sweetclover poisoning may show up unexpectedly. A good rule of thumb is to test all hay that contains sweetclover for dicoumarol content. Dilution is the way to feed cattle to avoid sweetclover poisoning. This can be accomplished by mixing the toxic hay with nontoxic hay. The amount of dilution depends on the concentration of dicoumarol and symptoms on the cattle. Hay also can be fed on an alternating schedule, such as feeding hay containing sweetclover hay for two days, then going three to four days without feeding sweetclover. Don’t feed sweetclover hay for a month before or during events where bleeding occurs, such as during calving, surgical castration and dehorning. If sweetclover is ensiled correctly and covered or put up as a baleage, then dicoumaral should not be present. However, incorrect moisture levels, inadequate packing and failure to cover the sweetclover will lead to molding and toxicity. Sweetclover can provide good nutrition to cattle when managed properly to control potential toxicities. Testing and knowing the dicoumaral level is critical to managing this feed source safely to prevent poisoning. Be sure to document the storage location of bale lots containing sweetclover and the dicoumaral levels to prevent poisoning. FF Source: North Dakota State University

Bar arrow Cattle Company 31 ANNUAL PRODUCTION SALE TH

InCreasIng marBlIng InCreasIng rIBeye sellIng: 80 Gelbvieh & Balancer Bulls InCreasIng FpI 20 Gelbvieh & Balancer Fancy Open Heifers perFormanCe maternal aBIlIty CarCass puttIng the whole paCkage together March 9, 2021 • 1:00 PM CST At Bar Arrow Cattle Company North of Phillipsburg, Kansas ®

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NEWS

AGA Members Recognized at Beef Improvement Federation Research Symposium Paul Bennett- BIF Pioneer Award

he Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) presented Paul Bennett, Red House, Virginia, the BIF Pioneer Award June 9 during the group’s annual research symposium online. Shane Bedwell, American Hereford Association chief operating officer and director of breed improvement, presented the award. The Pioneer Award recognizes individuals who have made lasting contributions to the improvement of beef cattle, honoring those who have had a major role in acceptance of performance reporting and documentation as the primary means to make genetic change in beef cattle. A family operation, Knoll Crest Farms (KCF) has been producing seedstock genetics since 1944. The Bennett cow herd includes three breeds — Hereford, Gelbvieh and Angus. Annually, KCF markets 400 bulls. In 2020, the KCF prefix was recognized with 40 Certified Hereford Beef sires and 31 Dam of Distinction females from the American Hereford Association; 10 Dam of Merit and 2 Dam of Distinction females from the American Gelbvieh Association; and 29 Pathfinder females from American Angus Association, all of which validate the merits and genetic influence of the Knoll Crest program. “The KCF prefix is synonymous with multi-trait excellence and as a result has gained the respect of the most progressive seedstock and commercial cattlemen alike while placing leading genetics in every bull stud in the

42 | SEPTEMBER 2020

U.S.,” says Shane Bedwell, American Hereford Association chief operating officer and director of breed improvement. “Through Paul’s leadership and mindset of being an early adopter of key breed improvement tools, he has positioned Knoll Crest Farms as a true nucleus seedstock operation.” Bennett has served as BIF president and is a leader in his community. He has dedicated time to national breed associations as well as national and state cattlemen’s associations’ advisory committees and is a deacon at Union Hill Baptist Church.

Grund Beef Genetics-Seedstock Producer of the Year Nominee

Grund Beef Genetics, Sharon Springs, Kansas, was a nominee for the BIF Seedstock Producer of the Year. Each year the Beef Improvement Federation (BIF) recognizes outstanding seedstock operations during its annual symposium, crowning one overall winner as Seedstock Producer of the Year. Nominees are evaluated on criteria including short- and long-term goals, records systems and implementation, breeding systems, selection, objectives/culling criteria and process, marketing practices and customer relations, carcass data collection and application, forage resources and stewardship, innovations/ improvements and use of technology, contributions to community and industry, and vision of BIF’s role. FF Source: Beef Improvement Federation

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MANAGEMENT Is More Always Better? By Rebecca Mettler

n the surface, it would be easy to assume that an increase in milk production or an increase in growth potential is something to boost the bottom line. But without the whole production picture, producers can be led to believe that more is always better. Travis Mulliniks, Ph.D., assistant professor and range cow production system specialist, West Central Research and Extension Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, has been studying the effects of selecting genetics for increased milk production and how that impacts an operation’s bottom line. Experiences throughout his career have provided valuable information from varied environments and management practices. Mulliniks shared this information during a session at the 52nd Annual Beef Improvement Federation Research Symposium, which was held virtually earlier this summer.

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Breeding Gelbvieh genetics since 1971 AGA Member #1 Offering bulls for sale year round!

Mulliniks believes that a lot of producers get focused on outputs but then disregard the added production costs associated with bigger outputs, e.g., increased milk production and weaning weights. “What did it take to wean that 600 to 700-pound calf and was it more profitable or more efficient to wean a 400-pound calf instead,” Mulliniks said. “In a lot of situations producers have to modify those environments to get that greater calf crop without regard to how much it actually took to get there.” In fact, financial and production data from Illinois and Iowa cite the two largest factors driving profitably to be feed costs, which account for over 50% of variation in profit and depreciation and operation costs, which account for 17% of variation in profit. In contrast, calf body weight has a 5% influence on profitability, which seems rather minimal.

Grand Valley Gelbvieh/Balancer

Twenty Females for Sale Patrick McCarty mccartybobb@aol.com 665 Battlement Creek Trail Parachute, CO 81635 (970) 210-6093

Dobson Ranch

Jim Dobson • 405.880.6173 John Dobson • 405.880.6661 Jared Bain • 580.716.4211 12460 E. River Road Kaw City, OK 74641

44 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Heather Scott (775) 790-3456 Brandon Scott (970) 589-5483

MANAGEMENT

“If we are driving up feed costs for that 5%, it really isn’t worth our time to go after.”

moderate growth potential, low milk potential, were utilizing limited forage availability and had low feed input.

And while calf growth is important because the industry still pays by the pound, producers should not lose sight of the impact that selection decisions have on traits such as reproduction and longevity.

At peak lactation, 24-hour milk production average was 24 pounds in the Tennessee cattle vs 13 pounds in the New Mexico cattle. Calf weaning weight average was 612 for the Tennessee group and 561 for the New Mexico group.

“Reproduction is still the main limiting factor to production efficiency in beef cowherds,” Mulliniks said. “It’s five times more economically important than traits such as milk production and calf growth. So, in our selection are we selecting for something that has a negative consequence on reproduction, an actual driver of profitability?”

“So basically, there was a two-fold increase in milk and only about 50 pounds of extra calf weaning weight. It’s truly not an efficient system selecting for more milk to get the extra calf weaning weight.”

One study of 237 spring-calving Angus cows fed a high-quality forage diet from calving to breeding provided insight into the effect on pregnancy rates. The cows that produced 24 to 26 pounds of milk at peak lactation their reproductive efficiency began to decrease (75% pregnancy rate). Whereas cows in this study that produced 20 to 22 pounds of milk at peak lactation had the highest pregnancy rates at 86%. On the other end of the spectrum, cows averaging 14 pounds of milk at peak lactation exhibited lower reproductive performance as well (81% pregnancy rate). In addition, depending on the environment, the amount of nutrients available to the cow dictates the potential for increasing milk production. Environmental constraints make it essential to pick the right cow for the operation. “Is our environment really constraining the ability to capture that genetic potential that we are selecting for,” Mulliniks asked. One data set Mulliniks referenced compares cattle in Tennessee and New Mexico to determine how production is affected by genetic and environmental interactions. The Tennessee cows had high milk potential, high growth potential and were utilizing high quality forage and had high feed inputs, as well. The New Mexico cattle had

Looking at the data another way, in the Tennessee group there was 25 pounds of calf weaned for every 1 pound of milk compared to the New Mexico cowherd that weaned off 43 pounds of calf weight for every 1 pound of milk produced. The pregnancy rate in Tennessee was 88% and 96% in New Mexico. And while pounds weaned per cow exposed was equal, it’s because of the increased reproductive efficiency combined with lighter weight calves in New Mexico. However, one of the major takeaways from the study was cow retention rate: the retention rate at 5 years of age was 44% in Tennessee compared to 61% in New Mexico. Plus, there was a $300 to $400 decrease in the cost of production in New Mexico over Tennessee. “When you look at it from a complete production system in the cow calf sector, when selecting for increased growth and milk, we aren’t really getting that out of the whole production system,” Mulliniks said. “Though we may be weaning more pounds of calf, we aren’t weaning more total pounds of production due to the difference in pregnancy rates, then it costs us more to get there.” Bottom line, in some cases producers need to place additional emphasis on ensuring that the outputs of the operation balances with the inputs. Looking at the entire production system in this way just might provide the insight needed to for added profitability. FF

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 45

NEWS

Pass Along Valuable Information to Prospective Buyers by using Feeder Finder By Rebecca Mettler

he American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) understands that information about feeder cattle is more valuable than ever. With that understanding in mind, the association created Feeder Finder, which is a service that assists commercial producers in marketing their load lots of Gelbvieh and Balancer®-influenced feeder calves. Through Feeder Finder, the AGA is able to take the information from a commercial producer when selling at local sale barn, through a video sale, or private treaty and disperse that information to the feedyard buyer. The ultimate goal of the program to assist commercial producers gain as many premiums as they can and provide them with as many services as possible to make their operations more profitable.

Listing cattle on the Feeder Finder is free of charge and information is sent out in an email blast to over 200 feedyards across the country and can be viewed on Gelbvieh.org. Information such as vaccination programs, breed composition, color, feed regimen, contact information, and historical carcass data from the ranch can be detailed. Feeder Finder is a unique opportunity to provide the commercial producer with an avenue to build a relationship with a buyer that maybe they haven’t had the opportunity of doing in the past, according to Tom Strahm, AGA commercial marketing director. For more information, please contact the AGA office at 303-465-2333, or to sign your feeder cattle up for Feeder Finder, go to https://gelbvieh.org/exchange/feederfinder. FF

Gelbvieh and Balancer® Foot and Leg Trait Evaluation By Will Fiske

t the 2019 American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) Annual Convention in Billings, Montana, the AGA hosted a breed improvement session on “Evaluating Gelbvieh and Balancer® Cattle for Foot and Leg Traits.” This was the breed’s first seminar in recent history that educated cattlemen on structure traits and provided information to evaluate their cattle for characteristics of structural soundness. Foot and leg traits have continued to gain attention in the beef industry. The increasing occurrence of lameness due to soundness issues has become more prevalent across all production segments, including seedstock, cow-calf, and cattle feeders. Improving foot and leg quality through proper selection can affect an animal’s ability to move more efficiently, significantly increasing the longevity of animals in the herd. While input costs continue to rise

46 | SEPTEMBER 2020

in beef production, longevity can help reduce the cost of replacement females. Since last year's convention, AGA's breed improvement team worked with International Genetic Solutions’ (IGS) science team and IGS breed partners to develop a standardized set of foot and leg scoring guidelines. The AGA foot and leg scoring rubric provides breeders with a resource to accurately describe the variation that exists in their herds. Allowing breeders to better select and evaluate the traits: foot angle, claw shape, and rear leg side view. Breeders who desire to improve foot and leg quality can use the scoring system and guidelines to annually evaluate their herd. Though not required, scores recorded per the suggested measurements can voluntarily be sent to the AGA to contribute to ongoing research. The scoring rubric and guidelines are available on Gelbvieh.org on the Data Collection and Traits page under the Genetic Technology tab. FF

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MARKETING

Price Protection Can Help Cattle Producers in Volatile Markets By Dan Childs Senior Agricultural Economics Consultant, Noble Research Institute

any risks are ever present for agricultural producers. To attempt a listing of all the risks would likely be somewhat surprising and quite lengthy. The risks that come to mind quickly are weather risk and price risk. The United States Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) has created ways to help many producers — both grain and livestock — manage both of these risks.

BEFORE THE CORONAVIRUS

Managing weather risk has been an ongoing concern of producers. However, the interest in managing price risk has been more sporadic. Producers, being generally optimistic, are reluctant to lock in a certain price that eliminates the opportunity of a higher price if by chance the market offers it later in the production cycle. The pandemic has reminded producers of and heightened the interest in price risk management. If you are a cattle producer, think back to the outlook for cattle prices in late January 2020. On Jan. 1, the U.S. cattle inventory report estimated beef cow numbers to be down from the previous year by 1.2%, the first decline since 2014. The calf crop was estimated to be down 0.9%. In a market where supply and demand determine prices, the fundamentals were in place to support stronger prices. Projections in the fall for purchased stocker calves or retained home-raised calves indicated a profit when sold at heavier weights in the spring. Few producers who owned yearling cattle thought much about price protection at the time.

SUPPLY AND DEMAND DISRUPTED

Then the pandemic caused huge disruptions to both the supply and demand for many food items, including beef. Consumers changed their buying behavior due in part to many working from home and eating more meals

48 | SEPTEMBER 2020

at home. The food service (primarily restaurants) demand dried up almost overnight and panic buying ensued at the retail level. Some cattle processors darkened plants due to surging cases of COVID-19, while others had to reduce capacity because workers felt unsafe at work and stayed home. Food service products could not easily be retrofitted for the retail market. With reduced processing capacity and a product shortage, a much stronger beef demand was created at the retail level and boxed beef prices skyrocketed. At the same time, feedyards with ample cattle ready for harvest were unable to move those cattle to processing facilities since the processing capacity had been reduced. So live cattle prices adjusted by approximately 25%, and the price softness was felt down the production chain to yearling cattle and calves. No one in January would have ever thought the cattle market would experience this kind of decline.

PRICE PROTECTION HAS POTENTIAL

The chain of events that created the lower prices caused cattle producers to think back and wish they would have done some kind of price protection. Nothing can be done for what has already happened, but producers can learn from the experience and consider ways price protection can be used in the future. Fortunately, there are several choices a cattle producer has to help with price protection. Some of these products have been around for a long time, while others have been available for only about 20 years.

HEDGING

Hedging on the futures market by selling a futures contract is very popular. This strategy locks in a certain price with no opportunity for any upside potential. Typically, the only reason a producer would experience a different price would be that the actual basis was different than projected. The reason many producers do not like hedging is margin calls. Large margin calls can shake the emotions of the calmest producer. Purchasing options on futures contracts is attractive because of the potential for a higher price. A “put” option provides a minimum floor price and leaves the upside open. No margin calls are required.

2020 Kansas Gelbvieh Association

Pick

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MARKETING

The reluctance by some producers to use options is premium cost. If a “strike” price close to the underlying futures contract is chosen, premium cost could be considered pricy, especially in volatile markets. Many strategies exist as to ways producers can pick and choose combinations of put and call options to achieve a higher floor.

LIVESTOCK RISK PROTECTION

Around the turn of this century, RMA created a product they named Livestock Risk Protection (LRP). RMA provided a 13% subsidy on the premium, hoping it would entice producers to use it. The product is sold and serviced

by private insurance agents. The use of the product has been disappointing. Effective July 1, 2020, the subsidy has been increased to 20-35% depending on the level of coverage chosen. One of the more attractive features of LRP is that any size group of cattle less than 3,000 head can be protected.

OPTIONS ARE AVAILABLE

If the recent fluctuations in the cattle markets have made you interested in price protection, please become informed of the products available. We at Noble are available to discuss these products with you. FF

Source Noble Research Institute

MANAGEMENT

Hoof Care to Prevent Foot Rot Experts discuss this common cattle condition and offer tips for prevention

ores on the feet can sure make a person feel miserable not to mention making it hard to walk. The same can be true of cattle when they develop foot rot in the crevasse between their toes, causing some of them to become lame according to the veterinarians at the Beef Cattle Institute. Speaking on the weekly Cattle Chat podcast, Kansas State University veterinarian Bob Larson explained how this condition develops. “Foot rot is a bacterial infection that occurs between the claws of the hoof. In the summer, it can develop when cattle are standing in wet or muddy areas,” Larson said. He added, that foot rot typically happens when the cows get a cut from a rock on the soft tissue between the hoof claws and then an infection develops in the wound. “The organism that causes foot rot lives in the soil so it is present all the time,” Larson said. One of the first signs of foot rot is that the impacted animal begins to walk with a limp or become lame, said

50 | SEPTEMBER 2020

veterinarian Brad White. Larson and White agree that foot rot typically responds well to antibiotic treatment. “A lot of times, if you see a cow that is lame and diagnose foot rot, she will be back to being sound pretty quickly after appropriate treatment,” Larson said. White added, “Early identification of the problem and quick treatment are key as well as preventative management.” "One of the easiest ways to prevent foot rot is to manage the cattle in a clean, dry environment to minimize the mud exposure," Larson said. He also added that some producers advocate including iodine in the mineral mixes or as a feed supplement. “With any iodine or salt feed additive it is hard to know for sure that the cow is getting the right dose so it might offer some preventative aspects, but it would not be a treatment,” Larson said. FF

Source: K-State Research and Extension

MARKETING

Bull Customer Checklist

uying a bull is the first step, but once that purchase is made, commercial cattle producers have access to a variety of benefits after the purchase. Add the items listed below to you to-do list after the fall sale season: • Follow up with your bull supplier to ensure registration of your bull(s) have been transferred to you following purchase (free of charge through the AGA) o

The transfer of registration/ownership is the final process to alert the AGA to the change in ownership of a Gelbvieh or Balancer® bull. Each commercial producer that purchases a registered Gelbvieh or Balancer animal receives a full year subscription of Gelbvieh World and The Profit Picture magazines free of charge.

• Contact the AGA marketing team before your cattle sell. o The AGA marketing team is a great source for

Sega Gelbvieh

invites you to attend our upcoming production sales

SEGA GELBVIEH & FRIENDS FALL FEMALE SALE •DECEMBER 12, 2020 NEW SALE SPRING BULL SALE • MARCH 7, 2021 DATE!

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commercial cow-calf producers when it comes time to sell your calves. Ranchers can capitalize on programs such as the Feeder Finder to promote lot loads of cattle to maximize exposure to potential buyers. • Enroll feeder cattle in Balancer® Edge age and source verification program through IMI Global and the AGA. o

Balancer® Edge provides an opportunity for producers using Gelbvieh and Balancer® bulls to participate in a breed-identified feeder calf marketing program. Producers also have the option to choose additional value-added programs to access more markets, which enhances the value for their feeder calves even further.

• Enroll your cows in the $mart Select Service. o

Smart Select Service is a cowherd and genetic management tool for commercial producers, aimed at increasing the information and in turn the value of your cattle.

• Make plans to attend the Cattlemen’s Profit Round educational symposium o The AGA is hosting its annual Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup, which will be held on the afternoon of Thursday December 3, at the Sheraton Oklahoma City Downtown Hotel during the 50th Annual AGA National Convention in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Cattlemen’s Profit Roundup is free to attend and has a great group of speakers and panelist to discuss each sector of the cattle profit equation. The AGA would like to invite you to contact our skilled staff by calling 303-465-2333 or visiting Gelbiveh.org. The AGA is happy to assist with your genetics, marketing and cowherd building needs. The AGA staff is committed to working with commercial customers, registered breeders and cattle feeders to maximize the genetic strengths of your respective cowherds. FF

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MANAGEMENT

MU Beef Researchers Find Improved Pregnancy Rates with New Synch Protocol By Linda Geist

new estrus synchronization protocol evaluated at the University of Missouri greatly improves heat response and pregnancy rates to fixed-time AI in beef cows. MU Extension beef reproduction specialist Jordan Thomas says results from a recent large field trial found 82% of cows come into heat before the timed AI service using the protocol 7 & 7 Synch. This compares to 64% of cows in heat using the standard 7-Day CO-Synch + CIDR. Cows that come in heat before timed AI generally achieve higher pregnancy rates. “Pregnancy rates with this new protocol are exceptional,” says Thomas. Over the past two years, graduate students Rachael Bonacker and Carson Andersen in the Thomas lab worked extensively in developing and evaluating the protocol. Andersen led the large timed-AI field trial, with research results across two states, five operations, 11 cowherds and more than 1,500 cows. Pregnancy rates vary depending on whether conventional or sex-sorted semen was used, but pregnancy rates were improved with both semen types using the 7 & 7 Synch protocol. Using a single fixed-time AI service, 72% of cows on 7 & 7 Synch became pregnant to timed AI using conventional semen. When sex-sorted semen was used, pregnancy rates to timed AI dropped to 52% after 7 & 7 Synch. “The pregnancy rate was lower with sex-sorted semen, but still quite good,” says Thomas. This compares to pregnancy rates after the standard 7-Day CO-Synch + CIDR protocol of 61% with conventional and 44% with sex-sorted semen. “These levels of improvement, regardless of the semen type used, are very exciting,” says Thomas. “With the consistency of the results we have seen and the early reports from producers using this protocol, we are very comfortable with this as a new recommendation for broader use.” The 7 & 7 Synch method improves ovarian follicular maturity before the administration of gonadotrophin-

54 | SEPTEMBER 2020

releasing hormone (GnRH) typically given at the beginning of an estrous cycle control program. This new protocol accomplishes that by treatment with prostaglandin F2a and an intravaginal progesterone insert (CIDR) in advance of GnRH. This enhances the uniformity of cows’ response to the protocol, thereby improving overall control of the estrous cycle compared to standard 7-Day CO-Synch + CIDR protocol. Before Andersen’s large field trial evaluating this protocol on producer herds, a more mechanistic experiment led by Rachel Bonacker provided rationale for the treatment schedule. Other members of the team included graduate students Katy Stoecklein, Cameron Locke, Jaclyn Ketchum and Emma Knickmeyer, as well as MU Extension dairy veterinarian Scott Poock. Extension livestock specialists Zac Erwin, Jenna Monnig, Andy McCorkill and Eldon Cole also played key roles on producer locations and at the MU Southwest Research Center. Bonacker presented her work in 2019 the American Society of Animal Science annual meeting and the Applied Reproductive Strategies in Beef Cattle conference. Andersen’s results have been accepted for presentation in abstract form at the International Congress on Animal Reproduction next year in Bologna, Italy. Bonacker also led a large field trial evaluating the new 7 & 7 Synch protocol among recipient beef cows in an embryo transfer program, also with improved results. That abstract also was accepted for presentation at the meeting in Bologna. “We are just really excited to share a new protocol that can benefit producers across the country,” says Andersen. “Nothing is more rewarding than seeing research that can increase profitability and productivity get implemented on the farm.” The Thomas lab works to improve the profitability and sustainability of beef cattle production systems through extension, education and applied research. For more information, contact Thomas at ThomasJor@missouri.edu or connect with the Thomas lab’s “Mizzou Repro” pages on social media. FF

Source: University of Missouri Extension

HOW DO YOUR CATTLE PERFORM ON THE RAIL? PARTICIPATE IN THE 2021

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NEWS

Beef Export and Import Adjustments By Josh Maples, Assistant Professor & Extension Economist, Department of Agricultural Economics, Mississippi State University

.S. beef trade continues to adjust to supply and demand shocks. The latest data release from the USDA Economic Research Service (ERS) shows the impact of these shocks on U.S beef exports and imports. On August 6, ERS released the June 2020 Livestock and Meat International Trade data. The data show beef exports were lower in June while imports were higher. According to the ERS data, U.S. beef exports on a carcass weight basis were 183.3 million pounds in June 2020 which was 33 percent lower than in June 2019 and the lowest June total since 2009. This follows a similarly low May 2020 which was 31 percent below May 2019. On the import side, U.S. beef imports were up 15 percent in June 2020 over the previous June and the highest total since June total since 2015. Beef exports started 2020 strong. First quarter exports were 10 percent above the same period of 2019. The second quarter is when beef exports experienced declines – down 23 percent from the second quarter of 2019. For the yearto-date in available ERS data, U.S. beef exports are down 7.6 percent compared to same period in 2019 and beef imports are 3 percent above 2019. Japan, South Korea, Canada, and Mexico are the top

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four export destinations and together accounted for 75 percent of beef exports in the first half of 2020. Exports were lower to each of these countries during June 2020 with the exception of Canada which was essentially unchanged as compared to June 2019. Exports to Mexico were down 61 percent in June compared to June 2019. Worth noting, beef exports to China were up 90 percent from June 2019 but accounted for only 2.8 percent of total June 2020 exports. Canada, Mexico, Australia, and New Zealand are the top four import sources and together accounted for 83 percent of beef imports in the first half of 2020. During June 2020, imports from Mexico were up 58 percent over June 2019, imports from Canada were up 4.2 percent, and imports from Australia and New Zealand were down 9 and 5 percent, respectively. These data are likely not surprising given the U.S. beef supply disruptions in April through June. Lower production and reduced product availability certainly impacted international trade. However, the demand side is equally important and has impacted imports and exports. Weaker macroeconomic settings in many countries combined with higher U.S. beef prices also played a part in the trade adjustments. Additionally, exchange rate changes play a key role. Beef production and prices were much more normal in July (relative to April-June) and it will be interesting to watch how quickly trade adjusts to these changes moving forward. FF

Promote your Operation Advertise with a State Round-up ad in the the two issues of the Profit Picture and the Herd Reference issue of Gelbvieh World

Martens Gelbvieh

Gary Martens 2126 500th St • Walnut, IA 51577

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Annual Bull and Female sale in March with the Southwest Iowa Gelbvieh Group

Source & Age Verification Program for Feeder Cattle Sired by Gelbvieh & Balancer 速 Bulls

BALANCER EDGE

速

$3.00/hd STEP 1: Gather calving records documenting the first and last calf born for the season. Have a head count of your cows. Have copies available to show IMI Global representative.

STEP 2: Fill out the form on www.gelbvieh.org to apply for Balancer Edge and order tags. 速

STEP 3:

Send form via mail or email: IMI Global 202 6th Street, Ste. 400 Castle Rock, CO 80104 info@imiglobal.com

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STEP 4:

Participate in a phone audit and off-site records review.

STEP 5: Market calves with the Balancer速Edge program.

www.gelbvieh.org | 303.465.2333

MARKETING

Online Marketing Tools Directory

he American Gelbvieh Association (AGA) offers many online services for members and their customers to use when marketing their Gelbvieh and Balancer® cattle. Follow along below for a listing and explanation of all that AGA has to offer the commercial beef producer.

Feeder Finder

For individuals with load lots of feeder calves to sell, the AGA offers Feeder Finder, which is a free resource to find Gelbvieh and Balancer® influenced feeder cattle. Feeder Finder helps market load lots of Gelbvieh and Balancer-influenced feeder cattle by sending an email with information about the cattle to almost 300 feedyards across the country. To market your cattle through Feeder Finder, simply fill out the Feeder Finder form found under the Marketing Programs page on Gelbvieh.org or contact the AGA’s marketing team at 303-465-2333.

Online Sale Catalogs and Upcoming Events

The AGA offers a page on Gelbvieh.org where breeders can post their sale catalog online. Breeders are able to post

their catalog for free when they place an ad in the Gelbvieh World or the Profit Picture publication. Once a catalog is online, it not only helps the breeder promote their sale, but it also helps commercial customers find sales in their area and the offering in those sales. Another tool, to help both sellers and buyers is the AGA’s upcoming events, which can be found on Gelbvieh.org and in the Gelbvieh World and the Profit Picture publications.

Exchange – Females, Bulls, and Feeder Calves

Whether you are a producer of registered seedstock looking to sell Gelbvieh and Balancer® bulls or a commercial producer looking to sell Gelbvieh-influenced replacement females, the AGA’s online exchange can help. The Exchange on Gelbvieh.org helps connect sellers with interested buyers of Gelbvieh-influenced cattle. Using the online Exchange is easy and allows sellers to post detailed information and photos of their offering. Sellers can list cattle for sale in three different categories, females, bulls, and feeder calves. Contact Malerie Strahm at 303-465-2333 or Malerie@gelbvieh.org with questions regarding the Exchange page. FF

For assistance in marketing or purchasing Gelbvieh, Balancer® or Southern Balancer® bulls, females, and feeder cattle, contact:

Tom Strahm Commercial Marketing Director tom@gelbvieh.org (785) 547-7999 (C) 58 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Will Fiske Breed Growth Specialist will@gelbvieh.org (303) 465-2333 (ex. 484)

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t buy a bull. Buy a

Future

FOCUSED ON THE

program . program FEATURE

Bull and Female Sale

OCTOBER 2020

Billings, MO

Bulls of this quality and sire influence will sell.

Visit our T Bar S Facebook page for sale features and updates. With all questions and inquiries, please call Justin at (573) 690-3813.

GENETICS

Gelbvieh and Balancer® Genetic Trends The graphs below illustrate the genetic trends for the Gelbvieh and Balancer® breed. It’s amazing to see the progress that has been made by an AGA membership dedicated to improving Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle. Lowering birth weight, increasing calving ease, and increasing marbling are just three examples of the traits that have been improved by decades of work. In addition, a chart displaying progress within the

60 | SEPTEMBER 2020

maternal traits of stayability, heifer pregnancy, and 30-month pregnancy have been added to this collection of graphs. The upward trend of such maternal traits solidifies the breed’s reputation for being a maternal powerhouse. Figures within the graphs charted here are representative of the Gelbvieh and Balancer population combined. FF

Join Us

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 3

SHERATON OKLAHOMA CITY DOWNTOWN HOTEL

OKLAHOMA CITY, OK Provided Lunch 12:15 p.m.

Symposium 1:30 p.m.

All cattlemen and women are invited to attend this FREE educational symposium and provided lunch. Listen to industry leading speakers discuss adding value to a cowherd in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s modern beef industry. Visit www.gelbvieh.org for more information.

EVENTS OF INTEREST September 2020

December 2020

Sept. 19 Oak Ridge Farms Dispersal and Showcase Sale XV, Kingsville, MO

Dec. 2-4 AGA 50th Annual National Convention,

October 2020 Oct. 3

Sweetest Cherries on the Prairie Gelbvieh & Red Angus Female Sale – Overmiller Gelbvieh & Red Angus and September Farms Smith Center, KS

Oct. 10

30th Annual Judd Ranch Gelbvieh, Balancer & Red Angus Cow Power Female Sale, Pomona, KS

Oct. 16

Function & Finesse 2.0 Gelbvieh Female Sale, Twin View Livestock, Parkbeg, SK, Canada

Oct. 17

Seedstock Plus Fall Bull & Female Sale, Carthage, MO

Oct. 23

2nd Annual T Bar S Cattle Company “Focused on the Future” Bull & Female Sale, Billings, MO

Oct. 24

Flying H Genetics 24th Annual Grown on Grass Bull & Bred Heifer Sale, Butler, MO

November 2020 Nov. 7

B/F Cattle Co Fall Maternal Integrity Gelbvieh & Balancer Bull Sale, Butler, MO

Nov. 7

Seedstock Plus Red Reward ‘Fall Edition’ Bull & Female Sale, Osceola, MO

Nov. 7

TJB Gelbvieh Bull Sale, Chickamauga, GA

Nov. 20

Butler Creek Farm Power in the Blood V Online Female Sale

Nov. 20

Warner Beef Genetics & Cedar Top Ranch “Genetic Opportunities Female Sale”, Arapahoe, NE

Nov. 28

4th Annual Boys from the South Bull Sale, Lebanon, TN

Nov. 28

Kansas Gelbvieh Association “Pick of the Herd” Female Sale, Salina, KS

Nov. 30

Eagle Pass Ranch Total + Complete Dispersal of the Gelbvieh and Balancer Cowherd, Highmore, SD

62 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Oklahoma City, OK

Dec. 4

Knoll Crest Farm Total Performance Bull Sale, Red House, VA

Dec 12

SEGA Gelbvieh & Friends Fall Female Sale, Pierce, CO

Dec. 21

CJ&L Livestock Annual Bull Sale, Hermosa, SD

Feb. 1

Taubenheim Gelbvieh 31st Annual Production Sale, Amherst, NE

Feb. 18

Gustin’s Diamond D Gelbvieh Production Sale, Medina, ND

Feb. 27

Post Rock Cattle Co.’s “Cowmen’s Kind” Bull & Female Sale, Barnard, KS

Mar. 1

Hojer Ranch 29th Annual Gelbvieh & Balancer Production Sale, Lake Preston, SD

Mar. 2

Warner Beef Genetics Genetic Investment Bull Sale, Arapahoe, NE

Mar. 6

Thorstenson’s Lazy TV Ranch Annual Sale, Selby SD

Mar. 7

SEGA Gelbvieh Spring Bull Sale, Pierce, CO

Mar. 9

Bar Arrow Cattle Company, 31st Annual Production Sale, Phillipsburg, KS

Mar. 18

Kicking Horse Ranch Annual Production Sale, Great Falls MT

Mar. 27

Cranview Gelbvieh 17th Annual Genetic Progress, Rugby ND

February 2021

March 2021

Visit the online version of Upcoming Events at Gelbvieh. org for additional dates on upcoming sales and more information on each event. Editor’s Note: If you have a sale or event information for this listing, please email the information to rebeccam@gelbvieh.org. This includes tours, expos, field days and other Gelbvieh events.

RIGHT

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SweetPro.com | 888.229.0475

BREEDERS CORNER WESTERN BREEDERS UPPER MIDWEST BREEDERS ARIZONA

IOWA

The Prosser Family

928/289-2619•928/380-5149cell Winslow, AZ

www.bartbar.com • info@bartbar.com

RFI Tested Balancer®, Gelbvieh & Angus Bulls Sell Annually in April at the Ranch

Ridge Top Ranch

Gelbvieh-Angus-Balancer

Neola, Iowa

Black & Polled Private Treaty Sales

Breed-leading Performance from Quality Genetics

Kevin: 402-510-8103 Al: 402-676-5292

COLORADO

NEVADA Ricky Linquist th Street inquist 1135 190 inquist Fonda, IA 50540

Dave & Dawn Bowman

55784 Holly Rd. • Olathe, CO 81425

(970) 323-6833 www.bowkranch.com FEMALES FOR SALE PRIVATE TREATY

Jim Roelle 38330 CR 49 Peetz, CO 80747

(C): 970-520-1224 jr.plateau@hotmail.com www.plateaugelbvieh.com

Dick & Jean Williams

arms (712) 288-5349 arms

P.O. Box 156 Orovada, NV 89425 775•272•3442

“Pounds Make Profit in Your Pocket” Bulls & Heifers Private Treaty

WASHINGTON LEDGERWOOD GELBVIEH Gelbvieh • Red Angus • Balancer® Pete & Samee Charriere

509-566-8805 • LedgerwoodGelbvieh@gmail.com “Seedstock that work for the commercial cattleman

Quality livestock that Work for you Gelbvieh Carcass Quality Calving Ease Tenderness Docility

Quarter Horses Want to Please Strong Bone Intelligent Athletic

1496 Goose Creek Rd. • Raynesford, MT 59469 Ranch Phone: 406.738.4220 • BarJRGelbvieh@3rivers.net BarJRGelbvieh.com

64 | SEPTEMBER 2020

WYOMING

9/9

Email: rickylin@ncn.net www.linquistfarms.com

LONE OAK C AT T L E

Eric Ehresman 20963 30th St. Mechanicsville, IA 52306

hornsandthorns@netins.net

(319) 480-1564

2633 Hwy 12 East • Clarkston, WA 99403

MONTANA

Gelbvieh & Red Angus

Nine Bar Nine Gelbvieh Wesley Brown

3794 Rd. 215 • Cheyenne, WY 82009 307-351-6453 • ninebar9@hotmail.com Purebred Bulls, Heifers & Select Embryos Performance BRED in, Not FED in!

Martens Gelbvieh

Gary Martens 2126 500th St • Walnut, IA 51577 712.764.5007 (H) • 712.249.5744 (C) martensgl@yahoo.com Annual Bull and Female sale in March with the Southwest Iowa Gelbvieh Group

HH H

Triple H Farms Roy & Nancy Holste 3113 260th Street Clarinda, IA 51632 712-303-0263 • 712-303-1947 tripleh1@unitedwb.coop

Bulls and Heifers for sale Private Treaty

BREEDERS CORNER UPPER MIDWEST BREEDERS SwenSon Gelbvieh

Dean Swenson

17513 Hwy 10 Little Falls, MN 56345 swen@centurylink.net (h) 320.632.5848 • (c) 320.630-5536

Polled • Purebred • Red • Black

NORTH DAKOTA IDAHO

Thorstenson Gelbvieh

Selby, South Dakota Annual Bull Sale 1st Saturday in March

6700 County Rd. 19 S. Minot, ND 58701 (701) 624-2051 (H) (701) 720-8823 (C)

MINNESOTA Rob Arnold

Gelbvieh

Schafer Farms, Inc. SFI

Email: RLAGelbvieh@aol.com

Registered Gelbvieh & Balancers® Balancer®

37740 240th Ave., Goodhue, MN 55027 Brian Schafer Lowell Schafer 1-888-226-9210 651-923-4587 brian@schaferfarm.com www.schaferfarm.com Private Treaty Bull Sale — Last Sat. in February Annually

Dennis & Sherry Gustin Family Al and Peggy Gustin Mandan, ND • 701/663-7266

Richie & Sarah Heinrich 701/320-6484 (cell) email: gustindd@wildblue.net www.gustinsdiamondd.com

We want to Keep up with AGA members.

Keith, Janice, Dustin & Britney

Please send in information to be included in the Gelbvieh World and on our website: • • • •

Vaughn & Wendy Brian & Dee Dee 605-649-6262 605-649-9927 Gina | 605-850-9390 www.Balancerbulls.com

Items for Events of Interest News for Information Exchange Dates for upcoming shows and field days. State Association news

605-852-2131

kvolek@venturecomm. net

SOUTH DAKOTA

Plus, add us to your mailing lists when sending out sale catalogs. Send all items to: Gelbvieh World 1001 S. 70th Street, Ste. 215 Lincoln, NE 68510

lori.maude@gmail.com

Lori Maude 303.809.3789 (C) Ranch 605.255.4448 Hermosa, SD

If you’re not here, how does your customer find you?

Annual Bull Sale 3rd Saturday in December.

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 65

BREEDERS CORNER NORTHEAST BREEDERS SOUTHEAST BREEDERS NORTH CAROLINA

“Superior Gelbvieh and Balancer Cattle”

Chris & Jordan Hampton • Charles & Sue Hampton

Quality Gelbvieh, Angus & Balancer Cattle

DUANE & WENDY STRIDER, OWNERS

(336) 964-6277

ccrosscattle@yahoo.com • ccrosscattle.com

839 Davistown Rd. Celina, TN 38551 931-243-3213 H 931-510-3213 C hamptoncattlecompany@gmail.com

Registered Bulls & Replacement Females

Tucker Farms Gelbvieh & Balancer Cattle BULLS FOR SALE

ILLINOIS

CCRO CAROLINA EXCLUSIVE 1230Y

J & K GELBVIEH FARM, INC.

640 McAdams Loop Jacks Creek, TN 38347 TuckerFarmsTN@gmail.com

CCRO CAROLINA LEVERAGE 3214A

THE HERD THAT CONSISTENTLY PRODUCES CATTLE WITH PERFORMANCE, CARCASS AND EYE APPEAL.

Milton Tucker 731-608-5274

ANNUAL BULL & FEMALE SALE 2ND SATURDAY IN NOV. Private Treaty Sales Available Year Round.

VIRGINIA

Jerry & Karen Wilson 335 Gelbvieh Lane, Ava, IL 62907 Producing Black, Polled Genetics for Today & Tomorrow.

618-521-8620 • jkgf88@frontier.com

REGISTERED GELBVIEH AND BALANCER®

REGISTERED POLLED GELBVIEH C.H. Morris & Sons, LLC

Roger Morris • C.W. Moss 928 Morris Road Appomattox, VA 24522 434.574.6592 Roger Morris C.W. Moss 434.315.4294 434.391.4458

INDIANA

3 G Ranch

Walter & Lee Teeter 1380 French Belk Rd. • Mt. Ulla, NC 28125 (704) 664-5784

Gelbvieh Cattle For Sale Carl, Rebecca & Emily Griffiths

260/897-2160 • ggge3g@embarqmail.com

Galax, Virginia

Your call or visit is Always Welcome

276.233.0999 • grippey@embarqmail.com

Get ready for upcoming sales!

TENNESSEE

Advertise in Gelbvieh World or the Profit Picture

CAVE CREEK CATTLE JEFF PROCTOR

CHARLOTTE, TN | 931.801.5787 WWW.CAVECREEKCATTLE.COM CAVECREEKCATTLE@GMAIL.COM

KENTUCKY Coles Bend Cattle Company

Quality Gelbvieh & Balancer® Cattle

Raising registered Gelbvieh and Balancer cattle since 2000.

Trent Jones Smith Grove, KY • 270.590.5266

66 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Gale Rippey Farms SPECIALIZING IN COMMERCIAL BALANCER® FEMALES

1577 N 600 E • Kendallville, IN 46755

ClinCh Mountain Gelbvieh

John & Liz Loy (865) 687-1968 (865) 235-8869 (C)

7611 Dyer Rd. Luttrell, TN 37779 j.b.loy@att.net

Bulls & Heifers for Sale

www.knollcrestfarm.com knollcrest@knollcrestfarm.com Office (434) 376-3567 Fax (434) 376-7008 James D. Bennett 434/376-7299 Paul S. Bennett 434/941-8245 Jim G. Bennett 434/664-7935 Brian R. Bennett 434/664-8309 Dalton G. Bennett 434/664-7946 PO Box 117 • Red House, VA • 23963 Total Performance Bull Sale • Dec. 4, 2020

W L

QUALITY GELBVIEH CATTLE

LITTLE WINDY HILL

Farms Doug & Sue Hughes 6916 Peppers Ferry Road Max Meadows, VA 24360 C 276/620-4271 lwhf@wiredog.com

BREEDERS CORNER SOUTHERN BREEDERS OKLAHOMA

ARKANSAS

H ODGES R ANCH

Neal

(870) 426-4469 or (870) 704-9450

15702 Hodges Rd., Omaha, AR 72662 Hodgesranch@live.com

Quality Gelbvieh & Balancer Genetics Available Private Treaty Sales

ALABAMA

Q u a l i t y B l a ck & R e d G e l b v i e h C a t t l e

Dustin Kittle

Ed & Alberta LeGrand

809 S. Redlands Rd. • Stillwater, OK 74074

405-747-6950 • alane@c21global.com

Homo. Black, Homo. Polled • Breeding Stock Available

Martin Cattle Company

Koehn Cattle Co.

256 Boyce Road Judsonia, Ar 72081 C: 501.278.7614 www.martincattleco.com

73243 Carter Rd., Goltry, OK 580-541-2633 koehncattlecompany@gmail.com

David & Rita Martin

Kittle Gelbvieh Farms

LeGRAND

Private Treaty Sales Available Year Round

Patrick Koehn

Gelbvieh Genetics at Work

816 Co. Rd. 36 Geraldine, AL 35974 Cell (256) 996-5822 www.kittlefarms.com

If you’re not here, how does your customer find you?

SEND HIS CREDENTIALS WITH HIM...

Transfer the registration on the bulls you sell and give your customers the tools to become more profitable. • Provides access to value added marketing services for customer’s calves • Commercial customers receive a free 1-year subscription to Gelbvieh World and the Profit Picture • Allows customers to track pedigree information to manage inbreeding and maximize heterosis

1001 S. 70th Street., Ste. 215 Lincoln, NE 68510 303-465-2333 • www.gelbvieh.org

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 67

BREEDERS CORNER KANSAS

Bar Arrow Cattle Company Stuar t Jar vis

If you’re not here, how does your customer find you?

MIDWEST BREEDERS

Holle Gelbvieh

Orrin & Kevin Holle Oberlin, KS 785.626.0081

WWW.HOLLEGELBVIEH.COM

26 E. Limestone Rd. • Phillipsburg, KS 67661

e-mail: bararrow@ruraltel.net • 785/543-5177

Judd Ranch Inc.

Gel

bvie

MISSOURI

Dave & Cindy Judd Nick, Ginger Judd & Family Brent & Ashley Judd 423 Hwy. K-68 • Pomona, KS 66076 785/ 566-8371

“Where workin’ cattle and eye appeal come full circle” John & Carla Shearer 2815 Navajo Rd. • Canton, KS 67428 circle_s@hometelco.net

Timothy Mulroy • 785-640-6401 Mayetta, KS • tim@blackgoldinc.biz

620.628.4621

620.654.6507 (John Cell) • 620.654.6731 (Johnny Cell)

Annual Production Sale 1st Saturday in April

Harriman Santa fe

Top of the breed sales (every day)

#1 Active Balancer Sire “B006” Marb & Feeder Profit Index (feedlot performance, carcass merit)

Balancer & SimAngus Bulls & Females

POST ROCK CATTLE COMPANY

Get ready for upcoming sales! Advertise in Gelbvieh World or the Profit Picture

3041 E. Hwy. 284, Barnard, KS 67418 Bill Clark: 785.792.6244 Leland Clark: 785.792.6208 Fax: 785.792.6250 Email: prcc@twinvalley.net

bharriman39@hotmail.com

Promote for Success! Upcoming Advertising Deadlines: Purebred A.I. Seedstock Bulls and Heifers Available. Al & Mary Knapp Cell: (913) 219-6613 18291 158th Street H: (913) 724-4105 Basehor, KS 66007 www.triplekgelbvieh.com e-mail: knappa@swbell.net

68 | SEPTEMBER 2020

Bob Harriman (660) 492-2504

Private Treaty Listing www.bhsf.us

September issue of Profit Picture Ad deadline: August 3

Call 303-465-2333 today!

BREEDERS CORNER MIDWEST BREEDERS NEBRASKA

Mark & Patty Goes 39414 SW 75th Rd. Odell, NE 68415 (402) 766-3627

Committed to raising quality seedstock Registered Gelbvieh and Balancer® Cattle Elmer, Brenda, Brad & Benny McWilliams Asbury, MO 64832 • 417-842-3225 • 417-529-0081(cell)

GELBVIEHV BALANCERV ANGUS

Private Treaty Bull & Heifer Sales • Orchard, NE Val Livingston • www.88ranch.com • 402-655-2288

NOWACK

Cattle Company Owensville, MO

Gelbvieh Bulls Black

Registered Gelbvieh & Balancer Cattle

Jared, Caisie, Brooke & Cameron

Gilbert & Debra

573.280.4633

Squeakin’ By-LK Farms

573.646.3477

Kyle & Lori Kuker Shubert, NE

Balancer Females Red

402-883-7246

402-883-2366 402-245-7512 sqblkfarms.com Facebook.com/sqblkfarms sqblkfarms@gmail.com

Bulls and Females for Sale by private treaty year round.

J. J. Boehler

70948 L Rd. , Orleans, NE 68966 308-473-7342 • 308-999-0207

ROCKING GV GELBVIEH Polled Fullblood Gelbvieh Cattle Dr. & Mrs. Glenn Wehner 22533 Spencer Lane Kirksville, MO 63501 660-665-7502

Jeff Swanson • 308/991-0727 10908 724 Road • Oxford, NE 68967 www.swansoncattleco.com

Cedar Top Ranch

RogeRs Valley FaRm gelbVieh

Scott & Raberta Starr 212 Starr Drive • Stapleton, NE 69163 (H): 308-587-2293 • (C): 308-530-3900

Annual Sale—Last Saturday in February

GELBVIEH

BALANCER

cedartopranch@gpcom.net Eldon Starr: 1-800-535-6173 or Rich Johnson: 402-368-2209

Breed for Tomorrow’s Cattle Today!

A Breed Leader in Tenderness & Marbling–

www.rogersvfg.com

F LY I N G H G E N E T I C S Nebraska & Missouri Kyle Helms – NE 308-962-6940

P.O. Box 51 Mendon, MO 64660 (660-375-7266 (C) Ronald RogeRs

Missouri Oﬃce 417-309-0062

Visit us at– www.ﬂyinghgenetics.com Flying H Genetics

email: rogers_valley_farm_feedlot@hotmail.com

Scott Wolf Travis Wolf 308.537.3588 308.529.3733 Gothenburg, NE • wolfgelbvieh@gmail.com www.facebook/wolfgelbvieh.com

Consistent Genetics Adding Pounds & Profit

Myron & Valerie Bahm 21640 Lawrence 2192 Aurora, MO 65605 417-576-0687(c)

email: whiteoakfarms@live.com

Registered Gelbvieh & Balancer®

If you’re not here, how does your customer find you?

Bulls For The BeeF Business Gelbvieh F Balancer F Red Angus F Angus F Angus Hybrids Randy & Leslie Lemke 1757 Road 2500, (H) 402-756-7090 Lawrence, NE 68957 (C) 402-469-2284 rllemke@gtmc.net www.lemkecattle.com

Looking for a sale or event?

Check out Upcoming Events on the website: www.GELBVIEH.org

THE PROFIT PICTURE | 69

BREEDERS CORNER SERVICE CENTER All your A.I. needs!!

Bull Barn Genetics 35 Years in business

• Gelbvieh • Angus • Red Angus • Simmental • Club Calf • Salers • Shorthorn • Dairy • Charolais • Hereford

• Sheaths • Gloves • Cito Thaw Units • Tanks • A.I. Kits • Arm Service

Ronn Cunningham AUCTIONEER P.O. Box 146 • Rose, OK 74364 918-629-9382 cellular

Eldon & Kathy Starr

210 Starr Dr • Stapleton, NE 69163 bullbarn@bullbarn.com 800-535-6173 www.bullbarn.com

Dan McCarty • Auctioneer • • Professional Ring Service • 970-481-5217

Cattlemen’s Connection

Are you a livestock photographer, an auctioneer, aspire to be a sale manager or graphic designer? Put your ad in Service Center and promote your services! Place your ad today!

303-465-2333

Specializing in

• Gelbvieh Semen Sales • Consulting • Order Buying (all purchases guaranteed) Roger & Peg Gatz (785) 742-3163 Call Toll-Free:1-800-743-0026

Visit our Web Site: www.cattlemensconnection.com

Subscription and Advertising Information

SUBSCRIPTION RATES: A one-year subscription to Gelbvieh World may be purchased for $35. Members of the AGA pay $35 of their membership dues to receive a subscription to Gelbvieh World. Gelbvieh World mails on or around the 25th of the month prior to publication date. Canada and Mexico - $60 U.S. for one-year. Other foreign - $85 U.S. for one-year.

Gelbvieh World Advertising Rates

CLOSING DATE: Ad materials and editorial deadline is the 25th of the month two months prior to publication date. (December issue deadline is October 25th). Ads for sale dates prior to the 15th of the month of publication are discouraged.

Full Page $780 1/3 Page $392 Column inch $30

For Feb./Sept. (Commercial Editions) and June/ July (Herd Reference Edition) please call for deadline information.

70 | SEPTEMBER 2020

STANDARD ISSUES: Full Page $717 1/2 Page $454 1/3 Page $347 Column inch $30

2/3 Page 1/2 Page Isand 1/4 Page

$562 $482 $268

Feb./Sept. Commercial Profit Picture 1/2 Page 1/4 Page

Color: Four Color $300 additional One Additional color $150 additional

$504 $309

ADVERTISING CONTENT: The Graphic Designer and/or the Director of Administration reserve the right to reject any or all advertising on any reasonable basis. Gelbvieh World and/or American Gelbvieh Association assumes no responsibility for the advertising content as submitted. Advertisers assume all responsibility for the accuracy and truthfulness of submitted advertising containing pedigrees or statements regarding performance. Advertisers shall indemnify and hold harmless Gelbvieh World and American Gelbvieh Association for any claims concerning advertising content as submitted.

Call today: 303-465-2333

PERFORMANCE • EXCELLENCE • PROFESSIONAL At Kinsley Feeders we pride ourselves on: • • • •

High performance environment Partnership opportunity Cattle and feed financing Risk management

DEREK MARTIN, MANAGER

dmartin@kinsleyfeeders.com | www.kinsleyfeeders.com

AD INDEX

3 G Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Flying H Genetics. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Nowack Cattle Company. . . . . . . . . 69

88 Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

Gale Rippey Farms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Plateau Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . 37 & 64

ABCS Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Grand Valley Gelbvieh/Balancer . . . . . . . . . 37 & 44

Plus One Cattle Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

Green Hills Gelbvieh. . . . . . . 17 & 66

Pot of Gold Bull Sale . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

AGA National Convention. . . . . . . 51 AGF Steer Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . 55 American Rancher. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 B/F Cattle Co.. . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 & 68 Balancer Edge. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57 Bar Arrow Cattle Company. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 & 68 Bar JR Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . .20 & 64 Bar T Bar Ranches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Boehler Gelbvieh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Bow K Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Bull Barn Genetics. . . . . . . . . 27 & 70 Butler Creek Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 C-Cross Cattle Company . . . . . . . . 66 C.H. Morris & Sons, LLC . . . . . . . . 66 Canadian Gelbvieh Association. . . 70 Cattlemen’s Connection. . . . . . . . . 70 Cattlemen’s Profit Round-Up. . . . . 61 Cave Creek Cattle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Cedar Top Ranch . . . . . . . . . BC & 69 Chimney Butte Ranch. . . . . . . . . . . 65 Circle S Ranch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 CJ&L Livestock. . . . . . . . . . . . 19 & 65 Clinch Mountain Gelbvieh. . . . . . . 66 Coles Bend Cattle Company. . . . . . 66 Cranview Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . 5 & 65 Dan McCarty Auctioneer. . . . . . . . 70 Danell Diamond Six Ranch. . . . . . . 64 Diamond L Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Doak Lambert Auctioneer . . . . . . . 70 Dobson Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44 Eagle Pass Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

72 | SEPTEMBER 2020

GS Ridge Top Ranch . . . . . . . 56 & 64 Gustin’s Diamond D Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 & 65 Hampton Cattle Company . . . . . . . 66 Harriman Santa Fe. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Hart Farm Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Hilltop Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Hodges Ranch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Hojer Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . 21, 31 & 65 Holle Gelbvieh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 J & K Gelbvieh Farm, Inc.. . . . . . . . 66 Judd Ranch Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 & 68 Kansas Gelbvieh Association . . . . . 49 Kicking Horse Ranch. . . . . 8, 20 & 64 Kinsley Feeders. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71 Kittle Gelbvieh Farms . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Knoll Crest Farms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Koehn Cattle Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67 Ledgerwood Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . 64 Lemke Cattle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Linquist Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Little Windy Hill Farms. . . . . . . . . . 66 Lone Oak Cattle. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 M&P Gelbvieh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Martens Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . 56 & 64 Martin Cattle Company. . . . .56 & 67 Mitchell Marketing Services. . . . . . 70 MLM Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Mulroy Farms, LLC. . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Nine Bar Nine Gelbvieh . . . . . . . . . 64

Post Rock Cattle Company. . 15 & 68 Prairie Hills Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Rio Nutrition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Rippe Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37 Rock Solid Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Rocking GV Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . 69 Rogers Valley Farm Gelbvieh. . . . . 69 Ronn Cunningham Auctioneer . . . 70 Sandy Knoll Farm. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Sawtooth Gelvieh Cattle & Hay . . . 64 Schafer Farms, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Seedstock Plus. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 SEGA Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 Squeakin’ By LK Farms. . . . . . . . . . 69 Swanson Cattle Co. . . . . . . . . 33 & 69 Sweet Pro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 Swenson Gelbvieh . . . . . . . . . 21 & 65 T Bar S Cattle Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Taubenheim Gelbvieh. . . 11, 65 & 69 Thorstenson’s Lazy TV Ranch . . . . . 9 Thull Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 TJB Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IFC Triple H Farms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Triple K Gelbvieh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68 Tucker Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Volek Ranch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Warner Beef Genetics . . . . . . . . . IBC White Oak Farms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Wilkinson Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 Wolf Gelbvieh. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Y-TEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Your continued source

FOR GELBVIEH AND BALANCER® GENETICS

Offering commercially focused genetics from elite sires, in large contemporary groups, with extensive DNA and data provided and unmatched customer service. Take advantage of our Sight Unseen Selection Service and Nationwide Delivery.

Save the Date...

“Genetic Opportunities” Female Sale: Friday, November 20, 2020 Selling 200 Quality Gelbvieh and Balancer females. “Genetic Investment” Bull Sale: Tuesday, March 2, 2021 Selling 150 Outstanding Yearling and Aged Bulls Dan and Kate Warner 42198 Road 721, Arapahoe, NE 68922 Dan Warner • 308-962-6511 Monte Warner • 308-268-6020 Darren Warner • 308-268-2031

Join CEDAR TOP RANCH “Genetic Opportunities” Female Sale along with WARNER BEEF GENETICS

for the

Friday, November 20, 2020

5:00 PM Arapahoe, NE

WE ARE OFFERING

200

A.I. BRED HEIFERS

CTR JACKPOT 8660 F

CEDAR TOP RANCH CEDAR TOP RANCH Scott & Raberta Starr 212 Starr Drive • Stapleton, NE 69163 308-530-3900 (Scott) • 308-530-2720 (Austin) email: cedartopranch@yahoo.com Follow Cedar TopStarr Ranch on Facebook! Scottus&atRaberta

212 Starr Drive • Stapleton, NE 69163 308-587-2293 • 308-530-3900 (C) email: cedartopranch@yahoo.com

8660 our high selling bull at $35,000 half interest to Mike and Trent Jones at Coles Bend Gelbvieh. Every heifer and cow will be confirmed bred to an AI date only! We will feature two elite angus cows bred to the great 8660 bull pictured.

Do One Thing... Do It Well...We Raise Beef Cattle