May 2022 Brangus Journal by International Brangus Breeders Association

Brangus M AY 2 0 2 2

May 2022

CON TACTS 8870 U.S. Highway 87E, San Antonio, Texas 78263 • P.O. Box 809, Adkins, Texas 78101 210-696-8231 • Fax 210-696-8718 • info@gobrangus.com • gobrangus.com IBBA BOARD OF DIRECTORS President Jeremy Jackson, Gentry, Arkansas 1st Vice President Rob Singleton, Florida 2nd Vice President Shiloh Hall, Oklahoma Secretary/Treasurer Allen Goode, Texas East Region Trey Cuevas, Purvis, Mississippi treycuevas3@yahoo.com Grady Green, El Dorado, Arkansas grady@dragginmranch.com Jeremy Jackson, Gentry, Arkansas jjackson101@gmail.com Rob Singleton, Seville, Florida singletons2002@yahoo.com Texas Region Mary Douglass, Seguin, Texas twoheartsbrangus@yahoo.com Allen Goode, Mabank, Texas allen@triocattle.com Andrew Scamardo, Bryan, Texas scamardobrangus@gmail.com Gary Adamek, Schulenburg, Texas gary@fayettecountryhomes.com West Region Shiloh Hall, Okmulgee, Oklahoma shiloh518@yahoo.com Greg Romans, Vale, Oregon romansbrangus@yahoo.com Vern Suhn, Eureka, Kansas vern@geneplusbrangus.com At-Large Randy Schmidt, M.D., Texarkana, Texas doctorrand@me.com Josh Walker, Ph.D., Ben Lomond, Arkansas | josh@redbudfarms.net MEMBER OF

@gobrangus | #gobrangus

May 2022

IBBA STAFF Executive Vice President Darrell Wilkes, Ph.D., dwilkes@gobrangus.com Controller Brian Sadovsky, bsadovsky@gobrangus.com Director of Registry Jessie England, jengland@gobrangus.com Registry and Records Assistant Callie DeLarm, cdelarm@gobrangus.com Director of Genomics and Research Macee Prause, mprause@gobrangus.com Director of Shows & Youth Activities Lori Edwards, ledwards@gobrangus.com Member Services Mandie Sadovsky, msadovsky@gobrangus.com Product Manager Andrew Sicotte Jr., asicotte@goregstr.com Senior Software Developer Marcel Vieira, mvieira@goregstr.com Software Developer Raul Ramos, rramos@goregstr.com BRANGUS PUBLICATIONS, INC. STAFF Advertising Sales, Melanie Fuller mfuller@gobrangus.com, 979-255-3343 Brangus Journal Publications, Inc. Editor Jessie England | editor@gobrangus.com IBBA COMMITTEE CHAIRMEN Awards Shiloh Hall, Okmulgee, Oklahoma Breed Improvement Randy Schmidt, M.D., Texarkana, Texas Commercial Marketing Cody Glenn, West Point, Mississippi Finance Allen Goode, Mabank, Texas International Garrett Thomas, Waxahachie, Texas Long Range Plan Joe Fuller, Willow City, Texas Membership Marty Lavender, Melrose, New Mexico Promotion Lisa Neal, Morganza, Lousiana Show Gina Gill, Beckville, Texas IJBBA Advisory, Brandon Belt, Gatesville, Texas

INTERNATIONAL BRANGUS AUXILIARY BOARD President Brenda Brull, Atchison, Kansas 1st Vice President Tina Gardner, China Spring, Texas 2nd Vice President Ginger Pritchard, McLoud, Oklahoma Secretary Mary Beth Farris, Tuscola, Texas Treasurer Janet Greuel, Brooks, Georgia Historian Jodi Jackson, Waco, Texas Social Media Coordinator Jennifer Walker, Ben Lomond, Arkansas INTERNATIONAL BRANGUS FOUNDATION BOARD President Brandon Belt, Gatesville, Texas Secretary/Treasurer Darrell Wilkes, Ph.D. Allen Goode, Mabank, Texas Chris Heptinstall, Marianna, Florida Tracy Holbert, College Station, Texas Traci Middleton, Puryear, Tennessee Cindy Blazek, Leona, Texas David Wood, Magnolia, Mississippi Nic Cornelison, Flat Rock, Alabama INTERNATIONAL JUNIOR BRANGUS BOARD 2021-2022 IJBBA Board of Directors President April Villarreal, Brookshire, Texas Ex-Officio Jacob Jones, Stillwater, Oklahoma Queen Payge Dupre, Florida Director Briana Hicks, Danbury, Texas Director Jaxon Allen, Haworth, Oklahoma Director Samuel Belt, Gatesville, Texas Director Tyler Towns, Bryan, Texas Director Jayden Pinkston, Shefner, Florida Director Kaily Warren, Lufkin, Texas

Brangus M AY 2 0 2 2

Cover photo by Kelsey Gibson, Town Creek Inside photos by Sarah Tisdel, Triangle K Ranch, Kelsey Gibson, Town Creek and Matt Roppolo

May 2022

MC Shes Packing 924J21 • R10484874 • 1st Gen

A crowd favorite at the recent Mound Creek Sale we are excited to be bringing home, MC Shes Packing 924J21, to North Carolina. She’s wide-based, deep-bodied, big-topped and extra-long just like we like ‘em at Whitley Cattle Company. She’s a ﬁrst generation sired by MC Power Packed 889C62 and out a Jethro daughter! Watch for her to pack a punch in our herd!

Brangus MAY 2 0 2 2 / VO LU M E 7 0 / I S S U E 4

IN EVERY ISSUE 10 14 25 28 42 50 50 56 57

PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE EXECUTIVE CORNER SALE SUMMARIES CATTLEFAX TRENDS AFFILIATE UPDATE SERVICE DIRECTORY STATE DIRECTORY CALENDAR AD INDEX

FEATURED 18 EPD-OLOGY

The topic this month is EPD accuracy. Higher accuracy increases the chances that your selected animals will perform as their EPDs suggest.

32 A LOVE FOR THE BREED AND THE PEOPLE

The IBBA Breeder of the Year, Tracy Holbert, has left a very large footprint in the Brangus breed. There’s an interesting story about how and when he took a shine to Brangus cattle. From that point forward, he has lived his passion of breeding Brangus. All that he had to start with was a big dose of determination, and it ended up placing him at the top of the Brangus world.

May 2022

36 A WORLDWIDE AMBASSADOR

The IBBA Pioneer Award recipient has left his mark in the Red Brangus world, with emphasis on the word “world”. Don Cox is well-known to all Red Brangus breeders and Cox Excalibur Brangus is fa-miliar to most IBBA members. But his pioneering spirit has led to the growth and development of Red Brangus registries outside of the US as well, thus growing the market for Red Brangus genetics globally.

38 TEXAS INVITATIONAL 40 PUTTING GENOMICS TO WORK

Enhancing traditional EPDs with genomic information may seem daunting, but it is based on some fairly straightforward concepts that most breeders understand intuitively. A friend from the University of Tennessee explains it in clear terms in this article.

45 A GLIMPSE INTO THE 2022 NATIONAL JUNIOR BRANGUS SHOW NJBS is much more than a cattle show. The event is loaded up with contests that are designed to be fun but educational. For 2022, the juniors are taking yet another step forward in their educa-tion plan by holding special “Phenotype-Genotype” classes in addition to the traditional phenotype classes. The goal is to enhance understanding of EPDs and DNA testing.

Our family ranches work diligently with your family in mind. It is our goal to provide bulls and females from the heart of our ranches that will phenotypically & genetically work for every environment. We want them to work for you like they do for us. WE INVITE YOU TO JOIN US SEPTEMBER 17TH, 2022.

MICHAEL NEAL (225)718-2828 MICHAELCNEAL@BELLSOUTH.NET MORGANZA, LA - MIDSOUTHCATTLE.NET

CRAIG NEAL (225) 718-2525 JARROD NEAL (225) 718-2626

GARRETT THOMAS (936) 714-4591 www.hipointsalesandmarketing.com

PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE

Endeavor to Persevere by Jeremy Jackson, President, International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) president Most of you will remember the title to this article as the Chief Dan George line from The Outlaw Josey Wales. I thought this title was pretty fitting for what we are all seeing with our bottom line. Much of BRANGUS Country is in drought. Corn, diesel, fertilizer, labor and basically every other cost we have are sky high. Fat steers are selling for around $1.40 and feeders are trading at around $1.60 on the board. Those steer prices would be great if our input costs were in line. Unfortunately, they are not. I’ve never been accused of being a purveyor of sunshine and rose water. But, there is a bright spot or two in this deal. The packers have plenty of fats now, but, that’s not going to be the case much longer. The feedlots have been full because the wheat was a wreck in most of the country this winter. Killer cow prices have been great and that has caused people to clean up their herds. The stage is set for super high calf prices in the near future. God willing, our input costs will get better and help our bottom line when this happens. In the meantime, we all have to find profitability in any place that we can. Let’s talk about a couple of these. First, the farm to table market is thru the roof. Most of the time, when we send the steer mates of our bulls to the sale barn or video auction, we are price takers. For those of us that choose to feed out our own steers for butcher calves at custom lockers or USDA inspected facilities, we are price makers and not price takers. If you choose to take this route, make sure that you know your input costs and make your final

May 2022

pricing once you know your total cost. Also, make sure you have a market for the steers prior to putting them on feed. We have a vastly superior product when compared to most of the industry. If you feed our cattle properly and verify the results through ultrasound, you can assure your customers that you are providing them with top quality beef when you sell it to them. Second, if you choose to sell your steers at auction, BRANGUS has a better deal for you. The BRANGUS VIGOR Project has been showing great results. The commercial marketing committee has done an excellent job of putting together a program that’ll work for large and small producers alike. If you can put pots of cattle together, then just contact the office and we’ll send you the guidelines and help you get hooked up with the feedlots or backgrounders that can add value to your calves. If you are a smaller producer, give us a call and we’ll try to get you hooked up with your state association to model what some Arkansas producers did this spring. A group of Arkansas members pooled their cattle using the BRANGUS VIGOR guidelines and added bidders and value to their cattle when they sold them. In the face of adversity, our cattle are holding their own. Registered female sales this spring have been excellent while our bull sales have been respectable. Keep your head up and remember why we are doing this. I’m reminded of it every day as my children work by my side. My wife and I know we are not only raising cattle but raising the next generation of BRANGUS producers. Endeavor to persevere and GO BRANGUS!

May 2022

EXECUTIVE CORNER

WHAT DOES

TOTAL HERD REPORTING HAVE IN COMMON WITH GOLF?

by Darrell Wilkes, Ph.D., International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) executive vice president I like to play golf. I don’t get the chance much these days, but I enjoy it nevertheless. Mark Twain described golf as “a good walk, spoiled.” On that point, I disagree with the famous author. When I played golf more often, I could usually get 5 or 6 par scores in an 18-hole round. The other 12-13 scores weren’t quite so good. I’ve had my share of “Elways”, which is a 7. And plenty of “snowmen”, which is an 8. This is golfer lingo to ease the pain of actually verbalizing such pathetic scores. If only selective reporting was allowed in golf! If selective reporting was allowed, I would only report the holes where I had a par, or even a rare birdie. That would make it appear as though I was a pretty darn good golfer, but clearly it distorts the truth. Selective reporting describes a situation where a person only reports data that is favorable or “looks good”. It distorts the truth. IBBA adopted Total Herd Reporting (THR) to reduce or eliminate selective reporting. THR accomplishes this by charging an annual fee for each productive/active cow and by NOT charging for calf registrations or data submission or most transfers. As odd as it may sound, there are certain factors in other breed associations that actually encourage selective reporting. This was not the intent, but it has that effect. If you have to buy a $40 A.I. certificate in order to register a calf, and if the calf isn’t very good, it is easy enough to just not register the calf and save the $40. While these systems allow and encourage breeders to record the calf and report the data, even if it is never registered, it is foolish to think that everybody does this. In addition, some associations charge a per head fee to submit weaning weights. If you have a calf that isn’t really good enough to register, are you going to spend more money to submit the weaning data? Not likely. This scenario results in a lot of missing data. It amounts to selective reporting. Again, that is not the intent but it is the result. It is not a stretch to say that those breed associations that do not have Total Herd Reporting would like to move in that direction. They know the problem with selective and incomplete reporting. They know it exists and they know it’s a problem. IBBA made the move to THR many years ago and lost some members because of it. The complaint I’ve heard from those whom I’ve contacted is that THR was just a 14

May 2022

clever way for the association to “get rich”. Get rich? Are you kidding me? Our THR fee of $25 covers the registration of a calf, one free transfer of that calf, management of all weight, ultrasound and DNA data, and comprehensive genetic evaluation of the enrolled cow and her calf. We could charge for all those items separately like many others do, and I can guarantee that the final cost would not be less than what you currently pay in THR. If a cow has a poor calf and the breeder chooses to not record it, the person paying the price is the breeder. They’re only kidding themselves. Ignoring the poor performance of the cow does not make her poor performance go away. With a THR system, there is no cost to register the calf or to record any additional data such as birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weight, ultrasound etc. The greatest benefit of THR is the quality of maternal performance data that is gathered. A cow is expected to make a progeny record every year. Even if her calf does not survive to weaning, or is culled shortly after weaning, it is important to record that she actually had a calf. Recording such data will become more important moving forward as we are likely to make changes to the Stayability EPD that increases the emphasis on reproduction. It is not really informative to give a cow credit for remaining in the herd just because the owner decided not to cull her. If she remains in the herd until she’s 9 or 10 but only weans a calf every 18 months, one could argue that she really did not deserve to stay in the herd and there should be a penalty. The penalty should be reflected in the fertility index and the Stayability EPD. Brangus cows are notorious for maternal productivity and longevity. Even though a good Brangus steer will compete with the best of the best in a feedlot or on the rail, the Brangus cow is probably always going to be the claim to fame for this great breed of cattle. Having systems that capture good maternal performance data are obviously critical. THR is an essential part of that. July 1 is the official “Inventory Date” for THR. Prior to that, you will receive emails and other correspondence from IBBA encouraging you to clean up your inventory in preparation for the final THR invoicing. Webinars and tutorial videos will be available to help members complete their THR chores in the most efficient and effective way.

High Selling Lot at the TBBA Spring Spectacular Sale

DMR EMPIRE 795D12 X DMR TEXAS STAR 535C2 - MGS: TEXAS STAR SOLD FOR $20,500 TO EL CENTRO BRANGUS, MEXICO OWNER: MILTON VILLARREAL - LOGISTICS MANAGER: APRIL VILLARREAL 4812 South Street - Brookshire, TX 77423 - Contact Tel: (832) 917-7110 Fax: 281-934-2526 - info@villaranchcattle.com MARKETING DESIGNED BY: HI POINT SALES + MARKETING GARRETT THOMAS (936) 714-4591 - www.hipointsalesandmarketing.com 15

Thank You Cavender Draggin' M and Partners would like to sincerely thank our friends and customers for making both of our spring sales a great success! CDP is the brand standard of excellence and your go-to resource for navigating this fast-moving and ever-changing industry. Our goal is to not only sell you cattle, but be there to support you along the way. Customer service is our top priority and we are happy to offer our expertise, providing guidance and direction for our customers’ operations in any way, if needed.

PLEASE JOIN US FOR OUR 18 TH ANNUAL FALL PRODUCTION SALE NOVEMBER 18-19, 2022 CAVENDER'S NECHES RIVER RANCH

250 BRANGUS & ULTRABLACK BULLS 25 CHAROLAIS BULLS 80 REGISTERED FEMALES 550 COMMERCIAL FEMALES

CDPBRANGUS.COM | INFO@CDPBRANGUS.COM | 903-747-1136 16

May 2022

SEMEN SIRES FOR EVERY PROGRAM CB PARAMOUNT 7139H2

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VISIT CDPBRANGUS.COM FOR MORE GREAT SIRE OPTIONS TO PURCHASE SEMEN, PLEASE CONTACT: MARK COWAN

903-495-4522 mark@cdpbrangus.com

CRAIG GREEN

870-834-1976 craig@cdpbrangus.com

GRADY GREEN

870-314-3673 grady@dragginmranch.com

KATRINA FOWLER 903-747-1136 info@cdpbrangus.com

VIEW OUR 2022 SEMEN DIRECTORY

CDPBRANGUS.COM 17

FEATURE ARTICLE

EPD-OLOGY EPD ACCURACIES

by Darrell Wilkes, Ph.D., International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) executive vice president An EPD is an estimate. For a young non-parent animal, you may also think of it as a prediction. The point is the same: an EPD should never be thought of as the absolute truth. The absolute true breeding value of an animal is unknowable. It can only be estimated or predicted based on the information available. EPD values are always paired with an accuracy value. IBBA reports accuracy as a decimal, ranging from .01 to .99. Very, very few animals in any breed will ever achieve .99 accuracy. It would require literally tens of thousands of progeny records and, even then, for a moderately heritable trait, the simple mathematical restriction on the computation of accuracy may never allow it to reach .99. In our everyday lives as breeders, we will deal with accuracy values that range from .02 to .50 most of the time. If you are using highly proven sires in an A.I. program, you might have the luxury of using bulls with accuracy as high as .85 for some traits. You will rarely see a cow with accuracy of .50 or higher for any EPD unless she is a prolific donor cow with many progeny. Disregarding the mathematical complexities of computing the accuracy value for an EPD, what most breeders really care about is RISK. For instance, how much risk am I taking by using a young sire with a Birth Weight accuracy of, let’s say, .30? The average BW EPD for Brangus is close to 1.0. If you buy a young bull with a BW EPD of 1.0 and an accuracy of .30, the question you may have is “what’s the worst case scenario?” You understand that the EPD is an estimate and that it can and probably will change – either up or down – as progeny data are reported. What you really want to know is by HOW MUCH might it change? Without using Brangus-specific data, it is fairly accurate to say that a BW EPD with an accuracy of .30 is not likely to change by much more than 2 lbs. In other words, once the bull is proven, and has earned a high accuracy EPD, we would expect his “final” EPD to settle down somewhere between -1 and +3. Admittedly, that is a wide range. That is also a theoretical value. In reality, we usually don’t see anywhere 18

May 2022

near the maximum possible change. Accuracy is influenced by the amount of data available. IBBA and virtually every other breed association will compute a BW EPD for an animal with no reported birth weight, for example. In that case, the accuracy of the BW EPD will be low – about .05. Because the accuracy is lower, the possible change is higher. Compared to the example above where the BW EPD accuracy was .30 and the possible change was about 2 lbs, the possible change in the EPD if the accuracy is .05 is closer to 3 lbs, which is 50% greater – that equates to more risk. The vast majority of bulls sold by Brangus breeders are sold to commercial producers as virgin bulls. If an IBBA member collected and submitted all the phenotypes (BW, WW, YW, Ultrasound, Scrotal size, etc.) and also did genomic testing, then they have done everything possible to increase the accuracy of the EPDs and reduce the odds that their bull customer is going to be surprised by the progeny results. Most bull customers don’t want surprises. Accuracy is often confused with consistency. I have received many calls from breeders who hold the idea that a bull with higher accuracy will sire calves with less variation than a bull with lower accuracy. That is not the case. Every time a bull produces a sperm cell, a new random sample of genes is being created. It is this random sampling that creates variation in the progeny, irrespective of the EPD accuracy. The only thing that would increase consistency is if the sire is more homozygous for the genes affecting a specific trait. A high accuracy EPD simply provides more assurance that the AVERAGE of the progeny is going to be as expected compared to the progeny of other bulls or the breed average. Stated more clearly, if you routinely see a 25-lb spread in birth weights among calves sired by the same bull, using a bull with a high accuracy EPD will not reduce that spread. Please let us know if the EPD-ology feature is helpful to you. If you have questions about EPDs, please let us know and we’ll address them in this column.

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SALESummaries

HIGH DEMAND AND WIDESPREAD APPRECIATION FOR 2ND ANNUAL CDP SPRING BULL OFFERING 109 Coming 2-Year-Old Brangus and Ultrablack Bulls grossed $615,500 to average $5,647 41 Yearling Brangus and Ultrablack Bulls grossed $239,450 to average $5,840 150 Total Brangus and Ultrablack Bulls grossed $854,950 to average $5,700 On a brisk day with storms threatening, 64 buyers from 10 US States and Mexico were on hand to compete for the high quality and consistent bull offering from Cavender, Draggin M and Partners. (CDP) The buyers on hand were treated to a Customer Appreciation steak dinner and social the evening before and an invaluable presentation by Michael Hurla detailing the advantages of Brangus cattle in the feedlot and their role as a Grow Yard in preparing the steers to compete. The days high selling bull at $17,500 was Lot 30, CB Masterpiece 468H80. This big growth calving ease prospect was consigned by Cavender Brangus, Jacksonville, TX and purchased by Four Winds Ranch, Canton, Texas. The second high selling bull at $15,000 was Lot 25, CB Trail Boss 60H41. ½ interest and full possession in this big bodied bull was purchased by Draggin M Ranch, Eldorado AR. He was consigned by Cavender Brangus. $13,500 was the bid price for the third high seller, Lot 117, CB Prime Cut 7139J2. This easy fleshing son of Prime Cut went to Jackson Family Brangus, Waco Texas and was consigned by Cavender Brangus. Lot 27, CB Masterpiece 468H81 was the next high seller at $13,000. He is another deep made and powerful

SALE SUMMARIES

Masterpiece son and a full brother to the day’s high seller. He also went to Four Winds Ranch. Lot 1, the lead off bull in a very deep offering was the next high selling bull on the day. DMR Cash Flow 1302H2 is a big topped heavy muscled son of Cash Flow and fetched a bid price of $12,500 as he sold to Bill Austin, Menard, TX. He was consigned by Draggin M Ranch. GENEPLUS @ SUHN CATTLE CO - EUREKA, KS | MARCH 22, 2022 An enthusiastic crowd full of repeat customers and new faces gathered at Suhn Cattle Company on a cold and wet Tuesday to appraise and acquire a set of Brangus and Ultrablack bulls stacked with phenotype and data built to withstand multiple environments and market situations. Evaluated by top registered and commercial cattlemen from across the country, bulls sold to 16 states and Mexico, ranging from South Carolina to South Dakota to Oregon. In total, 151 bulls were offered to average $5220. A sale annually noted for producing breed leading A.I. sires, highlights were as follows. Lot 64, Suhn’s Signal 53J2, from Suhn Cattle Company was a moderate framed, massive hipped, big topped, deep sided son of Signal and backed by one of the top young dams in the breed. When the hammer dropped the market commanded $50,000 from Genesis Ranch, Columbus, TX for full interest and full possession. Lot 68, Suhn’s Octane 53J9, from Suhn Cattle Company was built on maternal excellence and possessed extra extension and dimension, stemming from one of the phenotypic queens in Eureka in 53D2. With a hotly contested race, Chimney Rock Cattle Company, Concord, AR owned the herd sire

(continued on page 26)

(continued from page 25)

at the end of the day at $30,000 for full interest and full possession. Lot 44, Suhn’s Fenco Relevant 30J4, raised by Suhn Cattle Company stacked elite growth and carcass in a calving ease package, with a sheath design that satisfies the greater marketplace. Smooth and stout, he was acquired by Fenco Farms, Floral City, FL at $28,000 for 2/3 interest and full possession. Lot 77, LM MCC Churchill 75J11, from Lake Majestik Farms was a curve bending individual with as much birth to yearling spread as is found anywhere in the breed, and doing so in a complete and eye appealing package. His form, function and phenotype was appreciated by Mt. Carmel Cattle Company, Birmingham, AL as he selected the herd sire at $25,000 for 2/3 interest and full possession. Lot 56, Vorel Masterpiece 40J2, from Vorel Farms combined carcass merit and eye appeal into an extra dimensional package and was found by several outstanding cattlemen, finally being selected by Jackson’s Double J Brangus, Gentry, AR at $18,000 for full interest and full possession. The next offering of GENEPLUS genetics at auction will be November 4-5th at Chimney Rock Cattle Company where the partners will present 100 Elite Registered Females, 160 Brangus and Ultrablack bulls and 350 commercial Brangus females. For more information or to view private treaty offerings visit www. GENEPLUSBrangus.com. GENEPLUS ELITE EMBRYO AUCTION HOSTED ONLINE BY DVAUCTION An ELITE offering of embryos and semen was offered by the GENEPLUS partners and cooperators April 5, 2022 on DVAuction.com in an online only bidding format. Matings from the front end of the GENEPLUS donor battery and sires that are fresh, relevant and hard to find were presented with excellent

May 2022

demand through the event with 27 lots selling to 12 states. All in all, 80 embryos averaged $450/embryo while 30 units of semen averaged $275/unit. Highlights of the embryo offering included 5 embryos sired by the now deceased, $64,000 QVF Valour and out of one of the top young donors in the CRC program in the Trail Boss daughter 21244G5. Elite growth and carcass built into this lot from Chimney Rock Cattle Company commanded $800/embryo from 3G Cattle Dongola, IL. Closely following were 5 more embryos from Chimney Rock Cattle Co, this time sired by CB Wrangler and out of the crowd favorite Guardian daughter, 1528B. Considered by many as one of the top Ultrablack females in the breed, these UB2 embryos landed with Giffin Brangus at $700/embryo. The semen sale was on fire, as semen not readily available on the open market was offered from Business Line, Signal and Three D in 5-2 unit packages each. Leading the way on the semen offering was Signal with his semen commanding $400-425/unit, landing in the hands of breeders in Florida, Louisiana and Arkansas. The next offering of GENEPLUS genetics at auction will be November 4-5th at Chimney Rock Cattle Company where the partners will present 100 Elite Registered Females, 160 Brangus and Ultrablack bulls and 350 commercial Brangus females. For more information or to view private treaty offerings visit www. GENEPLUSBrangus.com.

THANK YOU!

It is with our deepest heartfelt gratitude that we thank each and every one of our customers for their unwavering support at our March 22nd sale in Eureka, KS. With cattle literally traveling from coast-to-coast, and a number of them staying in the Midwest, it is evident that the Brangus footprint is growing. The demand for GENEPLUS genetics, that fit today and tomorrow’s markets, is ever increasing.

151 bulls were offered to average $5220

SUHN’S SIGNAL 53J2

SUHN’S OCTANE 53J9

SUHN’S FENCO RELEVANT 30J4

$50,000 purchased by Genesis Ranch, Columbus, TX

$30,000 purchased by Chimney Rock Cattle Company, Concord, AR

$28,000 purchased by by Fenco Farms, Floral City, FL

LM MCC CHURCHILL 75J11

VOREL MASTERPIECE 40J2

GENEPLUS $25,000 purchased by Mt. Carmel Cattle Company, Birmingham, AL

$18,000 purchased by Jackson’s Double J Brangus, Gentry, AR

Vernon Suhn • vern@geneplusbrangus.com • (620) 583-3706

GENEPLUSBRANGUS.COM

(877 ) 436-3877

Cody Gariss • cody@geneplusbrangus.com • (417) 425-0368

CATTLEFAX TRENDS

Record

CASH COW COSTS

CattleFax recently conducted its annual “Cow-Calf Survey” to analyze data from 2021. First off, thank you to those who took the time to complete the survey, it is greatly appreciated. Results came from across the country, with the Central Plains and Southeast regions making up the largest samples. The average herd size of 461 cows is well above the U.S. average, but the findings represent more operations that truly try to make ends meet from a financial standpoint. The results benefit the industry by providing insight regarding trends for management practices, marketing strategies, expansion or liquidation, and many other key metrics. More importantly, producers can utilize the findings as benchmarks to compare against their own operation. Obviously, there are extensive variations within the cow-calf segment. All the analysis may not directly apply to your enterprise. Nonetheless, the following discussion and insights should at least be thought provoking. Not only did the cattle markets experience volatility in 2021, but major inputs for cow-calf operations did as well.

May 2022

Inflationary pressures, continued supply chain challenges, and drought, strained producers when it came to procuring the required inputs to run an operation. As expected, cash cow costs increased from the prior year. In fact, cow costs set a record in the CattleFax dataset that dates to the late 1980s. At $613/head in 2021, cash cow costs increased $18 from 2020. It is important to note this measurement does not include depreciation or returns to management. Because of the diversification in environments and business models for cow-calf operations there is a big range around the average. Not only from region to region, but also between operations in the same state or even county. However, it is very likely that record costs in 2021 applies to most operations. The Southeast and South Plains, which each accounted for 30 percent of the survey responses, continue to report the lowest cash cow costs. Aside from the Corn Belt, the South and Southeast posted the smallest year-over-year increases in costs. A smaller adjustment to feed expenses is likely the main driver. Hay prices, excluding alfalfa, in the South Plains and Southeast were $8 and $11/ton above 2020, respectively. While the North Plains and West hay markets averaged $27 and $19/ ton higher, respectively. While the West region reported the biggest annual change of $47 per cow, elevated grazing/land expenses keeps the North Plains at the top once again for cash cow costs. Drought through 2021 certainly impacted the expense side of the ledger for both regions. In 2020, pasture made up the largest percent of expenses for both areas, followed by feed costs. Last year those two line items flipped. In the North, feed costs accounted for 33 percent of all costs, while pasture

CATTLEFAX TRENDS was at 31 percent. Feed expenses contributed 34 percent of all expenses in the West, while pasture made up 29 percent. This is mostly a function of higher prices for grain or grainbased products, and hay, coupled with potentially feeding more due to the drought. In the last two surveys, participants were asked how many tons of hay per cow is consumed each year. The average between both regions increased about 0.8 tons per cow from 2020 to 2021. Lastly, the Corn Belt was tied with the West at $631 per cow in 2021 and reported the only annual decline. However, cash costs remained consistent the last three years. What makes the Corn Belt region unique compared to the others is how much feed costs contribute to overall costs. The last two years, feed costs made up 43 and 41 percent, respectively, of all expenses. While calf and feeder cattle prices have improved dramatically compared to a year ago, expenses and feed resources remain a significant headwind for a lot of cow-calf producers. Unfortunately, La Nina weather patterns persist causing the West region to struggle with dry conditions. Some parts of the North Plains, especially east, have received some much-needed relief through the fall and winter but are not out of the woods yet. Over the last several months, producers in the South have started to really feel the wrath of mother nature with drought becoming very prominent. Through February, 54 percent of the U.S. beef cowherd was in moderate or worse drought – the highest since March 2013. With the clock ticking for spring turnout, the spring weather forecast remains generally bleak for much of the already drought-stricken regions. While it is not what anyone wants to hear, producers need to be prepared. Coming into 2022 there were concerns the high inflation environment would continue. So far inflation remains a challenge, and the recent global events with the Russian invasion of Ukraine has only compounded inflation risks. How long the turmoil lasts and the severity of it will have a significant impact on the magnitude of inflation. Feed and energy costs were expected to remain elevated in 2022 and have up to this point. In fact, spot corn futures pushed up about a $1.50/bu in two weeks to a high of $8.00 on the Russia-Ukraine news. Energy markets have been and will likely continue to be extremely volatile. With the drought and the historical relationship between hay and corn prices, the hay market should be

well supported through 2022. There will certainly be some regional differences not only between prices but also the yearover-year changes, depending on regional precipitation and demand. U.S average hay prices, excluding alfalfa, started the year with an increase of $11/ton compared to the beginning of 2021. When considering all the factors, the odds favor the record cash costs in 2021 will be broken in 2022. It is difficult to forecast how much of an increase to expect. But producers need to budget for higher costs, on average, if they have not done so already. Like 2021, the calf market is expected to make year-overyear gains in 2022 to help offset the increase in costs. In the latest survey, participants reported calf revenue was $30/ head higher in 2021, compared to 2020, for an average of $870/head for both steers and heifers. This year’s calf market has already posted larger year-over-year gains. While costs continue to rise, the calf market should increase at a faster rate to improve profitability for the cow-calf segment in 2022. Thanks again to those that took the time to complete the recent survey. This unique dataset provides valuable insights for not only the industry, but more importantly to producers invested in the day-to-day operations. While the last couple of years were a challenge, there are a lot of opportunities just around the corner for cow-calf operations. However, it will still be critical that producers stay focused on the variables that maximize an operation’s bottom line. There is a lot more information from the cow-calf survey related to weaning and marketing strategies, advantages of different vaccination protocols, the benefits of genetics, and more, that provides a unique perspective for producers to consider. Stay tuned for more Trends articles that will expand on those important topics.

TRIO’S MLS CORTEZ 175C6 sire. CX TANQUE 23/T dam. TRIO’S WILDFIRE 175W

RR10328099

Cortez is a “Bull like no other.” We couldn’t be more excited about this outstanding herdsire and what he is doing for our Red program. He offers a great combination of calving ease, growth and muscling with an ideal underline and unmatched docility. He is also the sire of the 2022 International Champion Red Brangus Female.

RR10455362

RR10408194

BROKEN A GKB VALDEZ 841H

GKB YUCATAN’S CONQUEST 476F7

sire. TRIO’S MLS CORTEZ 175C6 dam. BROKEN A ISABELLA 841X2

sire. TRIO’S YUCATAN 175Y dam. /S DIXIE LADY CONQUEST 3476A

High selling bull of the 2021 Power of the Brands sale.

2021 International Champion Ultra Bull.

WWW.GKBCATTLE .COM 30

May 2022

RR10333860

MISS JLS NICOLE 334D3

sire. MR JLS RED BRICK 317Y3 dam. MISS JLS FIRESTORM 334B

2017 Reserve International Champion Female & incredible outcross Red Genetics.

RR10406696

MISS -C- DREAM GIRL 317F7

sire. CX MR LEGENDS DREAM 227/A dam. MS R2 CRUSADER 317N

From the champion producing 317 cow family, Phenotype, Power and Performance.

RR10443894

MS MBJ GALA 84G2

sire. LAZY 3 STATESMAN 100S dam. MS TRANCH 84Y

Statesman daughter and high selling female of the 2021 Power of the Brands.

RR10468317

GKB MISS CORTEZ 204J4

sire. TRIO’S MLS CORTEZ 175C6 dam. RED VELVET 204D

2022 International Champion Red Brangus female HLSR.

RR10468319

GKB MISS VELVET 204J8

sire. TRIO’S MLS CORTEZ 175C6 dam. RED VELVET 204D

The Cortez X 204D cross has yielded our very best females to date.

UR10482868

GKB MISS INSPIRE 157J

sire. GKB YUCATAN’S CONQUEST 476F7 dam. KK MISS INSPIRE 157G6

Calf at side of Reserve International Champion Pair HLSR.

GARY BUCHHOLZ | WWW.GKBCATTLE.COM 299 HWY. 16 - DESDEMONA, TX 76445 - 241.537.1285 - GARY@GKBCATTLE.COM RANCH MANAGER | ANDREW CONLEY - 706.781.8656 - ANDREW@GKBCATTLE.COM FIND GKB CATTLE ON SOCIAL MEDIA!

FEATURE ARTICLE

May 2022

FEATURE ARTICLE

A Love for the

BREED AND THE PEOPLE

by Lindsay L. Allen Earning the rights and nomination for Breeder of the Year doesn’t happen overnight. As this year’s winner, Tracy Holbert, former co-owner of Blackwater Cattle Company and 40-year member of the International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA), said, “It’s been a lifelong love affair with the breed and the people.” Holbert’s appreciation for the breed is the perfect example of the “domino effect.” In the late ‘70s and early ‘80s, during graduate school at Texas A&M University, he was also coaching the livestock judging team. Holbert took advantage of the well-known and respected Willow Springs Ranch herd and their proximity to the university and spent a lot of time evaluating their cattle with his team. “In my role as a judging coach, I had the opportunity to evaluate a lot of cattle and ranches around the country. The Brangus herd at Willow Springs Ranch was superior to them all and I fell in love with the breed and developed a lot of respect for what these cattle can do,” he recalled, “So when the opportunity to work for IBBA after graduate school was presented to me – I took it!” In 1981, Holbert became the first Director of Field Services for IBBA and has made his livelihood with Brangus cattle, alongside his wife, Cindy, ever since. Fast forward to 2022 and Holbert is named the IBBA Breeder of the Year in recognition of his success and advancements made utilizing and promoting Brangus seedstock cattle. Over the course of the last four decades, Holbert has worked hard to breed Brangus and Ultrablack cattle that are the “complete package.” “When Mike Coggins and I owned Blackwater Cattle Company (before selling the Brangus operation in late 2021), we worked really hard to increase the quality of cattle we were making through extensive use of artificial insemination, embryo transfer, DNA technology, performance and data driven decisions, and ensuring our EPDs were enhancing the genetics of the herd to design cattle that were balanced and profit driven,” Holbert continued, “This breed is known for maternal traits, but I wanted to make sure my cattle were moving the needle when it came to performance and carcass traits as well.” And the hard work paid off – Blackwater Cattle Company ranked in the top 65 of all seedstock breeders in

the United States by the 2021 Beef Seedstock Top 100 list according to BEEF Magazine. Without sacrificing quantity over quality, their herd EPD averages annually ranked at the top for the breed as well. The ranch focused on producing Brangus bulls that could be utilized in any cow/calf operation across the country with the best possible balance of optimum calving ease blended with maternal, performance, and carcass traits. “I have spent my life trying to make cattle blended in regards to antagonistic traits, which is not easy to do, but the balance of fertility and maternal traits mixed with high performing cattle that feed and hang well is important to me and the results are cattle that can create profit in any scenario, solidify the reputation of the breed and are highly sought after,” Holbert shared. It’s not just his herd he has had an impact on, but also other Brangus outfits that rely on Holbert’s expertise to mate and produce high quality cattle. One of those operations is Mound Creek Ranch, which Holbert has been involved with for more than 30 years. Mound Creek Ranch has seen its fair share of success within their herd and a lot of that is credited toward Holbert’s genetic selections for the operation. Eddie Blazek, owner of Mound Creed Ranch, said, “I have been involved in the Brangus breed for many years. In my experience, I know of no one that has been more deserving of the honorary “Breeder of the Year” award than Tracy Holbert.” He continued, “It is very evident that our breed has a special place in his heart and Tracy has shown this through his passion and drive to make a difference for Brangus breeders in the beef industry. Brangus genetics are in his DNA and the future of Brangus cattle has been greatly enhanced because of Tracy’s forty years of involvement and innovation. Holbert’s passion for Brangus cattle stems from the fact that they “can do it all.” As he says, “These cattle can fit into so many segments; they are polled and solid colored with a tremendous maternal presence, but also economical and efficient feeders that can hang with the best of them. Any seedstock operation should have these type of end point goals, which means our cattle can fit into any program and offer value.” (continued on page 34)

FEATURE ARTICLE (continued from page 33)

But as Holbert said earlier – it’s not just Brangus cattle that has kept him involved with the IBBA since the early 80s…it’s the Brangus breeders too. “So many have influenced me and I owe a huge thanks to those who have allowed me to influence their genetic programs,” he continued, “The people I met and/or worked with when I began working for the Brangus association are still great friends to this day. This award is a reflection of a lifetime achievement, but I couldn’t have done it without the people in the breed who have allowed me to make my livelihood with Brangus cattle, be part of their programs and become true friends along the way. I’ve spent the last 40 years loving the Brangus breed, trying to breed the best cattle and spread the gospel about this breed’s great genetics.” Holbert went on to say that when you look at Brangus breeders across the country, everyone is working to breed even better cattle and the results are being seen in the feed yards, packing houses, and heifer replacement pens. “I have so much respect for our breeders, and over time our breed has adapted to industry needs. For example, the Brangus Value Project is pushing and supporting breeders with our quest to increase and prove the value of Brangus

May 2022

genetics in the feedyard and profitability on the rail through performance and high-end carcass traits. Our cattle are changing to better meet industry needs, and the demand is rising as a result.” Holbert’s involvement and contributions don’t start and stop with his own herd and those genetic selections he is a part of; he has also been very active with the IBBA. Over the course of the years Holbert has sat on most of the IBBA standing committees, and also served as chairman for the Breed Improvement, Promotion, and Long-Term Planning Committees and is currently on the Board of Directors for the International Brangus Breeders Foundation. As a lifelong contributor to the Brangus breed, Holbert said that while he and Cindy are slowing their pace down slightly, and perhaps their volume of cattle has decreased, his chase for the best genetics and breeding systems is not wavering. Precision genetics will always be his goal within his own seedstock herd, and those he chooses to work with. “This has not been a career for me – but a passion. I could choose any breed of cattle to own and raise, but I love the Brangus breed, the people I continue to cross paths with, and will continue to try and be at the forefront of genetic improvement in our great breed,” he said.

SELLING BRANGUS BULLS & A SELECT SET OF REGISTERED FEMALES

GENE & PAM CLECKLER - HAMMONDVILLE, AL GARRETT THOMAS (936) 714-4591 www.hipointsalesandmarketing.com

256-888-2200 - WWW.FARNIENTEFARMS.COM MANAGER: RANDY PETTIJOHN (325) 642-2609 35

FEATURE ARTICLE

A AWorldwide MBASSADOR By Lindsay L Allen By definition, a pioneer is the first. Cox Excalibur Brangus “checks the box” for being the first... first to introduce Red Brangus cattle in Mexico, first generation Brangus breeder in his family and always eager to put the breed and youth first. For those familiar with Brangus or Red Brangus, it was no surprise at this year’s Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo that Don Cox, owner of Cox Excalibur Brangus, was named Pioneer of the Year by the International Brangus Breeder’s Association (IBBA). For almost four decades, Cox has been forging a path for Brangus and Red Brangus genetics around the world and has made a significant contribution to the breed, the people and the next generation, along with his wife, Lili, who is always by his side and attends all events with him, supporting his passion. The legacy of their operation dates back 112 years ago when the ranch land was originally purchased west of Houston, Texas in Weimar by Cox’s grandparents, Frank and Tillie Krejci. Cox always had an interest in his grandparents’ way of life and knew he would follow in their footsteps. In 1983, he purchased the family land (and adjoining land

May 2022

from a neighbor at a later time) that today is Cox Excalibur Brangus. Cox wasn’t afraid to align the land to his goals and walk away from the farming aspect that some of the land had been used for in the past. His focus was on breeding the best genetics and thus began his involvement with the Red Brangus breed. One of his best decisions 28 years ago was to hire Jose Ramirez as his ranch manager and Cox credits a large part of their success to Ramirez’ involvement. “I was, and still am, very interested in studying cattle and wanted to breed cattle that could survive and thrive in the hot, humid climates our southeast Texas ranch experienced,” he recalled, “It didn’t take long for my research to lead me to Brangus cattle and 39 years ago I established my Red Brangus herd.” One of the first things a breeder has to do is establish a name for themselves, both literally and figuratively. Excalibur is a reflection of Cox’s goal to be on the cutting edge with his program. “King Arthur’s sword was named ‘Excalibur’ and since a sword is only of value if it is sharp, I thought it was a fitting parallel to the goals of our program.” Cox Excalibur Brangus began introducing black Brangus

FEATURE ARTICLE genetics in the early 90’s. Cox has been actively marketing his cattle overseas since and beginning in 1988 has sold semen and embryos to nine different countries and has paved the way for Red Brangus in Mexico. A 1997 meeting with Guillermo Zambrano, founder of Brangus Rojo de Mexico in Monterrey, Mexico led to a sale of Excalibur genetics. The cattle would be Zambrano’s first Red Brangus and eventually Brangus Rojo de Mexico, an association in the country, was established, in large part because of Cox’s involvement. In just a short time, the association now has 140 breeders with no signs of slowing down. Because of his influence to help introduce the breed and establish an association in Mexico, Cox was awarded the Special Recognition Award for his service and international promotion of the breed from the Brangus Rojo de Mexico Association in 2018. It’s that same service and marketing that Cox is being recognized for this year, too. As Dr. Robert Vineyard said, “The Pioneer of the Year is awarded to an IBBA member who exemplifies service, loyalty and meaningful contributions to the Brangus breed. Don Cox possesses all these traits and more. He is a leader of people with good intentions, he has the will to succeed in every task or project he takes on and he accomplishes his goals with pride.” His efforts aren’t just making an impact abroad either, but also stateside as Cox is actively involved with the association and donating his time and talent to better the breed. His résumé includes the titles of 2010 IBBA president, chairman of many Brangus committees, treasurer/secretary for the association, and IBBA Board of Directors for eight years. He was also part of the original World Brangus Committee, which founded the World Brangus Congress (WBC) and he has attended the WBC in eight different countries to help grow the breed internationally. Allen Goode, owner of TRIO Cattle and Genetics and IBBA Board member said, “Don Cox embodies the definition of a pioneer. An individual who imagines what can be and

then works with all of his might to make it happen. For the Red Brangus breed he is a statesman who has supported breeders and contributed to associations in their growth and development around the Brangus World. For the IBBA and the IRBBA, he had a vision of the strengths one unified breed association would have for everyone and led the charge to bring it to being. His vision for our association and our breed is to provide opportunity for all members and breeders through our Brangus and Red Brangus cattle.” “As we seek to expand the breed, the interactions and relationships we have with breeders around the world will be vital to our success,” Cox said, “I’ve continually made myself available to serve on committees, and ultimately the Brangus breed. Helping the breed and the association in any way I can has always been important to me.” His service and desire to spread Brangus genetics doesn’t stop there though. Cox Excalibur Red Brangus hosts an annual CX Advantage Sale every October and at this sale they support their local FFA youth and donate a heifer. “All the proceeds go to two local chapters,” Cox shared, “We believe our FFA kids are the future and we want to give them every chance to attend meetings, conferences, and shows.” His contributions to the breed continue. With a strong Red Brangus herd and some black Brangus, Cox Excalibur is developing cattle that can grow and perform without supplemental feed. “Our pastures have zero feeders. We have selected our cattle so that they can grow on grass and do well in production. Our operation is laser focused on producing top herd sires and females and by breeding for cattle that reflect the highest quality genetics of the breed we are better able to promote Brangus,” Cox said. “It is truly an honor to receive this award. Growing the Brangus breed has always been a desire of mine because the cattle work in almost all climates, especially where the majority of the cattle in the world live. Brangus will continue to grow around the world and I’m excited to serve and be part of it all,” Cox summarized.

FEATURE ARTICLE

The International Brangus Breeders association Show Committee is pleased to host the third annual “Texas Invitational” Standard of Excellence (SOE) Show to be held in Conjunction with the Texas Junior Brangus Breeders Show, June 1-5, 2022 in Bryan, Texas. The Texas Invitational is an IBBA SOE open show with National point show status. The Texas Invitational will once again generate a high level of excitement and recognition with the selection of a Supreme Brangus and Supreme Ultra. Each of the Grand Champions will compete for the Supreme title. The Judge for the Texas Invitational will be Dr. Jason Cleere. Dr. Cleere is assistant professor and Extension beef cattle specialist, stationed at Texas A&M University in College Station, where he develops and implements Extension educational programs to increase production efficiency and profitability of Texas beef producers. He is also faculty member of the beef cattle section in the Department of Animal Science. He received his bachelor’s degree in agricultural science from Texas A&M University in 1997, his master’s in animal science with an emphasis in beef cattle production from Texas A&M University in 1998, and his doctorate in animal science with an emphasis in beef cattle genetics and management from Texas Tech University in August 2002. From January 2000 to August 2002, he served as a teaching assistant at 38

May 2022

Texas Tech University and taught junior and senior level beef cattle production and genetics classes in the Department of Animal Science. He also served as a research assistant for the Texas Beef Initiative at Texas Tech and is also a member of the American Society of Animal Science. Cleere also owns and operates a herd of purebred Shorthorn cattle. The Texas Junior Brangus Breeders have also opened up their show to any junior form any state. All juniors are invited and encouraged to participate in this show. The Texas Invitational will follow all rules and guidelines of the IBBA including parentage verification. The show will be held on June 5, 2022 at 9:00 am starting with the Brangus Female show, followed by the Brangus Bull show and then the Ultra Black/Red show at the Brazos County Expo in Bryan, Texas. The key dates and times are: May 13th Entry Due Date, Entry Fee, $60 per head June 1st – 3rd Texas Invitational Cattle Arrive until 4:00 pm on the 3rd June 3rd 4 pm Cattle Check In and Bull Weigh In and Exhibitor Social June 5th 9 am Texas Invitational Standard of Excellence Show Enter the Texas Invitational and 2022 TJBBA State Show at https://tjbba.fairwire.com

Powerful Cold Creek Heifers Selling at the

Quail Valley Invitational Elite Sale Selling Choice CCR Lady Atlanta 1912H4 Reg# 10473688 She posts an amazing 12, 35% or higher EPD traits.

CCR Lady Atlanta 1912H5

Reg# 10473689 CCR Lady Atlanta She posts an unheard unhea of 12, 1912H4 30% or higher EPD traits.

Dam of these heifers...

COLD CREEK LADY PASSPORT 1912C

Reg# 10304416 We sold this gorgeous cow to Double W Ranch and Johnston Brangus at the Invitational Elite Cow Sale at Quail Valley Farms in June 2020. This fertile cow produced over 200 embryos for them. They subsequently sold her for $34,000 to Elias Brangus at the CDP Sale last fall. An embryo package out of this phenomenal animal sold in Houston for $16,000.

Both of these 1912 heifers were AI'd to BWCC Big Town 192B16. They are the epitome of what we were hoping for when we formed the new Brangus 1912 family several years ago. They both are truly "perfect" ladies and will make an impact in any herd. Look for them in the Quail Valley Invitational Elite Sale on June 11, 2022.

Cold Creek Ranch

Angus, Brangus, UltraBlack Cattle Tom, Betty & Sean Davis Tom: 404.374.31023 | Sean: 404.406.1428 1698 Crossroad School Road, Butler, GA

CCR Lady Atlanta 1912H5

Private Treaty We invite you to visit our ranch anytime. 39

FEATURE ARTICLE

by Troy Rowan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist (Beef Genetics), Departments of Animal Science and UTCVM Large Animal Clinical Science, UTIA Genomics Center for the Advancement of Agriculture, University of Tennessee, Knoxville When we breed cattle, we’ve engaged in the “long game” of genetic progress. Our goal is to make this generation better than the last one. This sustained genetic progress is built on making the right decisions more often than not. By the “right decision,” I mean that the animals (AI sire choice, bull purchase, replacement heifer selection), we are choosing are the animal(s) with the best actual genetic merit for the traits that align with our breeding goal. EPDs are our best tool for ensuring that our selection decisions are “right” more often. Darrell discussed at length in the March issue that EPDs allow us to break an animal’s phenotype into its environmental and genetic components. This allows us to make selection decisions only on our statistical estimate of an animal’s genetic potential. This month, Darrell discusses the concepts of accuracy and possible change, two values associated with an EPD that directly affect selection accuracy. In March’s issue, J.R. Tait described the differences between pedigree and genomic relationships. We know that siblings receive 50% of their DNA from each parent. WHICH 50% they get differs. Anyone with a brother or 40

May 2022

sister (who isn’t an identical twin) knows that significant phenotypic differences (I don’t know about you, but I’m sure better looking than my little brother) can exist between full siblings raised in the same environment. This is a function of what we call Mendelian Sampling, or more simply put, the random sampling of genes. This randomness of passing on of genes from parents to their offspring is why we resemble our relatives but don’t look identical to them. Our goal with EPDs is to estimate which genes an animal inherited from its parents. Typically this has come from information on offspring or relatives (i.e., a bull with larger progeny is likely to have inherited more favorable DNA chunks that control size). The more information on an animal, the more accurate our estimate of that value (and their EPD) will be. Genomics has revolutionized the way that we calculate EPDs and make selection decisions. As Darrell discussed, traditionally, the way that we’ve seen EPD accuracies increase is through the addition of progeny or relative records into the genetic evaluation. This means that for producers who buy young bulls, the limited amount of information makes accuracy relatively low. Genomic tests can increase

FEATURE ARTICLE the accuracy of EPDs without progeny being added to the evaluation. When we genomically test an animal, we directly observe the genotype at a huge number of positions in an animal’s DNA. While most cattle share the exact same genotype at a given position (over 99.9% of DNA bases are the same), the differences that exist can tell us a lot about an animal and how it is related to other members of the population. We can use genomic testing to increase the accuracy of EPDs because it allows us to quantify the amount of DNA shared between individuals directly. In the figure below, you’ll see that three full siblings share 50% of their DNA with each parent. However, WHICH 50% that they share is different. Instead of assuming an animal shares 25% of its DNA with each grandparent (the assumption we make in pedigree-based EPDs) and that they’ll inherit 25% of each grandparent’s genetic potential, genomics allows us to directly observe which DNA chunks were inherited. Using genomics can better understand the relationships between individual animals in EPD calculations. The advantage is a boost in accuracy without waiting for offspring information to roll into the evaluation. Genomics allows animals that don’t share a pedigree link to “borrow” information from animals with which they share chunks of DNA. A genomic evaluation works almost identically to a traditional pedigree-based evaluation. The only difference is that genomics account for relationships when available as opposed to pedigree relationship estimates. The result is more accurate EPDs, especially for younger, unproven animals. Having a genomic test on an unproven animal is equal to having that animal with performance records plus a few progeny on the ground. This can take the animal from having a weaning weight accuracy of around 0.05 up to a 0.25 accuracy or above. The accuracy boost that an EPD receives from genomics will differ based on the trait. The

increase in accuracy will usually come along with a shift in the EPD itself. While these are typically modest shifts, they can sometimes be large. Further, an increase in accuracy doesn’t guarantee that the EPD will improve in the favorable direction, just that it is a better estimate of the animal’s true genetic merit. One important thing to remember is that a genomic evaluation ALWAYS needs phenotypes reported on individuals to be successful. Genomics helps us boost accuracy, but reliable phenotypes on animals with genotypes are essential to the long-term success of a genetic evaluation.

AFFILIATE UPDATES

BRANGUS BULL IN A BUCKET 2022

The idea came out of an observation, that during the fun auction, producers would donate units of semen to be auctioned off. So, why not reach out to producers and have all the units then put in a nitrogen tank and then raffle off the tank? So that is what we have done. We reached out to ABS, who donated an AI kit and volunteered to help coordinate the collection of the units for the raffle. Southeast Semen Services has also agreed to help facilitate the cause and will be inventorying the tank. Participants so far: ABS, Addison Brangus Farms, American Cattle Enterprise, LLC, Baxley Family Farm, Draggin’ M Ranch, Far Niente Farms, Fenco Farms, Hardee Farms, Hunt’s + Brangus,

JRT Brangus, Lake Majestik, Las Palomas Ranch, Phillips Ranch, T3 Brangus, Town Creek Farm, Vanna Farms, and WET Farms This is a tremendous opportunity to for you to add genetics, performance, and value to your herd with just one raffle ticket! SBBA producers have come together to provide you with this incredible opportunity to win a tank with Brangus genetics already in the tank. Raffle tickets will be $100.00, the drawing will take place during the SBBA Banquet Friday night September 23, 2022, at the Cattleman Park, Troy Alabama. You do not need to be present to win. Details for how to purchase a raffle ticket are coming soon, if you have any questions, email us at sebrangus@hotmail.com.

SRJBS BREEDERS BRAND CYPRESS PORCH SWING

The SBBA’s SRJBS committee would like to Thank everyone who adding their brand to the SBBA 50th Anniversary commemorative SRJBS Breeders Brand Cypress Porch Swing, which will go to support the inaugural SRJBS Michael Carter Scholarship fund. The support from our Southeast Brangus Family has been tremendous and overwhelming, we cannot express enough our gratitude with your support towards a great cause. The swing will be auctioned Friday, Sept. 30, 2022, in Troy, Al. at the SBBA Banquet and 50th Anniversary Celebration. Hope to see everyone there.

May 2022

Additional Buyers Group Tickets for more chances to win the swing will be on sale for $10 each up to the time of the Banquet. Contact any of the SRJBS committee members for additional tickets. Thanks, Tom Hayford & Vicki Hayford (850-768-1794), Roger & Janet Greuel ( 710-719-8118), William & Sarah Carte ( 386-590-1546), Kim Carter ( 863-557-3666), Quinn Carter ( 863- 242- 9567), Randy Bateman (321- 624-3040), Darren & Carrie Lee Baxley (334-524- 7650), or Alan & Karen Haney (334- 312- 0635)

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Bovine Elite is proud to offer the most comprehensive lineup of quality bulls in the industry. SEMEN & EMBRYO SALES n SEMEN & EMBRYO EXPORTING n AI & ET EQUIPMENT SALES SEMEN & EMBRYO WAREHOUSING n AI/PALPATION CLINICS AI CONSULTING & SIRE SELECTION n TRUTEST SCALES

Call us today to order! [979] 693-0388

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info@bovine-elite.comn 3300 LONGMIRE DRIVE

COLLEGE STATION, TX 77845

Visit our website for a complete listing of bulls.

WWW.BOVINE-ELITE.COM

FEATURE ARTICLE

A Glimpse by Audrey Acord

INTO THE 2022 NATIONAL JUNIOR BRANGUS SHOW

The 2022 National Junior Brangus Show is shaping up to be a phenomenal event this summer! The Bell County Expo Center in Belton, TX is an exceptional facility to host junior Brangus members from around the country. NJBS will be held July 26-31, 2022. Members will travel from all over the United States to exhibit their cattle at this highly coveted show. The International Junior Brangus Breeders Association directors work day in and day out to make this a top notch event for everyone to enjoy. Each year these juniors try to think up new and innovative ways to take the National Junior Brangus Show to the next level, and this year is no exception. There are some exciting changes and added events that will be happening this summer. The largest addition to the 2022 National Junior Brangus Show is the Phenotype and Genotype Show that has been added. This is something that is very exciting and will allow a different level of education to the juniors about their cattle. This show was created for juniors to have the opportunity to show their heifers in an additional competition that will require them to learn about the value of the Expected Progeny Difference (EPDs) when it comes to breeding and selling their animals. Allen Goode, former IBBA President, was on the forefront of this addition along with the IJBBA

May 2022

directors. “The addition of the PGS Show was developed with the idea of expanding the scope of our junior program and integrating the science of the purebred industry. The idea evolved from the collaboration of thoughts from across our association, with input and support from the Long-Range Strategic Planning and Show Committees to the IJBBA Board of Directors. The PGS will be another forum for education and stage for achievement for our junior breeders”, says Mr. Goode. The idea of adding the Phenotype and Genotype Show was first mentioned during the Long-Range Strategic Planning Committee meeting last August in Nashville, TN. The IJBBA board was presented the idea and saw this as a great opportunity to allow junior breeders and their families to see the value of EPDs in addition to the phenotypical aspect of breeding these cattle to be successful well past their time in the show ring. The Phenotype and Genotype Show results will consist of a composite score using both the genotype scores and the phenotype placings during the owned show. Brangus, Red Brangus, and Ultrablack/Ultrareds will have their own Phenotype and Genotype Show. The weighted total will be 60% Genotype placing and 40% Phenotype placing. The IJBBA strongly encourages you to participate in this added

FEATURE ARTICLE competition to expand your knowledge about the Brangus Industry past the show ring. In order to be eligible for the Phenotype and Genotype Show, the female entered must have GE-EPD’s on file with the IBBA at the time of the entry deadline. If you have any questions about the new Phenotype and Genotype Show, the rules can be found in the NJBS handbook on the IJBBA website. Some other changes that are coming back to NJBS this year are the DNA requirements. It is required that all animals born on or after January 1, 2021 must be DNA parent verified. This rule was put into place last year and will continue to be enforced at all shows from associated with the Brangus Association. The National Junior Brangus Show always has a schedule packed full of activities and contests for the week. Although it is required for each junior to participate in a minimum of 3 contests in order to be eligible to show in the junior shows, the IJBBA encourages juniors to participate in as many contests as possible. These contests offer a variety of learning opportunities to junior members. There are 12 different contests for juniors to choose from. These contests include: Computer Generated Brangus Advertisement Contest, Costume Contest, IBA Illustration Contest, Livestock Judging Contest, Photography Contest, Quiz Bowl Contest, Roger and Janet Greuel Speech Contest, Salesmanship Contest, Sullivans Supply Showmanship Contest, Skill-AThon Contest, Team Fitting and Showing Contest, and the Video Marketing Contest. There is certainly something for everyone when it comes to contests offered at the National Junior Brangus Show. While there will be a lot of contests going on throughout the week, the IJBBA has also made sure to work in some very fun activities for the junior members to enjoy. On Tuesday, July 26th, the opening ceremonies will be held at 4PM. This is an excellent time to meet juniors from other states and begin building your network of other Brangus breeders within the industry. Another crowd favorite activity that will be happening is the Barnyard Olympics competition. This will happen Wednesday, July 27th, at 6:30 PM. Junior members will gather into different teams and compete head-to-head in an assortment of different “barnyard” games and activities. The “Taste of States” is another activity put together by the IJBBA that is guaranteed to bring everyone together to enjoy food from each of the states that will be exhibiting cattle. The National Junior Brangus Show is an event that is full of Brangus Family Fellowship. One change that will be happening in 2022 in regard to the contests is the way that the highpoint award will be calculated. In 2022, the highpoint individual from each of the following divisions will receive a $250 cash prize: Novice (Age 7-10), Junior (11-13), Intermediate (14-16) and Senior (1721). The IJBBA Board of Directors added this to the 2022 NJBS in order to encourage more participation from junior members. The points for the highpoint contest are awarded based on the junior members ranking in each individual

contest. There will be no participation points awarded in 2022. The highpoint individual is a way to encourage junior members to participate in more than just the three required contests of choice. The highpoint individual must participate in six specific contests: Computer Generated Brangus Advertisement Contest, Judging Contest, Photography Contest, Roger and Janet Greuel Speech Contest, Sullivan Supply Showmanship Contest and the Skill-A-Thon Contest. As we gear up for the 2022 National Junior Brangus Show, we encourage everyone to join us in Belton, TX, July 26-31, 2022. This is the event of the year that allows Brangus members from all over the country to gather in friendly competition. At the National Junior Brangus Show, there is something to offer to every junior member from the variety of events, activities and contests. The IJBBA Board of Directors have worked countless hours throughout the past year in order to ensure that this is a well-run event that will continue to bring members into the Brangus Association and industry. The entry deadline is quickly approaching for the 2022 NJBS. You can head over to the International Junior Brangus Breeders Association website to locate the handbook that has all of the changes being implemented this year, as well as the entry portal. To stay the most up to date on information regarding NJBS and other junior member events, go like and follow the International Junior Brangus Breeders Association Facebook page. We cannot wait to see everyone this summer in Belton, TX for another incredible National Junior Brangus Show. Come join us for a week of Brangus fun!

GENTLE • RANCH RAISED REGISTERED BRANGUS BULLS

RAMRO LLC / RJ CATTLE CO

713-253-4804 or 713-204-4903

May 2022

WE ARE BULLISH ON OUR CUSTOMERS AND WE ARE BULLISH ON BRANGUS! FOR MORE INFORMATION ON HOW YOU CAN HELP WITH SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND INNOVATION TO MOVE THE BEEF INDUSTRY FORWARD AND TO SECURE A SOLID POSITION FOR BRANGUS GENETICS IN THE HIGH QUALITY BEEF INDUSTRY CALL THE IBBA OFFICE TODAY. 210-696-8231

May 2022

TEXAS EXPORTING Livestock through

ground O air O sea

LIVESTOCK

EXPORT FACILITIES

El Paso Livestock Export Facility 10800 Socorro Road El Paso, Texas 79927 Office (915) 859-3942

Del Rio Livestock Export Facility 543 Farley Lane Del Rio, Texas 78840 Office (830) 773-2359

Howdy Neighbors,

Houston-Bush Intercontinental Airport Livestock Export Facility

16424 Luthe Lane Houston, Texas 77032 Office (281) 443-2447

Laredo Livestock Export Facility 3902 Jaime Zapata Memorial Highway Laredo, Texas 78046 Office (956) 722-6307

Brownsville Livestock Export Facility 701 South Vermillion Ave. Brownsville, Texas 78521 Office (956) 546-5135

he Texas Department of Agriculture has five livestock export facilities located across the state. Each facility provides livestock buyers and sellers with a location on the Texas border where animals can be held until inspection and export requirements are completed. Once the livestock have been cleared for travel, they can be loaded for transport out of the United States. Livestock leaving the Brownsville, Del Rio, El Paso, and Laredo facilities will be loaded for ground transport into Mexico. The Houston facility moves livestock by air and sea, covering destinations all over the world. CATTLE HORSES

H Brownsville Facility H

Del Rio Facility

El Paso Facility

Houston-Bush

Laredo Facility

PIGS

GOATS

SHEEP

POULTRY

Here at the Texas Department of Agriculture, one of our most important missions is to protect and promote production agriculture here in the Lone Star State. A cornerstone of that mission is to ensure that livestock being exported from our state meets all state and federal guidelines. The Texas Department of Agriculture export facilities are the gateways for exporting livestock from Texas. From cattle and horses to pigs and poultry, these facilities are tools to help get Texas livestock around the world. Through our export facilities, TDA is committed to not only protecting the transported livestock but also the owners, buyers and brokers. Exporting livestock may seem daunting. The information we’ve posted on our livestock export facility website, and our facility staff, can help you successfully navigate this process. Please contact us if you have any questions. Sincerely, Sid Miller Commissioner Sid.Miller@TexasAgriculture.gov

Intercontinental Airport

For More Information:

49 www.TexasAgriculture.gov/LivestockExportPens

SERVICE DIRECTORY

For advertising opportunities in the Brangus Journal or Frontline Beef Producer, contact Melanie Fuller at 979-255-3343 or mfuller@gobrangus.com.

ALABAMA — ARIZONA — ARKANSAS

FIND A BREEDER NEAR YOU VISIT US AT G O B R A N G U S . CO M / B R E E D E R -S E A R C H 50

May 2022

STATE DIRECTORY

ARKANSAS — CALIFORNIA — FLORIDA — GEORGIA — KANSAS — LOUISIANA

JOHN MILAM, OWNER Grady Green, Ranch Manager 870-314-3673 | grady@dragginmranch.com El Dorado, Arkansas www.dragginm.com 2020 IBBA Top ET Breeder

Brangus & Ultrablacks BULLS & FEMALES available private treaty and select sales

Clay Cooper, Manager

SPANISH RANCH

352.302.2734

Brangus and Ultrablack Cattle

Pamela Doiron 805-245-0434 • doiron@spanishranch.net Follow Us on Facebook or Instagram @spanishranchcuyama

L.G. Herdon, Jr Owner 912.293.1316 Sky Herdon, Co-Owner 912.245.0428 Kevin Asbury, Manager 850.252.7290

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7/15/21 1:57 PM

Contact Melanie Fuller at mfuller@gobrangus.com or 979.255.3343 for advertising spaces

FIND A BREEDER NEAR YOU VISIT US AT G O B R A N G U S . CO M / B R E E D E R -S E A R C H 51

STATE DIRECTORY

LOUISIANA — MISSISSIPPI — MISSOURI — NEW MEXICO — OKLAHOMA — TEXAS

David Wood Magnolia, MS 713-539-5715

dwood@woodcorporation.com

CDPBrangus.com

Sales: 2nd Friday in March, 4th Saturday in April, 3rd Weekend in November

Joe Cavender, Owner Justin Matejka, General Manager | 903-521-1070 Dustin Kennedy, Cavender Brangus Ranch Manager | 903-810-2413 1200 CR 4716 • Troup, TX 75789 | CDPBrangus.com Certified Free Herd # D80550202

JOE & MELANIE FULLER - BEN & TRISH FULLER 14148 N State Highway 16, Willow City, TX 78675 C. 979-255-7747 E. jw.fuller@yahoo.com

Contact Melanie Fuller at mfuller@gobrangus.com or 979.255.3343 for advertising spaces

FIND A BREEDER NEAR YOU VISIT US AT G O B R A N G U S . CO M / B R E E D E R -S E A R C H 52

May 2022

STATE DIRECTORY

TEXAS EVERY DAY IS SALE DAY AT

Drake Land & Cattle

Farris Ranching Company

398 Drake Road Quanah, Texas 79252

Cell: (832) 331-2527 Ranch: (940) 663-6143 drakeranch398@gmail.com www.drakeranch.com

“West Texas Tough”

Brangus and Ultrablack Bulls est. 1924 Quanah, Texas

Danny & MB Farris Tuscola, TX 325.669.5727

J ackson family brangus

JODI & DAVID JACKSON 3099 Horseshoe Bend Waco, Texas 76708 Jodi cell: 254.722.9138

jodiatbentwood@sbcglobal.net

MIKE SHELTON C: 713.560.8333 Colita Loop, Colita, TX 77351 www.brangusprofit.com Registered Brangus and Ultrablack Cattle

Contact Melanie Fuller at mfuller@gobrangus.com or 979.255.3343 for advertising spaces MikeShelton-DirectoryCard.indd 1

FIND A BREEDER NEAR YOU VISIT US AT G O B R A N G U S . CO M / B R E E D E R -S E A R C H 10/19/17 7:32 AM

STATE DIRECTORY

RIO RANCH

TEXAS

Rafter 2 Ranch

Registered Brahman, Charolais and Brangus

Red Brangus Registered

Commercial

Raul Montez 832-331-6800 jraulmontez@ymail.com 39606 FM 1736 Hempstead, TX 77445

Show Calves

Whitsett, TX www.Rafter2ranch.com

A 4th Generation Family Owned Cattle Operation

D'Ann Harper

210.393.1713

Marlee Kutzer

RafterTwoRanch@gmail.com

RIORANCHTX.COM

Randy Schmidt 903.278.7777

Schmidt Farms

Garrett Hinds 417.880.2839

BRANGUS & ULTRABLACK

GENEPLUSBRANGUS.COM

Zottarelli Ranches Angelo Zottarelli 2156 FM 2414 Evant, Texas 76525

www.zottarelliranches.com

REGISTERED & COMMERCIAL CATTLE Mailing Address PO Box 400 Evant, TX 76525

254-471-5675 Ranch 512-422-3123 Mobile zrbrangus@sbcglobal.net

Contact Melanie Fuller at mfuller@gobrangus.com or 979.255.3343 for advertising spaces

FIND A BREEDER NEAR YOU VISIT US AT G O B R A N G U S . CO M / B R E E D E R -S E A R C H 54

May 2022

CALENDAR MAY 7 Clayton Williams Ranch Company Share the Genetics Sale, Bastrop, Texas 30 Office closed for Memorial Day 1-4 10 10-11 11 18

JUNE Texas Junior Brangus Breeders Association State Show, Bryan, Texas ACE at Quail Valley Farms Complete Mature Cow Herd Dispersal, Oneonta, Alabama Arkansas Junior Brangus Breeders State Show, Siloam Springs, Arkansas ACE at Quail Valley Farms Premier Invitational Elite Brangus Sale, Oneonta, Alabama Divas In Red Sale, Rosenberg, TX

JULY 4 Office closed for Independence Day 10 Ad Reservation Deadline for August Brangus Journal 10 Southeast Brangus Breeders Association Annual Award Nominations Due 25 SBBA Award of Excellenece, Achievement Award and Hall of Fame Nominations Due 56

May 2022

25 SBBA Female Sale Nominations Due 25 SRJBS Ownership Deadline 26-31 National Junior Brangus Show and Brangus Futurity, Belton, Texas AUGUST 10 Ad Reservation Deadline for Fall Frontline Beef Producer 15 SRJBS Entry Deadline SEPTEMBER Far Niente Farms Inaugural Production Sale, Fort Payne, Alabama Ad Reservation Deadline for October Brangus Journal ACE @ Wiley Ranch Southern Harvest Female Sale, Effie, Louisiana Power of the Brands, Wharton, Texas Midsouth and Neal Family Annual Bull & Female Sale SBBA Field Day & 50 Year Celebration, Troy, Alabama SBBA General Membership Meeting, Fun Auction, Banquet & Awards Ceremony, Troy, Alabama 23 Southeast Regional Junior Brangus Show, Troy, Alabama 24 SBBA Showcase Female Sale 3 10 10 10 17 22 23

ADVERTISING INDEX ALABAMA American Cattle Enterprise.............IFC, 11,13 Far Niente Farms ..................................35, 50 Johnston Brangus .....................................50 Lake Majestik..............................................50 Quail Valley Farms...................IFC, 11, 39, 50 Southeast Brangus Breeders Assn........47, 50 TTT Brangus Farm........................................50 ARIZONA Carter Brangus............................................50 Parker Brangus...........................................50 ARKANSAS Adams & Creasy Insurance Agency.............50 Big D Ranch ...............................................50 Chimney Rock Cattle Co. ............................51 Draggin’ M Ranch ......................................51 Giffin Farms................................................51 Jacksons Double J......................................51 Mobley, Luke..............................................50 Pope Farms Brangus...................................51 Red Bud Farms...........................................51 CALIFORNIA Spanish Ranch............................................51 FLORIDA Fenco Farms................................................51 Hardee Farms ............................................51 Phillips Ranch.......................................11, 51 W.E.T. Farms................................................51 Wynne Ranch.............................................51 GEORGIA Char-No Farm .............................................51 Cold Creek Ranch.................................11, 39 Critter Fixer Cattle Company.......................11 Genetic Partners.........................................11 Greuel Family Brangus ..............................51 L.G. Herndon, Jr. Farms, Inc. ................12, 51 Omni Advertising.......................................46 Stover Ranch...............................................11 KANSAS Jensen Livesotck Agency............................50 Suhn Cattle Co ...........................................51 LOUISIANA Bushley Creek Cattle Co. ............................51 Cross N Farms ......................................11, 51

The Eagles Ranch........................................11 Hayes Brangus............................................11 Midsouth Cattle Company......................9, 52 Plainview Farms.........................................11 The Branch Ranch.......................................52 Wiley Ranch..........................................11, 52 Neal Ranch................................................... 9 Soileau Cattle Co.........................................11 MISSISSIPPI Double W Ranch ........................................52 T3 Brangus..................................................52 Town Creek Farm.......................................IBC MISSOURI Don Thomas & Sons ...................................52 GENEPLUS...................................... 19-24, 27 Valley View Ranch.......................................52 Vitaferm......................................................58 Wyman Creek Cattle Company...................52 NEBRASKA DVAuction.................................................. IFC NEW MEXICO Bobby and Bobbie Brangus .......................52 Brinks Brangus @ Westall Ranches ............52 NORTH CAROLINA Whitley Cattle Co....................................7, 13 OKLAHOMA Lawman Ranch...........................................52 Perry Ranch.................................................52 TEXAS 2 Hearts Brangus........................................52 2C Brangus.................................................52 Bovine Elite, LLC ...................................43, 50 Cavender Ranches .........................16, 46, 52 Cavender-Draggin’ M and Partners...... 16-17 Cox Excalibur Brangus ...............................52 Cross F Cattle..............................................52 Diamond K Ranch ......................................52 Drake Land & Cattle ...................................52 E3 Ranch, LLC .............................................52 Elgin Breeding Services, LLC ......................50 Farris Ranching Company ..........................52 G Bar Brangus.............................................52 Gardner Cattle Co........................................52

Garry Clem Brangus ...................................52 Genesis Ranch ...........................................52 GKB Cattle ...................................... 30-31, 52 Grassy Lake Cattle Company.................12, 13 Hi Point Sales + Marketing .......9, 15, 35, BC International Brangus Auxiliary..................26 Jackson Family Brangus.............................52 JLS International ........................................52 K & L Brangus .............................................52 Lambert, Doak............................................50 MBJ Ranch................................................... 5 Mound Creek Ranch................. 11, 12-13, 52 MP Brangus..........................................52, BC Oak Creek Farms.........................................52 Oakley, Lakin..............................................50 OK Farms....................................................52 Old Colita Ranch.........................................52 Pennridge Ranch........................................52 Pumpjack Cattle Co.....................................52 Rafter 2 Ranch............................................53 Ramro LLC...................................................45 Reagan, Terry..............................................50 Rio Ranch....................................................53 RJ Cattle......................................................45 Santa Rosa Ranch....................................3,53 Scamardo Brangus.....................................53 Schmidt Farms............................................53 Star G Ranch...............................................53 Starwood Ranch..........................................53 Tajo Ranch..................................................53 Texas Department of Agriculture................49 TRIO Cattle & Genetics............................5, 53 Triple Crown Ranch.....................................53 Triple JR Cattle Co.......................................53 Tuna Rosa Ranch.........................................53 Turner Brangus Farm..................................53 Union Ranch Cattle Company.....................53 Villa Ranch......................................11, 15, 53 Vineyard Cattle Co., Inc...............................53 Williams Ranch Company..........................53 Zottarelli Ranches.......................................53 Allen Cattle Company.................................46 Skyhawk Brangus.......................................46

ABOUT THE BRANGUS JOURNAL The International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) is proud to offer its members and industry affiliates the opportunity to promote themselves through Brangus Publications, Inc.’s (BPI) print and digital mediums. IBBA’s printed publications are produced by BPI and are distributed to a mailing list, comprised of addresses in Australia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Philippines, Thailand, and the United States; with a circulation of approximately 2,000. The Brangus Journal (ISSN 0006-9132) is published by Brangus Publications, Inc. (BPI), 8870 US Highway 87 East, San Antonio, Texas 78263, monthly except February, June, July, and September. Periodicals postage paid at San Antonio, Texas and additional mailing offices. POSTMASTER: send address change to Brangus Publications Inc., P.O. Box 809, Adkins, Texas 78101. The Brangus Journal is the official publication of the International Brangus® Breeders Association (IBBA). The Brangus Journal is published eight times annually, the purpose of the Brangus Journal is to serve the best interest of IBBA members by showcasing breeding programs, efforts, and achievements to other Brangus® seedstock producers. Lastly, the Brangus Journal serves as an outlet for the IBBA to provide updates by directly communicating with the membership. The claims made by advertisers in this publication are not verified by BPI or the IBBA. For subscriptions, contact Lori Edwards, ledwards@gobrangus.com, or 210.696.8231. Domestic periodicals (one year) $25; first class $55; foreign periodicals (one year) $25; air mail to Canada or Mexico $70; air mail to other countries $115.

May 2022

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Select bulls from proven Brangus, Ultrablacks, Vigor Max™ (Brahman x Angus half-blood maximum heterosis), 3/4 Blood and Brahman Bulls. Full two-year old bulls selling. Fertility is our top priority. All other traits follow fertility. Opportunity to buy bulls from a program that culls EVERY open female and EVERY female that doesn’t bring a calf to weaning pens. Genetics developed and proven for more than 30 years. Genetics are proven to develop powerful, profitable cow herds.

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Maternal bulls to develop superior replacement heifers that are fertile and long lasting with good udders. Large selection of calving ease heifer bulls. User Friendly bulls. Bulls are hard, ripped and toned; ready for breeding pastures. Managed to be disease free. ALL bulls out of Johnes-free cows. Environmentally adapted and acclimated bulls that withstand heat and humidity. Longevity – of bulls and their daughters.

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Your source for maternal genetics. Increased fertility. Balanced genetics and selection. Forage focused and driven genetics.

145E6 • SEMEN AVAILABLE

Town Creek Farm Sale

Saturday, October 15, 2022 • 12 noon at the ranch near West Point, Mississippi

150 Brangus, Ultrablack and VigorMax™ Half-Blood Bulls 250 Brangus Commercial Bred Heifers Go to our website to request a sale catalog and to join our mailing list.

3 Quality Assurance always comes rst. Total Commitment

Since 1993

263F • SEMEN AVAILABLE

TOWN CREEK FARM

Milton Sundbeck, Owner • Office (662)494-5944 32476 Hwy. 50 East, West Point, Mississippi 39773-5207 Joy Reznicek Sundbeck (205)399-0221 • Joy@TownCreekFarm.com Cody Glenn (601)508-8689 • Cody@TownCreekFarm.com www.TownCreekFarm.com

Lot 52 LR THREE D 20H15

Sold for $8,000 to Tristan Longoria, New Braunfels, TX

Lot 33

DDD MS OUT CROSS 150F16

Sold for $25,000 to Sendero Brangus, Laredo, TX and Villa Ranch, Hempstead, TX

Lot 1 DDD CAYLA 488B3

Sold for $9,500 to WM Brangus, Bellville, TX

SALE AVERAGES A P R I L 9 , 2 0 2 2 , P O T E E T, T X 36 FEMALES AVERAGED: $4,610 24 BULLS AVERAGED: $4,373

GARRETT THOMAS (936) 714-4591 www.hipointsalesandmarketing.com

P O T E E T, T X - WA C O, T X - C O M A N C H E C O U N T Y, T X MARK PERRY (254) 715-8487 - TIMMY LUCHERK (210) 834-1247 JAY DIEHL (254) 258-5761 - ONLINE. www.mpbrangusranch.com

MARK YOUR C ALENDAR FOR OUR FALL PRODUC TION SALE ON 10/15/22 IN POTEET, T X 60

May 2022

May 2022 Brangus Journal

Articles inside

WHAT DOES TOTAL HERD REPORTING HAVE IN COMMON WITH GOLF?

CALENDAR

A GLIMPSE INTO THE 2022 NATIONAL JUNIOR BRANGUS SHOW

PUTTING GENOMICS TO WORK

TEXAS INVITATIONAL

SALE SUMMARIES

CATTLEFAX TRENDS

A LOVE FOR THE BREED AND THE PEOPLE

PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE

AFFILIATE UPDATE

A WORLDWIDE AMBASSADOR