Breeder's Connection 2016 by The Greeley Publishing Company

2016 PERIODICAL

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2016

Large Selection of New Genetics Heifer Bulls!

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Genomic Profile on all Sale Bulls 100% Proven AI SIRED TJ & KRISTY MARTIN Tanner & Lisa Martin Ty Martin Large Selection of Half & Three quarter Blood Brothers 1361 Keystone Sarben N Rd • PO Box 260 FIRST BREEDING SEASON GUARANTEE • Volume Discounts Keystone NE 69144 Free Feed Free Delivery martin@lakemac.net Office (308-726-2855) • Cell (308-883-2333) Updated EPD’s, Weights, Scrotal Measurements & Ultrasound Data available sale day Martinangusranch EPD’s as of 11-23-15

Mark Your Calendars!

Leachman Spring Bull & Female Sale Join Us in Fort Collins on March 19th -21st, 2016

• 450 Efficiency & $Profit Bulls • 100 Hairpin Females More good information, food and people than you'll find at any other sale in the country....

$Profit Works— “We buy better bulls for less by doing our $Profit homework. We do lots of homework before sale day. This spring we bought six Leachman bulls under the sale average for $6,375 each. They averaged $11,972 $Profit – that ranks them in the top 1% of the industry’s 2014 crop! Our 1,250 lb. cows produce 650 lb. steer calves at seven months and 1,400-1,500 pound fats when finished. We have shopped at Leachmans for nearly 20 years….” ~ Tom McMillan, McMillan Ranch Co. Milburn, NE

Lee Leachman, Partner Ryan Peterson, Sales Manager 2056 West County Road 70 • Fort Collins, CO

(970) 568-3983 · www.leachman.com

B reederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection TA B L E O F CO N T E N TS

pg. 106

pg. 24

Lockhart cattle succeeds in grass finished beef

Lockhart Cattle grows grass-finished beef business through word of mouth

Changes embraced at T-Cross Ranches

T-Cross Ranches horse division embraces changes, including introduction of a virtual selling site

PG. 10

PG. 44

PG. 80

Red Angus Breeder of Year

Balance in backgrounding

Hueftle Cattle Co. is leader in Red Angus business, wins major award

Finding the balance in backgrounding calves is a challenge

Hay can be botulism source

PG. 16

PG. 62

Wagonhound, Commercial Producer of the Year Wagonhound of Douglas, Wyo., wins Commercial Producer of Year Award

PG. 34 Young cattlemen make their way into business Young cattlemen face challenges, and learn to overcome them

Improperly baled hay can be a source of botulism

Replacement value

PG. 96

To rebuild herd, keep heifer calves or buy replacements?

Ackerman Performance Horses

PG. 74

Ackerman Performance Horses develops loyal customer base

Hawaii cattlemen use techniques to ship calves to mainland Hawaii cattlemen use innovative techniques to ship calves to mainland

PG. 102 Q&A: Successful horse trainers Four successful performance horse trainers share their training philosophies

On The Cover

Photo courtesy of Willie Altenburg with Altenburg Super Baldy Ranch in Fort Collins, Colo. Fence Post Company Office at 501 8th Avenue, Greeley, Colo. Mailing address: P.O. Box 1690, Greeley, Colo., 80632. Telephone: (970) 686-5691. FAX: (970) 352-7164. Advertising Deadline: 5 p.m.

Wednesday. Published every Monday. The Fence Post (USPS No. 547650; ISSN# 0274-7308) is published weekly for $55 per year by Fence Post Co., at the offices of the Fence Post, P.O. Box 1690, Greeley, Colo., 80632. Postmaster: Send address changes to the Fence Post, P.O. Box 1690, Greeley, Colo., 80632. Periodicals postage paid at Greeley, CO., and additional mailing offices. Subscriptions outside the continental U.S. $81/year. ÂŠCopyright Fence Post Co., 1990. All rights reserved. Reproduction without permission of the publisher is prohibited. We advise anyone who submits material to the Fence Post that doing so constitutes a consent for the Fence Post to publish the material as it chooses, including but not limited to all print, electronic, and archival versions, without any further compensation to the author.

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Dr. Heidi Black D.C. 804 S. Ash, Yuma, CO 970-848-2050

Beautiful Functional Ranch 1744 +/- acres 17 miles SE of Wray, Yuma County 347+/- acres pivot irrigated, 60+/acres dry farm, balance (approximately 1300 acres) grass pasture, corrals and very modest buildings - Three irrigation wells - abundant stock water. 2015 Taxes: $2475 Asking price $2,850,000 Call Les 970-214-6139

Exceptional find; Weld County CO located approximately 4 miles east of Ault and Eaton, CO +/- 132 acres vacant land. Property has Owl Creek running through it, currently in 4 separate parcels, excellent mountain views, and no covenants, HOA, or livestock restrictions. Utilities available $724,000,000. Les or Greg (970) 221-2607 +/- 36.25 I-25 frontage acres north of Wellington, Colorado. County Road 70 exit in Larimer County, Colorado. Buildable for a residence, no HOA or covenants. Water tap available along with electric adjacent to property. Excellent high visibility from I-25, any commercial uses or development subject to county special review. Presently in pasture. $500,000 Les or Greg +/- 50 ACRES VACANT land 4 miles north of Wellington, CO on paved county road 9. Additional acres possible. Property has excellent mountain views, vast valley views, no covenants, no hoa, or livestock restrictions. Utilities available, no mineral rights, no water rights. $229,000. Les 970-214-6139 or Greg 970-218-5911 +/- 5,000 Head Feedlot East Of Wray, Yuma County, CO: Tremendous area for feed availability. Highway 34, complete with truck scale, CAFO permit, retention ponds, elevator and grain storage, great indoor processing and load out facility. Working condition with complete reconstruction in progress. Les Gelvin (970)214-6139

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HUEFTLES Red Angus Breeder of Year Breeder’s Connection | 10

BY TERESA CLARK

uilding a registered cattle operation that is well-known and respected within the industry doesn’t happen overnight. It takes years of hard work, dedication, and some tough financial and management decisions to make the business work. Despite all that, it is also one of the most rewarding businesses to develop. Recently, Neil and Anita Hueftle were recognized for their accomplishments, as well as their dedication and contributions to the Red Angus business, by being honored as the Red Angus Breeders of the Year. Hueftle Cattle Company is a multigenerational ranch located near Cozad and Eustis, Neb. Neil’s great-greatgrandfather immigrated to America from Germany, and began farming in the Eustis area. Neil’s grandfather, Gus Hueftle, started the cattle business with primarily Herefords. The first Red Angus set foot on the ranch in 1970 when Gus’ son, Karl, purchased his first Red Angus bull from Sally Forbes. Karl and his son, Neil, later purchased Red Angus cows from Leachman Cattle Company in the 1980s, and started raising Red Angus bulls. They eventually had the opportunity to become co-operators for Leachman, and produced several top sires including Above and Beyond, Cheyenne, and Gravity under the LCC brand. Neil’s parents, Karl and Janice, have been semi-retired from the business. “Dad just passed away this month,” Neil said. “Karl has not been physically involved for some time now because of some restrictions, but he did still share in the decision-making process of his operation.” Janice still remains active in the dayto-day operations to maintain their own sizable Red Angus-based herd, with the help of her herd manager, Kim Lehman, who has been with the operation since 1983. “Kim has been an integral part of Hueftle Cattle Company, making management and

Aaron, Isaac, Anson, Anita, Neil Hueftle pose for a family photo. Courtesy photo

Kim Lehman, auctioneer Tracy Harl and Clerk Dave McClatch. Photo by Teresa Clark Breeder’s Connection | 11

breeding decisions for mom and dad’s herd,” notes Neil. In 2004, Neil and his wife, Anita started selling bulls under their own HX brand. With cow numbers around 330 head, they calve from January through March, then AI the cows for a 21-day cycle before moving the pairs to grass in late May. In addition to the cattle, the family also grows about 800 acres of corn, and 300 acres of alfalfa,

For more info

For more information about Hueftle Cattle Company, see the company’s website at www. HueftleCattleCompany.com. Neil Hueftle can be reached at (308) 529-0648.

Breeder’s Connection | 12

in addition to soybeans and wheat. All of Neil’s siblings still have cattle of their own in the HXC herd, and help out occasionally on the ranch. Brother Lee has a commercial herd north of Eustis, Neb. Another brother, Nolan, who lives in Broken Bow, Neb., comes back quite a bit to fill in the gaps during busy times of the year. All take time out to help with the annual production sale.

Neil and Anita’s three sons have been an important part of this growing operation. Anson, 23, will graduate this month from the University of Nebraska-Kearney, earning a degree in finance and MIS. He clerks the annual sale. Aaron, 20, is a sophomore studying agribusiness at Central Community College in Hastings, Neb. His plan is to return to farm and ranch when he finishes school in May.

Isaac, 18, is a senior at Eustis-Farnam High School. He plans to attend the University of Nebraska-Kearney and pursue a degree in pre-pharmacy. As the Hueftle operation expands, they’ve added bulls from several co-operators who have invested in the Hueftle genetics. One co-operator, Cory Banzhaf of C Lazy B Cattle Company, along with ABS Global, purchased HXC Big Iron in 2011. “Cory has went to a later calving date, and we plan to incorporate his 18-month old bulls, along with HXC females into a future fall sale offering,” Neil said. Another co-operator, Kevin Berke of Berke Cattle Company is part owner of HXC Conquest, which is a top-selling Red Angus bull at Accelerated Genetics. “We’ve been fortunate to raise and own some of the more influential bulls in the Red Angus breed,” Neil continued. “In 1997, we purchased a yearling bull from Buffalo Creek named Cherokee Canyon. That bull became a standout in the breed, becoming extremely popular because of this moderate frame and heavy muscle. Cherokee Canyon proved himself through his progeny, and when he did, it became clear that he was the right bull at the right time.” Selecting the right sires and mating them to the right females requires some thoughtful management. “We strive to produce outcross genetics that will have some of the best EPD profiles possible,” Neil explained. “We really try to focus on producing the best product possible. We are producers first, and promoters second. When we connect with a customer, we are confident that we will be able to fill their needs.” Their customer base is a combination of other seedstock and commercial producers. Hueftle Cattle Company holds an annual bull sale on the second Friday in March. Last year’s sale offered 115 yearling bulls. Neil said these bulls are selected based on performance, disposition, phenotype and EPDs. “We focus on producing new, innovative outcross genetics, with an emphasis on multiple traits like moderate birth, growth, marbling, and rib-eye,” Neil added. The bulls represented in the sale are the top end of the cattle they produce. All bulls must pass a breeding soundness exam and semen test. “Bulls selling for $2,500 or more are guaranteed through the first breeding season, and free delivery is offered up to 350 miles. Deliveries beyond 350 miles are offered at cost.” Those bulls that don’t make the sale are fattened in a feedlot, and sold as finished cattle. After initially starting out at the

Gothenburg sale barn for five years, they have spent the last seven years at a neighbor’s feedlot. “Kevin (Berke) owned the feedlot and building right down the road where we’ve held our sale in the past, and it worked well,” Neil says. They are excited to move into their own sale facility, which is located two miles south of Cozad, Neb. “This will be the first time since we started selling bulls in Nebraska in 2004 that we will sell in our own facility,” he added. “We are excited to make it home. Although we have moved the sale site around a bit, we feel we have finally found a permanent site for the sale location. Our sale bull and females are always available for preview prior to the sale.” Although they usually only sell bulls on the production sale, Neil says that they will occasionally

offer some females for sale. “One of the more notable females we’ve sold recently was HXC Patricia Rose 102Y, which raised Brown Legend now at Accelerated Genetics. Another notable female we sold was HXC Jolene 301N in 2005 to C Bar Ranch and R.A. Brown Ranch. HXC Jolene was the dam of HXC Jackhammer at ABS. If you follow Jolene’s daughter, HXC Jolene R548, she is the grand dam of Brown Redemption Y1334, a leading sire at Genex.” After years of making this operation what it is today, the family has a lot to be proud of. “Our biggest accomplishment, and the one I am most proud of, is being able to own and produce some of the more influential bulls in the breed today,” Neil said. ❖ Breeder’s Connection | 13

SCHUPPE FARMS

26th Annual Bull Sale

Saturday, March 5, 2016 • 12:30PM

Sterling Livestock Commission Co. ~ Sterling, Colorado • The sale will be on the Internet at www.sterlinglivestock.com

OFFERING:

50 BLACK, POLLED LIM-FLEX BULLS 15 POLLED, BLACK LIM-FLEX HEIFERS Lim-Flex is a registered Limousin/Angus Composite

A GOOD SELECTION OF CALVING EASE BULLS

A TMCK Alfalfa son that will sell March 5. Adjusted weaning weight: 795#

Selling 15 Lim-Flex heifers that will make great replacements.

Lim-Flex dams have great longevity. Good mothers that pass on the feed efficiency of the Limousin breed.

Please visit our website: schuppefarms .com Catalog online after Feb. 15 Gordon Schuppe: 970-522-8195 or 580-8195 Mike Schuppe: 970-580-8713 Andy Frank: 970-580-0550 Email: deschuppe45@gmail.com

Wagonhound honored Wyoming breeder named Producer of the Year COURTESY OF THE RED ANGUS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

Wagonhound Land and Livestock was honored as the 2015 Commercial Producer of the Year at the Red Angus Association of America National Convention. Craig Bieber, pictured far right, presented the award to Art Nicholas and Dustin Ewing. Photo courtesy of Red Angus Association of America

ecognizing the importance and value of the commercial cattle producer, Wagonhound Land and Livestock in Douglas, Wyo., was honored as the 2015 Commercial Producer of the Year at the 2015 Red Angus Association of America National Convention. Craig Bieber, of Leola S.D., made the presentation. Ranch owner Art Nicholas and ranch manager Dustin Ewing accepted the award. “No operation in the country is stepping up like Wagonhound to buy better bulls and build a better cowherd,” Bieber said in making the introduction. “Wagonhound Land and Livestock sells at three different Superior sales. They annually are

Breeder’s Connection | 16

the highlight of the event. They sell yearling Red Angus cattle, and they epitomize what the top end of commercial producers are doing for our industry.” Wagonhound Land and Livestock’s roots go back to the 1800s when the cattle drives came up from Texas and pioneers traveled on the Oregon Trail. Located along Wyoming’s Laramie Range, the east edge of

the Rocky Mountains, the ranch consists of over 200,000 acres with an elevation varying from 5,000 to 9,000 feet. The Wagonhound cattle consist of high-quality commercial Red Angus featuring some of the most popular bloodlines. An impressive remuda of registered quarter horses with many cutting championships are also found at the ranch. ❖

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4 Year Powertrain Warranty

TRAILERS & POWER EQUIPMENT

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13TH ANNUAL Angus Bull Sale MONDAY, FEBRUARY 29, 2016

LINCOLN CO. FAIRGROUNDS | NORTH PLATTE, NE

SAV PLATINUM BW -.7 $W +73

WW +77 $F +95.13

YW +126 $B +156.59

MILK +25

BASIN PAYWEIGHT 107S BW +2.8 $W +68.81

WW +79 $F +99.07

YW +129 $B +204.52

MILK +20

70 REGISTERED YEARLING BULLS 15 REGISTERED YEARLING OPEN HEIFERS

VAR RESERVE 1111 BW +.5 $W +66.58

WW +54 $F +47.24

YW +100 $B +112.93

MILK +42

CCA EMBLAZON 702 BW -1.0 $W +63.13

WW +56 $F +59.92

YW +100 $B +125.25

MILK +22

Bulls will be Pelvic Measured, Ultrasound, & Fertility Tested First year breeding guaranteed

ARROW ONE RANCHER 65 BW -1.7 $W +57.28

WW +53 $F +68.56

YW +129 $B +100.16

MILK +20

FREE DELIVERY GUARANTEED FREE WINTERING UNTIL APRIL 1ST WAYNE & DONA RUNDBACK

308-534-0382 • 308-530-4859 CELL 3453 BROWN RD. NORTH PLATTE, NE 69101

LARGE OFFERING OF CALVING-EASE BULLS

k c i r e d e r F / s Barto s u g n Febru A

Annua

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ary 6, Sale 2016

: Selling Bulls

Sires Represented for 2016

*Basin Payweight 1682 *RB Active Duty 010 *Koupals B&B Extra 7080 *VAR Discovery 2240 *BAR Consensus 7229 3049

arling s Heifer

90 Ye red 100 B

L --CAL

R V is

*PA Power Tool 9108 *Mohnen Impressive 1093 *SAV Angus Valley *BAR Irish 4217

i & Jem Brent rick Frede d 886 R 83 6 2 0 1 5 687 , NE e r g i d et r Ve ngus.n mail.com a s o t r ba @g angues -1039 s o t r a b 340 emial: (402) 94-5967 : t n 3 Bre (402) : i m e J

FO-FOR IN

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Axtell Cattle Company

March 23, 2016

11:00 a.m. (MST) Sterling Livestock Commission—Sterling, Colorado Selling 50 Red Angus and 7 Black Angus Yearling Bulls plus 10 Registered Red Angus Yearling Heifers Our bulls and heifers are backed by a maternally oriented cow herd that is run like area commercial cattle. The sale cattle will be in “working” condition, not over fat. The dams are udder scored, the calves are culled for performance, birth weight, disposition and structure. Check out our website and Facebook page for more photos and sale information.

Axtell Cattle Company Brian and Jamie Jo Axtell PO Box 21 - Anton, CO 80801 970-383-2332

www.axtellcattlecompany.com

The Best Bale Beds in the Business

Introducing the newest version of the DewEze bale beds. The new Pivot Squeeze model is built with the same strength and style of our Parallel Squeeze. New options include the new Swivel Spinners and the large 110" opening and narrow 34" closing of the DewEze Pivot Squeeze Bed.

The original fully integrated bale handler features new design elements with more power and control options. Our Hydra Bed® system equips your 3/4 ton or larger truck for ranch and farm use. The flush-mounted, live-hydraulic powered bale handler is totally integrated into the rugged flatbed. Fingertip hydraulic controls enable you to haul, transport and/or unroll two large round or square bales weighing up to 3,000 lbs. each.

Intensive Auto & Truck Sales & Service

Madrid, NE • 308-326-4311 • 308-326-4458 pm • 308-289-5041 cell To see colored photos www.intensiveauto.com Check our website 30 Miles Southeast of Ogallala, on Hwy 23. Mark Kraus, Owner. All trucks have been thoroughly checked in our shop. Some still have factory warranty remaining.

THAYER FARM

Timnath, Larimer County, Colorado Located approximately one mile north of Timnath, 116.5± acre farm has 83± flood irrigated acres and 1/4 mile of I-25 Frontage Road for its western border. Prime location near Fort Collins has many development opportunities. 4 irrigation wells, 3 shares of Lake Canal water rights, 1 water right share from the Lake Canal Reservoir.

$1,550,000

Contact Logan Schliinz at (970) 222-0584

MOUNTAIN VIEW ACREAGES

Nunn, Weld County, Colorado Stunning views throughout these four 79± acre parcels, each with ideal home sites that offer panoramic views of the majestic Rocky Mountains. The land has been well managed and grass is in great condition if you are considering bringing livestock. Great location minutes from Fort Collins. Rural living with easy access to I-25 or US Hwy 85.

$150,000 per parcel

Contact Logan Schliinz at (970) 222-0584

Call CLARK

& ASSOCIATES LAND BROKERS, LLC

A NGU Y R R A

Monday, March 14, 2016 @ 1PM at the Ranch 9 miles N of Sterling, CO Sale will be online at DVAuction.com

at (307) 334-2025 for a FREE market analysis of your property

18th AnnuAl Bull SAle Selling 60 Stout, Balanced Trait Yearling Angus Bulls Bred for calving ease, maternal, carcass merit and disposition.

NEW SALE DATE & LOCATION

ANGUS SIRES INCLUDE:

★ Black Granite ★ O’Reilly Factor ★ Connealy Capitalist

★ Barstow Cash ★ DR Sierra Cut ★ SooLine Motive

ALSO SimAngus Bulls

by Entourage, Range Boss and Top Grade

For more information or a catalog call:

Visitors Always Welcome! Visit us on Facebook!

Parry Angus

21998 CR 46 • Sterling, CO 80751 Steve: 970-520-6966 or Ryan: 970-520-6963 Home: 970-522-1214 www.parryangus.com email: parryangus@hotmail.com

★

EVERYONE IS HEADING TO THE Tuesday, January 19, 2016 • 5:00 PM Wild, Wild West Simmental Sale Adams County Fairgrounds • Brighton, Colorado

AHLB 565C ASR C564 ASR B487 – Bred During the Denver National Western Stock Show Simmental events. Bus transportation from the NWSS grounds will be provided to the sale.

Selling 60 Open & Bred, Black & Red Female lots! • Ranch raised “Bred to be Cows” Show Prospects Ahlberg Cattle Rod,Vicky and Cashley Ahlberg Longmont, Colorado 303-776-2342 IL

S T S I MM

EN AL LS E

Catalogs sent on request.

Oval F Ranch Don and Marilyn Fischer Winston, MO 816-392-8771 Matt and Andrea Fischer St Joseph, MO 816-383-0630

Campbell Simmental Robert and Chris Campbell Ignacio, Colorado 970-563-9070

Altenburg Super Baldy Ranch Willie and Sharon Altenburg Fort Collins, Colorado 970-568-7792 Russ Princ, Mgr 256-254-9042

W IL D ,

Bridle Bit Simmentals Erroll, Chad, Brent and Brad Cook Walsh, Colorado 719-324-5542

Look for our Wild, Wild West sale catalog on breedingcattlepage.com JA

UAR

01 Y 19, 2

NORTHERN FEED & BEAN Full line dealer with a feed specialist on site

Your animals are our focus. Dedicated to Quality & Value. Working for You. Serving all Species of Livestock

NorthernFeedAndBean.com

970-352-7875 LUCERNE · COLORADO

Word of mouth grows business Lockhart cattle operation succeeds in grass finished beef BY TERESA CLARK

One of the Hereford herd bulls poses in front of the ranch, which has been in the Lockhart family for several generations. Photo courtesy of Lockhart Cattle

othing makes a customer happier than eating a good steak, and there is nothing that makes a rancher happier than providing that customer with a good steak.

A few years back, when Chase Lockhart joined the family cattle operation near Jackson, Wyo., with his parents, Liz and Kelly Lockhart, and his brother, Cody, he was looking for an enterprise he could add to their existing operation. “Initially, I thought it would be expanding the seedstock operation,” Chase said. “But it quickly became apparent that wouldn’t work, because there aren’t many ranchers here.”

Breeder’s Connection | 24

“We decided to go the food avenue, since it was clear from the beginning we were not going to be able to grain finish our livestock,” Chase continued. “The logistics of getting set up in that type of operation was impossible. It was going to be too expensive for me to buy a truck, build grain storage, and truck in grain for the cattle,” he explained. They also didn’t have a place or system in place to feed grain, like a small feedlot.

Chase’s next option was producing grass-finished beef. The ranch, which was started with Hereford cattle by his great-grandfather in the 1930s, had plenty of grass available for this new enterprise. So five years ago, Chase started raising grass finished cattle on the Lockhart Ranch. “Initially, when I started working on the ranch, I knew a value added operation was the step we wanted to take,” he said. “I knew it needed to be

from rancher to consumer, in order to get the value-added premium. Fortunately, the food scene is big business here. There are a lot of farm to table-type restaurants and small markets in Jackson.” Chase felt grass fed beef was an excellent fit for the family ranch. “Wyoming seems to have excellent grass, and people have been fattening cattle on it forever. Wildlife flourish here, so I thought it would really work,” he said. “Basically, we keep out steer calves back for two years. In the fall, we also buy other natural-produced calves from some local ranchers. We feed them for 18 to 30 months, and then we market them as local, natural, grass finished beef with no added hormones or antibiotics. We sell our beef to local restaurants

and markets in town with in-house butcher shops. Our beef is also sold directly to consumers in either wholes or halves.” The business started out small, but word of mouth has grown the business to what it is today. “We have tried to feature our beef at different events, and that has helped it really catch on,” he said. “Marketing the beef can be difficult because most people are used to seeing those big, fatty rib eyes on their plate, and grass finished beef is different. It is a lot leaner product.” In fact, most of the cattle are finished at 1,250 to 1,400 pounds, but will have a higher dressing percentage than grain finished cattle. “With grass finished beef, we get a higher yield because there is a lot of trim on a

Breeder’s Connection | 25

The crew at the Lockhart Ranch are very proud of the natural beef they are able to produce for the farm to table market in their area. Photo courtesy of Lockhart Cattle

grain finished beef,” he said. The young entrepreneur has also made a point of working closely with the local processor who butchers his cattle, and Chase makes the deliveries himself. “He was originally processing wild game, so he had to get his facility state-inspected before he could partner with us,” he explained. Quality control and producing a consistent product have been critical to the success of the enterprise. “The quality control is there, and I know what I am delivering,” Chase explained. “I see every one of my beef on the rail.” Eventually, Chase would like to Breeder’s Connection | 26

get the meat USDA-inspected, but he hasn’t found a processor close to his area who could make it a viable venture. “I am so hands-on, I have a hard time thinking about shipping the beef off to a USDA facility someplace,” Chase said. Grass finished beef also has to cure in a locker for 21 days to dry age, which makes the product more tender. “A lot of meat packing facilities don’t want to tie up valuable locker space for that long,” Chase explained. “I just haven’t found a USDA plant that will work for my program yet. For the time being, I would like to stay where I am at with this business,

and maybe work on increasing Internet sales by selling meat in packages or bundles,” he said. “I think that could open doors across state lines.” The current operation keeps Chase busy. “Establishing markets is like a moving target. Between the pricing, packaging, delivering and invoicing, it is a whole other business. The marketing has been tough, but the key has been consistency. Our biggest marketing tool has been word of mouth, which we have accomplished by producing a good product, and marketing ourselves as a healthy, local, sustainable ranch,” he said.

Producing grass finished beef comes with some challenges. “It can be difficult because of the amount of time you have to keep them until they are finished,” Chase said. “You can’t use the shortcuts other feeders use to finish a grain fed beef. It can take anywhere from 18 to 30 months to finish a grass fed animal. They are grazing all the time, but in the winter we feed them a lot of grass hay. Some of the calves are fed for two winters before they are finished. “It can be a challenge financially, and you have to consider that when you are pricing the beef,” Chase added. “Consistency can be tough. Two animals can look the same live, but they can look totally different on the rail. They can marble differently, and

the fat can be different. This can be more evident in grass fed animals.” In fact, the Lockharts have cut back on their seedstock operation to put more focus on the meat side of the business. They have commercial cows, as well as a registered herd. “We use the bulls from the registered herd on our commercial cows,” Chase said. “All breeding is by natural service. Mostly, we select bulls with big yearling weights. We want cows that produce calves with good growth, especially since we feed them through the whole stage of their lives.” “When we go to an auction, we try to focus on bulls with good meat quality. We used to put a lot of emphasis on the maternal side and milking ability, but we have moved

away from that because we have a pretty solid herd. Now, we are looking for bulls with good EPDs for rib eye and marbling.” Chase likes cattle that are square, and appealing to the eye. “Mainly, I need animals that are not ready for slaughter at the same time. I have to manage their feed intake, which is not easy when they are eating grass. Not all the cattle I raise goes into the local program. The bottom half is sold at the sale barn. We just keep the cherries.” It is really hard raising animals naturally, Chase said. “I end up doctoring some animals, and I can’t put those into the meat program. I try to hold off on doctoring, if I can.” ❖

For more information For more information about the Lockhart cattle operation, see their website at LockhartCattle.com. Chase can be reached at (307) 730-7424.

Cattle are moved to a fresh pasture.

Photo courtesy of Lockhart Cattle Breeder’s Connection | 27

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Please attend the 32nd Annual attend the Annual Please attendPlease the 34th Annual Ag Expo March 19-27, 2016 Please attend the32nd 32nd Annual Ag Expo Expo March March 19-21, 19-21, 2015 2015 Ag Nomination Fee: $100 per animal Hands on riding and horse clinics and demos with Carl Ag Expo March 19-21, 2015 Woods and Mike Brashear. Commission: 5% of sale or no-sale high bid

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Featuring-John JohnLyons Lyons“American “AmericanMost Most Featuring-

Stock dog training and agility. Nomination fee credited toward Commission:Fee: 10% ofsale sale or no-salecommission highbid bid Trusted Horseman” Nomination $100 per animal FeaturingJohn Lyons “American Most Commission: 10% of or no-sale high Trusted Horseman” Horse drawn shuttles Consignors mentioned in sale advertising Nominationfee fee credited toward commission Jason PatrickWorking younghorses horseson onCattle Cattle Nomination credited commission Jason Patrickyoung Commission: 10% of saletoward orallno-sale high bid and Trusted Horseman” Stage coachesWorking Consignors mentioned intoward allsale saleadvertising advertisingand andlisted listed Watch Cathy Sumeracki heryoung I.C.E.Trained Trainedon Cattle listed onmentioned webcredited Consignors in all Watch Cathy Sumeracki &&her I.C.E. And HIGH NOON shoot outs! Nomination fee commission Jason PatrickWorking horses Many family activities. onweb web Stock Dogs! on Stock Dogs! Catalog online, updated are and listed Consignors mentioned in as allnominations sale advertising Watch Cathy Sumeracki & her I.C.E. Trained Vendors with everything that you need, and offering Catalog online, updated as nominations are received Draft Horse Clinic Demonstrations By Lynnthe Catalog online, updated as nominations are received Draft Horse Clinic &&Demonstrations By Lynn received on web Ag Expo floor to be announced; Stock Dogs! education thatdraft will teach you&how to always be on top of Ag Expo floor to be announced; higher floor at owner’s MillerWork horse Small Farms Ag Expo floor to be announced; higher floor at owner’s MillerWork draft horse & Small Farms Catalog online, nominations are received Draft Horse Clinic & Demonstrations By Lynn s discretion higher floor updated at owner’as your gam discretion Glenn Ryan-education US Forest Service Rocky Moundiscretion Glenn RyanUS Forest Service MounAg summit sessions Ag Expo floor announced; higher floor at owner’s MillerWork draft horseRocky & Small Farms Late check in to of be animals allowed this year. Pen: $25 each sale animal, max 2 animals per pen tain Regional Specialty Pack String Pen: $25 each sale animal, max 2 animals per pen tain Regional Specialty Pack String Continuing Education Credits for Private and discretion Glenn Ryan- US Forest Service Rocky MounPlease contact for more info. Exhibitionlivestock livestockunder underseparate separatecontract; contract;pen penfees fees BarDDWranglers Wranglerslive liveon onFriday Friday Exhibition Bar Pen: $25 each sale animal, 2 animals per pen tain Regional Pack String Exhibition livestock undermax separate contract; Commercial Pesticide Specialty Applicators will be offered. differ AgSummit Summit Presentations! differ Ag Presentations! Exhibition livestock under separate contract; pen fees Bar D Wranglers live on Friday • C.A.L.F (Children’s Agriculture Learning Facility) fees differ Seepen Contract Termsand andConditions Conditionsfor forother otherimporimporC.A.L.F(Children’s (Children’sAgriculture AgricultureLearning Learning FacilSee Contract Terms C.A.L.F Facileducation made easy for all ages differ Ag Summit Presentations! See Contract tant details.Terms and Conditions for other ity) tant details. ity) •C.A.L.F Soil health(Children’s day Friday all Agriculture day Seeimportant Contract Terms and Conditions for other imporLearning Facildetails. • Live entertainment daily tant details. ity) BookBook now for for 2014, 2014, Booths are filling filling fast.fast. Book now Booths are fast. now for 2016, Booths are filling (970)749-7560 749-7560 (970) 970-529-3486 and Nomination Deadline March Nomination Deadline March 11 1 Nomination Deadline March rb@hayesranches.com rb@hayesranches.com Book now for 2014, Booths are filling fast. info@fourstatesagexpo.com (970) 749-7560 Catalog Deadline February Catalog Deadline February Catalog Deadline February 11 1 www.FourStatesAgExpo.com www.FourStatesAgExpo.com

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Tuffy has been a standout sire for us! In our fall female sale, 8 of his daughters averaged $7,000 selling as bred heifers. We will be offering a number of bulls and heifers sired by Tuffy in the spring. Several of his sons will be showcased at the National Western Stock Show in Denver in January.

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45 Bulls Sell! These bulls were members of our 2015 NWSS pen and High sellers from our 2015 sale! They represent the quality of Purebred and Balancer bulls that will be available in 2016!!

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Young producers make their way into business

BY BRIDGETT WEAVER

hen he was younger, Brandon Peterson’s college football coach told him he had to dream beyond college and football.

That got Peterson thinking about what he would do with his life after college. “I thought about that for a while and I said, I’m going to be a farmer,” he said. “My folks quickly corrected me and said ‘No, you’re not going to be a farmer. You’re going to go to college and get an education.’” So he went to South Dakota State University for an animal science degree. While playing football there, his coach told him he had to have a dream. “I knew as he talked what I wanted to do. I want to own 200 Angus cows,” he said. “As he talked, he said though, ‘It has to be BIG. Something that you can’t see yourself doing without a lot of hard work.’” That day his dream grew from 200 cows to 500. “I had no clue how I was going to do it, but that’s where the rest of the story comes in,” he said. That spring, during his freshman year of college, Peterson’s dad co-signed on five cows for him. It cost $3,500. Since then Peterson has exceeded his original dream and is working toward the BIG dream. He has 300 Angus beef cows on his farm in Alcestor, S.D. Getting to this point was not easy though. In fact, breaking into the cattle business in general is hard. Many young producers are discouraged by the difficulties of starting a farm. It costs about $10,000 per cow at the low end, and $70,000 at the highest end of the spectrum, said Jason Ahola, assistant professor of beef management

Breeder’s Connection | 34

systems at Colorado State University. As the average age of farmers rises, agriculture experts everywhere are trying to figure out how to make it easier for young people to break into the industry. A panel of young producers talked to the their peers and the older generations of farmers about the challenges they’re facing. The producers all met at the Range Beef Cow Symposium in Loveland in November. The young farmers explained that the millennial generation does have a chance in the cattle business, but it won’t be easy. “The best way to get into the cattle business is to marry into it,” Peterson joked. “Unfortunately that’s not my path.” He said he had three suggestions for those looking to start an agribusiness. First, define the program, which includes developing a plan and working on the business. Second, he said, education never ends, so get an education and then seek a mentor to learn about the market. Third, embrace change in all capacities because the industry is constantly upgrading to meet demand. Peterson added a fourth lesson he’s learned: Adversity is a given, so learn to expect it. Zach Thode, a young producer from Livermore, Colo., said he also had a tough venture to get to where he is now. Thode grew up on a small piece of land in Livermore surrounded by ranches.

“I spent most of my childhood at a ranch nearby,” he said. That’s where he learned a lot of what he knows now. Then Thode went to Colorado State University to earn a degree in agriculture engineering. Back in Livermore now, he works on a 500-cow ranch and has a herd of his own. He said he has learned staying in agriculture is hard, and a humbling experience. “We’re a proud bunch of people but sometimes when you’re a young person, you just have to kick pride to the door and you have to find things that work for you,” he said. Leverage, he said. It’s all about leveraging every situation, decision and relationship to be positive for the business he’s trying to grow. He spends every day working and trying to figure out how to make opportunities work for him. “I need to figure out ways to make my dollars go further and work for me rather than me work for them,” he said. Education is key, of course. Thode said he is going back to school for grad school, because the decision made sense for him. “Education is never ending,” he said. “I can leverage off of CSU and their research to make the ranch better.” He said taking risks like that is a necessary part of being a young producer, and a producer in general these days. “I know we’re all pretty conservative,” he said, “but at the end of the day, we have to be a little bit of risk takers or we won’t get anywhere.” ❖

Kevin Miller, watches as cows follow a truck unrolling hay northeast of Briggsdale. File photo

Breeder’s Connection | 34

Breeder’s Connection | 35 Breeder’s Connection | 35

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“ I was impressed with the way SAV Renown looked upon his return from Nebraska Bull Service. I thought he was just the right condition and we were able to photo him before we turned him out for breeding. It is one thing to put up good semen, but another thing to put up good semen and have the bull look the part Sired by SON OF IMAGE MAKER BW+1.7 WW+71 YW+122 M+24 Bred bythat ARNTZEN ANGUS people want to buyRANCH semen. NBS has great SIRE: BARSTOW CASH Sires progeny with MUSCLE, VOLUME, semen quality and friendly, LENGTH, professional and MODERATE FRAME and BIRTH WEIGHT. DAMS courteous SIRE: AAR HIGH 8563 people. I haveFIVE nothing but positives to say+105 about Nebraska Service.” BW -.1 WW YW milKBull +31 14+73 BROTHERS SELL

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HF TIGER 5T....................................................... SONS connEAlY inDusTRY 5634 ........1010 sons “ I was with the way SAV Renown “ I was impressed with the way SAV Renown looked upon hisimpressed relooked upon his return from Nebraska Bull sAV FinAl AnswER 0035 ..................15 sons HF WHO’S THAT 7A ........................................ 30 SONS turn from Nebraska Bull Service. I thought he was just the right Service. I thought he was just the right condition siTZTOP ToP sEED 539x ...........................20 sons condition and we were able to photo him before we turned him and we were able to photo himSITZ before we SEED 539x ....................................... 18 SONS sAV PionEER 7301 ..............................15 sons Collectionout Facility for breeding. It is one thing to put up good semen, but him an- out for breeding. It is one turned to SAVthing PIONEER 7301 ............................................8 SONS sAV bRAnD nAME9115 .....................10 sons put uppart good semen, but another thing to put other thing to put up good semen and have the bull look the ced Personnel AAR HIGH FIVE 8563 ...................................... 12 SONS good semen and have the bull look the parthighbAll .................................... 6 sons MsAR that people want to buy semen. NBS has great semenup quality and MSAR HIGH NOOIN 9463 ............................. 10 SONS nal Semen Quality that people want to buy semen. NBS has great hF DonE RighT 32Y ............................. 7 sons friendly, professional and courteous people. I have nothing but semen quality and friendly, professional and he-Art Storage & positives Shipping Services to say about Nebraska Bull Service.” • First breeding courteous people. I have nothing but to a division ofpositives Accelerated Genetics season guarantee

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say about Nebraska Bull Service.” “ I was impressed with the way SAV Renown looked upon his return from Nebraska Bull Service. I thought he was just the right condition - Bob Watkins, Schaff Angus Valley and we were able to photo him before we turned him out for breeding. It is one thing to put up good semen, but another thing to put up good semen and have the bull look the part that people want to buy semen. NBS has great semen quality and friendly, professional and courteous people. I have nothing but positives to say about Nebraska Bull Service.”

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The balance in backgrounding

The availability and cost of feed can determine whether backgrounding calves makes the most economic sense. Photo by Greg Lardy Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 44

Finding the right feed and rations matters

BY HEATHER SMITH THOMAS

eeding/backgrounding calves is always a gamble, hoping that the price of the cattle at the end will more than pay for the cost of the feed. The price of feed and price of the cattle (to buy, and then to resell) play big roles, and the people feeding cattle must find the best buys on feed — to build relatively inexpensive rations that still provide all the necessary nutrients for growing those calves. Lisa Surber, Ph.D. is a ruminant nutritionist at WestFeeds LLC in Bozeman, Mont. Before joining WestFeeds, she was a research scientist at Montana State University for more than 20 years. She researched cereal forage development, beef cattle feedlot and backgrounding, and studied sheep nutrition, spending a significant amount of time on cattle backgrounding. “Backgrounding is a means of economically adding value to calves and increasing profit by using an inexpensive feed such as home-grown grains and forages to increase growth and weight gain prior to entering a feedlot. Backgrounding allows retained ownership of calves past weaning (when prices may be higher later), and allows lightweight or later born calves to add weight before marketing. A backgrounding program allows for skeletal and muscle development and adds a higher potential for compensatory gain,” she says. “Our three-state region (Montana, Wyoming, and South Dakota) has a unique mix of crop and livestock production. Home-grown forages and especially cereal forages provide an excellent option to capitalize on developing alternative cropping systems that will provide added value through backgrounding cattle,” Surber said. In the mid-2000s, Montana State University along with researchers from North Dakota State University in Hettinger, N.D., conducted a series of backgrounding experiments utilizing spring cereals and an experimental forage winter wheat variety, now called Willow Creek. “Based on these data, Willow Creek winter wheat and other winter cereal forages appeared to very competitive with barley and other spring cereals in backgrounding rations,” she said. “With the gains we documented in backgrounding trials (+2.5 pounds per day), we think that cereal forages can provide an excellent source of feed for backgrounding rations. Across most of Montana and in some areas of the three-state region, winter cereals consistently produce more forage than spring-seeded crops. Winter cereals also have the advantages of being planted in the fall and harvested earlier, which can add Breeder’s Connection | 45

diversity into a crop rotation in terms of weed control options and water use efficiency. Again, this adds value to crops through cattle,” explains Surber. Kenny Graner has a ranch in central North Dakota, south of Bismarck, along the Missouri River. “We have irrigated ground and crop land, so feed supplies are plentiful,” he said. Graner backgrounds steers and heifers at home and starts to market them in January and February. “We grow all our own corn and oats, which is what we use in our grain ration. We also raise corn for silage, on our irrigated ground. We start the calves on a very high roughage diet and then introduce some grain into the ration,” says Graner. “We also produce both dryland and irrigated alfalfa, and utilize some of that to provide protein. We blend our ration to meet all the nutritional needs of these calves with the feedstuffs we produce,” he says. “All we need to add to the ration is a vitamin pack. We generally don’t have to buy any protein supplement because our second and third cutting alfalfa provides enough. We are fortunate, along the Missouri Breaks, with some rough hill country for pasture, but also some decent crop land. Our native grasses are very nutritious. We had ample rain last spring so our grass grew well. It turned dry in August and the grass dried up, but we had a lot of it. The saying around here is, ‘Dry grass puts pounds on calves’ because our native grass here in North Dakota is very good. We are expecting above-normal weaning weights with the grass production we had, and as dry as it is,” he says. In his vaccination program, the calves get all their shots at weaning and then boosters two weeks after they are in the feedlot. “We run 250 purebred Angus cows (run as commercial cows) and the last three years have been doing a little cross-breeding. We have a couple Hereford bulls we use on Angus cows and the crossbred calves do well. It gives us extra pounds on the steers and we also do extremely well when selling the F1 baldy heifers. They make really good cows and we’ve been receiving a premium for those.” He tries to sell feeder steers at about 750 to 800 pounds in January and February. “We start them out slowly with about 1 pound of daily gain and Breeder’s Connection | 46

then during the last 30 days push them to around 3 pounds per day. We monitor that pretty closely so they don’t get too fleshy. We just want them in good growing condition,” says Graner. This program has worked well for many years. “My father started backgrounding in the early 1970s and I’ve been at it my whole life. I worked with my father and then took over the ranching operation nearly 15 years ago. My dad always told me to never try to guess the market. We have the feed and equipment and his advice was to just do the same thing every year — do the best you can with the calves — and it averages out over the long run. Some years perhaps you’d do better to sell them right off the cow, and some years it pays to background. But Dad figured a person will lose more if you try to outguess the market,” says Graner. “Last year it would have been better selling them off the cows but we stuck to our program. This year I think it will be profitable to background them. I’m hoping for a bounce back in the market. It all depends on the value of the dollar and how trade plays into it. We are in a global trade, when it comes to beef. There are packers who shift beef all around the world and like to bring it into the U.S. When our dollar increased in value, this is one of the main reasons we lost our exports and had more imports,” he says. Casey Maher does some custom backgrounding at Morristown, S.d., near the North Dakota border. “In 2012 we put in a waste management system that contains all the runoff from our feed and developing pens. We background and custom develop heifers for ranchers, and develop our own registered Angus heifers and bulls. Altogether we background about 650 calves,” he says. Maher said his ration consists mainly of chopped hay, corn silage and bagged oatlage — mostly home grown. We also buy local shell corn and crack it. To bridge our protein gap we use brewer barley pellets — a by-product of beer malt. This comes from Spiritwood, Breeder’s Connection | 47

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 48

MANUFACTURED FEEDS Dr. Surber says WestFeeds has a variety of feeds and supplements to complement home-grown feeds that may be utilized in backgrounding rations. WestFeeds is a Montana owned and operated animal nutrition company with feed manufacturing plants in Billings and Great Falls, Mont. “We have retail locations in Billings, Great Falls, Lewistown, Miles City and Dillon. Our products can also be found at many local dealers in Montana, Wyoming, and Idaho. We are the only animal nutrition company in Montana to have on staff Ph.D. animal nutritionists — Dr. Butch Whitman and myself,” says Surber. “Our calf starters and grower pellets are designed to be highly palatable, to get cattle going to the bunk and on feed quickly. Pelleted feed can be a complete

package, adding protein, energy, vitamins and minerals needed for optimal gains. They are designed to match a variety of feeds, feeding systems, and cattle feeding programs,” she says. “WestFeeds has a nutrition team to help producers plan and manage a successful feeding program. We’ll evaluate feeds, balance rations, provide feeding guidelines, and make on-site visits to ensure success. In addition to our commercial programs, we help seedstock producers develop replacement heifers and yearling bulls. Our programs feature products that naturally improve feed efficiency and muscle protein synthesis. We welcome the opportunity to work with ranchers to design a feeding program that makes good use of their feeds, matches their feeding system, and achieves their goals for performance and profit,” Surber says.

N.D., about 200 miles away. There are usually a lot of sunflowers shipped through here, heading to Enderlin, N.D., and I can find a backhaul to bring the barley pellets. It’s still $20 to $30 per ton freight,” says Maher. “The protein in these pellets ranges from 15 to 20 percent. They are guaranteed to be 15 percent but are usually higher. This is our main protein supplement, with corn and silage for energy. The chopped hay is grass. We raise everything except the protein source.” It’s all fed through a mixer wagon. “We add a mineral pack containing Rumensin when we feed. We target about 1.5 to 2 pounds of gain per day on a developing heifer. On the bulls we want a 3 pound daily gain for 100 days to performance test. Then after our sale (the first Friday in February, here at the ranch) we back them down to about 1.5 to 2 pounds a day for a growing ration. This helps ensure their soundness and longevity,” he explains. Looking at feed availability and prices this fall, protein costs have gone up. “All the protein sources seem to be a little more expensive this year, and I am not sure why — in terms of commodity prices. It must just be based on demand. I try to buy our corn all at one time, and I recently paid $3.10 delivered. My mineral pack usually ranges from about 11 cents per day up to 15 cents per day. We can put a pound of gain on for about 80 cents,” Maher says. Compared with the last couple of years, this is pretty similar, excluding the hay. “We have an abundance of hay right now, so the cost of hay is down. So in our area, hay costs are lower and protein is up, so it averages out. Feeding the custom cattle, we’ve stayed at the same rate for about 3 years now.” His program is fence-line feeding. “We try to give each animal 2 feet of bunk space, to keep them comfortable. If you have cattle too crowded they don’t do as well and it seems like you have more health issues,” says Maher. “Feed costs have actually been pretty similar the past three years. We wean our own cattle the first of October and this year we had a couple of 90-degree days at that time. But the cattle are doing well and appetites have picked up, now that it’s cooling off more at night,” he says. F Breeder’s Connection | 49

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2nd BullSale Sale 2nd Annual Bull Sale 2ndAnnual Annual Bull

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Only the Very Best Make the Sale Pen Rigid culling and selection for economically important traits in all areas of the beef business has been our practice for 34 years. Private treaty sales are our custom. Limousin bulls, bred and open females for the registered and commercial producer for sale in volume. Whether you need one or one hundred, Running Creek Ranch can fill the bill. Learn More About Our Program…

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SELLING

100 PUREBRED & BALANCER BULLS 25 Open Females - 45 Bred Females

Saturday, March 8th, pm March 12th,2014 2016 -- 1:00 1:00 pm

Sale Listing: www.westerncoloradoangus.org

Andrew Schafer - 970.749.2148 • Mike Ripp - 970.874.5127

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We develop and PAP test our bulls at 7,680 feet. We PAP test our bulls twice, once at weaning and once at yearling, to ensure the best accuracy. If they pass twice in our elevation and environment, we feel more confident they will work for you. We are dedicated to being your trusted supplier for high altitude bulls.

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T-HEART RANCH HIGH ALTITUDE FEMALE SALE

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45 Bulls Sell! These bulls were members of our 2015 NWSS pen and High sellers from our 2015 sale! They represent the quality of Purebred and Balancer bulls that will be available in 2016!!

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Livestock Exchange LLC

Brush, CO

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We were honored to exhibit the 2015 National Champion Limousin female with AUTO Amerie 228A, but our real satisfaction comes from seeing our Limousin and LimFlex bulls performing in the pasture for our seedstock and commercial customers. Watch for our consignments at the Nebraska Cattlemen’s Classic and give us a call for more details on our private treaty bull and replacement female offerings!

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REPLACEMENT

VALUE

Buying replacement heifers can be expensive

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection |62

BY HEATHER SMITH THOMAS

s cattlemen try to build back or expand their herds today, some are keeping heifer calves and some are purchasing replacements.

Considerations when deciding which is best include: feed costs, labor availability/costs, environmental factors, genetics, prices, tax implications. The answer isn’t always straightforward and it may change from year to year. Lee Schulz, assistant professor of economics, Iowa State University, says BEEF magazine did a recent survey that showed 83 percent of producers hold back heifers, and about 37 percent buy heifers. “There are some combinations, since many ranchers retain heifers as well as buy some. Many people raise their own but still take advantage of opportunities to buy, due to accelerated expansion in recent years and the current cattle cycle,” he said. “There are significant costs and some risks in developing heifers. There’s quite a bit of time between when you decide to retain them and when you get a calf from them. On the flip side there is also some risk on the open market in terms of availability. In 2013 through 2015 we saw historic high prices for replacement heifers. There is some risk in selling heifer calves then going out in the open market and purchasing bred heifers.”

RAISING REPLACEMENTS Mick Kennedy, a commercial cattleman 13 miles west of Faith, S.D., says the main reason he raises heifers is because they are acclimated and adapted to his ranch environment. “I also don’t like to buy heifers because people overfeed them; they get too big,” he says. “The other reason I prefer to raise them is because I have grandchildren here and we can’t tolerate any cattle that are crazy-wild. If we raise them, we know what they are and they are safe to handle. We walk around our calves every day after weaning, and bucket feed them grain. If there’s a high-headed individual, we can get rid of it. But if you buy bred heifers, you are stuck; if you spent $3,000 for one you tend to hang onto it even if it’s not quite what you wanted,” says Kennedy. Kennedy says maternal qualities influence some of their bull-buying decisions, putting emphasis on milk EPDs and moderate-framed cows. They maintain two cow herds, using a terminal cross — black baldy cows and Limousin bulls— for calves that are destined for the feedlot. The black baldy cows and their replacements come from Angus cows bred to Hereford bulls. “The reason we like the baldy cow over the straight Angus is that she tends to last about two years longer,” Kennedy said,

Ranchers have to decide, year to year, whether they should save their heifers or sell them. Photo by Heather Smith Thomas Breeder’s Connection | 63

adding that a baldy cow maintains a fleshier condition even into the later years. “Everybody’s operation is different. I understand why some people buy their heifers. If you raise them, however, you know what you’ve got and can monitor it better than when you buy them. It costs money to raise them, too, but we do it for several reasons. Cattle raised on your place know where to go to get out of a bad storm, and know how to use the pastures. If you buy cattle from somebody else and bring them home they don’t always mingle into your herd; they tend to separate out with their own buddies,” he says. “We used to buy our replacement heifers, but it got to the point where we couldn’t afford to buy them. There would also be a few that were wild or didn’t milk very well. So we started keeping our own about 20 years ago and it seems to work better. My philosophy is ‘if it’s not broke, don’t try to fix it’ and if

Breeder’s Connection |64

something works we tend to stick with it,” he says. Many ranchers’ breeding programs involve several generations of cattle selected for maternal traits, fertility, longevity, disposition, etc., that would be difficult to replicate in purchased animals, and the on-farm replacements are already adapted to their environment and handling methods. Health risks for the herd can also be minimized by not bringing in new cattle.

BUYING BRED HEIFERS Rick Funston of the University of Nebraska, West Central Research and Extension Center, says there are many good arguments against raising heifers, and buying them instead. “In economic analyses there are sample budgets comparing the two (raising versus purchase). There’s also more opportunity of going to a terminal sire system,” he says.

If you raise your own heifers you need two different herds in order to utilize a terminal cross and still keep heifers. “Otherwise you give up a lot of productivity, selecting instead for calving ease,” says Funston. “I worked with several ranches in Nebraska that don’t keep any heifers. It’s all terminal crosses and they outsource their replacements. They don’t want to put up with the headaches — and time, money and labor for two years before those heifers have calves. Many ranchers have either not considered or not understood the performance issues they are giving up by having replacement heifers, along with the opportunity of going to a terminal sire,” he says. Other advantages include less need for “heifer bulls” and a chance to reduce bull power. Herd size can also be increased quicker, if a producer has opportunity to expand. Producers may be able to purchase

replacement heifers from someone who specializes in producing heifers, and can often specify the breed cross or genetic profile of purebred and composite heifers purchased, as well as the breed and individual sire to which heifers are bred. Commercial developers often utilize estrous synchronization in conjunction with artificial insemination, which can increase genetic merit of progeny and eliminate the potential for reproductive disease transmission. This practice also allows producers to obtain heifers that conceived over a short time frame, and have a shorter calving window.

RAISING REPLACEMENTS “If you do keep replacement heifers, consider use of AI and not giving up so much performance. Today there is an abundance of AI terminal sires with calving ease, but pay attention on this, because generally those

Breeder’s Connection | 65

calves are not something you’d want to keep as replacement females,” Funston says. “If you are breeding by natural service, growth traits and calving ease are generally antagonistic, and we tend to give up a lot of performance for calving ease. The calves from first calf heifers won’t be your bigger calves at weaning time,” he says. “A ranch needs adequate numbers to even consider keeping replacement females, but a lot of small operations do. In many instances the cattle are not the primary income source. We often make our main genetic decisions in the cow herd for a 15 percent replacement rate. Some of the smaller operations that keep replacement heifers may only have one or two bulls, so they absolutely focus on calving ease, which is not needed as much in the mature cows,” he says. A person keeping heifers has to keep a few more than needed, because they may not all conceive in a timely fashion during their first breeding season. “This leads into the topic of how you develop them. If you are want a replacement female enterprise in your operation, you really need to keep them all and treat it as a yearling operation.” Then you can keep the very best ones that breed early and sell the rest. “We had a heifer meeting here in June with Jim McGrann, retired economist from Texas A&M who works with many large ranches on heifer enterprise decision,” Funston said. “His comment was that if you don’t have at least 200 cows you probably don’t have any business keeping replacement heifers. We see many herds with fewer numbers raising their own heifers and they are giving up a lot of performance potential while focusing on calving ease and maternal traits that they could probably outsource.” Depending on your end goal and marketing program, if you are a smaller producer wanting a terminal cross, it may not be feasible to try to develop your own heifers. If you only have a small herd, you can’t justify having two groups and two bulls when in essence you really need only one. Breeder’s Connection | 66

“There are plenty of sources to find replacement females economically, which enables you to minimize the number of bulls needed, and number of management groups to work with,” he says. “If you plan to keep replacements, the best situation is to keep them all, expose them for a short time to a bull, and only retain the ones that breed early.”

SELLING BRED HEIFERS Dave Ashcraft, a rancher near Twin Bridges, Mont., has been selling bred heifers off and on for more than 10 years. “This last year we felt the market was at a point where there would be big expansion in cow herds

“

The old adage that a bred heifer should be worth twice what a good steer calf is worth usually holds true.

”

Dave Ashcraft Rancher

and economic viability in breeding a bunch of heifers. I think I was a year too late, though, for the number that we bred. They have been a really good price, the past two years,” he says. “We saw the largest increase in calf prices last year that we’ve ever seen, and that soon translated into breeding stock, too. With this recent hiccup, the market has slowed down, but I think we will come back from that because there are people still wanting to expand their herds,” says Ashcraft. “The old adage that a bred heifer should be worth twice what a good steer calf is worth usually holds true. Even at this corrected price, good steers are still bringing $1,200 to $1,300. That makes a bred heifer worth about $2,400 to $2,500, and that’s still a pretty good price for heifers.” “We bred 600 this year and sold

some into Texas, and have some prospects going into Kansas and Nebraska. This is what I anticipated — selling them into parts of the country that experienced sell-down of cow herds due to drought, and now looking to restock. This is a better market for us than locally in Montana. There are a lot of heifers offered for sale in Montana at this point in time. You have to reach out to find a market.” He’s not sure if he’ll breed more heifers next year, depending on what happens with the feeder calf and fat cattle futures market. “We raise half the heifers and buy half,” Ashcraft said. “We do a lot of sorting and put together groups; a lot of them are synchronized AI, sex identified and gestation identified.” Buyers know the sex of the calves and when the heifers are due to calve. “We can put together load lots that are similar heifers. One buyer took a load of heifers that were all AI bred, with heifer calves inside them, out of a very powerful bull, all due to calve about the same time. That added some value for him and he was able to pay us more money for those. We have enough heifers that we can put a load together at a moment’s notice,” says Ashcraft. This is the advantage of breeding large groups. “There is an economic scale to this; if you have enough so you can sort into groups that fit well together, the buyers get some value from the fact they will only be calving for a short period of time. They also know the genetics on both sides. This adds a lot of value to the heifers and makes them easier to market,” he says.

ADDING IT UP Patrick Gunn, Ph.D., PAS, is a cow-calf specialist and assistant professor in the Iowa State University Department of Animal Science. He says that from a management perspective, several factors help drive the decision on buying versus raising. “It often comes down to infrastructure, and also how much control you want of your genetics,” Gunn said. “First and foremost you want to make sure you will be able

to feed those heifers separate from the mature cow herd. But even within a group of developing heifers we often don’t have the uniformity we’d like, in terms of age and weight. In some cases it’s best to manage heifers in more than one development group.” In some parts of the U.S. with smaller cow herds, “we don’t have the number of animals to justify the additional space, feed, and labor required to do an adequate job of developing females,” Gunn said. “We have some tools to help ranchers in these decisions, such as looking at the net present value of those heifers,” said Iowa State’s Schulz. “This investment decision — either raising your own or purchasing them on the open market — is a long-term investment, anticipating at least five or more calves out of that replacement animal. You have to consider the conditions today, but also the longer term regarding what the prices and costs are going to be.” “It is very important to budget out that decision, going forward into the future. If you are purchasing heifers, look at that multi-year gain potential in genetics, and realize it’s not just a one-year investment. The genetic potential will exist over the life of that productive female,” says Schulz. Sometimes a person can buy genetics that are better in certain aspects than what you have. On the flip side, sometimes the genetics you’ve worked many years to create are better suited for your purposes, on your own ranch, than what you can go out and buy. “Regarding feed, we look at it being sold at market value, but maybe there’s potential for retaining more females and decreasing culling rate and perhaps that return would be higher—putting the feed through cattle instead of selling it. There are many factors at play. It’s difficult to give any rule of thumb because there is a lot of variability in expectations of price and costs, not only for the individual operation, but also looking forward,” he says. Gunn adds: “No one recommendation fits all, when it comes to replacement heifers. There are so many different ranch sizes, management practices and end goals for various operations. The decision may change from year to year, for some producers, based purely on economics. If you are truly running it as a profit-based enterprise, there are some critical evaluations that need to be done each year, in terms of which the best option might be,” says Gunn. It’s always a gamble, as ranchers try to pencil it out and predict costs. The more homework you can do, the more able you are to make the right kind of gamble. “Look at costs, and productivity — in the best-case scenario and the worst-case scenario, if you buy or raise your replacements. You need to really look at where the risks are, in each situation,” he says. Schulz adds producers should also be flexible. “It’s also an evolving situation,” he said. “What might be better one year might not be better in another. Producers need to look at these things each time they make this decision.” Some of the tools provided by economic research and analysis at the various universities can help. “We developed several tools in this expansionary phase,” Schulz added. These can help producers educate themselves on various aspects of this important decision.❖ Breeder’s Connection | 67

Cattle with a Purpose Beyond Performance

Selling Forage Developed, Range Ready, Angus and 8th Production Sale: Hereford bulls the second Friday, March 18, 2016 week of November featuring Simmental sired calves also sired by the Cattle with a Purpose Beyond Performance following Simmental bulls: Kappes Northern Octane SDS Graduate Capitalist

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Selling Forage Developed, Range Ready, Angus and Hereford bulls the second Homozygous Black, Homozygous Polled week of November Kappes Northern Octane Pureblood Simmental ASA# 2677820 Kappes Northern Octane Wheatland High Octane 169Y x Kappes Sadie T635 Pureblood Simmental ASA#Milk2677820 CE BW WW YW MCE MWW

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Wheatland High Octane 169Y x Kappes Sadie T635 CE1st calves BW WW YW MCE MWW DOC on the ground by theseMilk two bulls are looking good$API and will$TI be in our 2015 sale.

S Capitalist 3192 AAA# 17598669 CED BW WW

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Recently purchased from Spickler Ranch in North Dakota as their 2nd high-selling Angus bull. Sired by Select Sires’ Connealy Capitalist and dam is donor mother of four herd sires including AI Sire S Summit. Lot 87, Spickler’s comment: “Phenotypic standout with herdbull numbers.”

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CED BW WW YW CEM MILK MB RE $B +12 +0 +64 +103 +11 +32 +.43 +.49 +58.02 Recently purchased from Spickler Ranch in North Dakota as their 2nd high-selling Angus bull. Sired by Select Sires’ Connealy Capitalist and dam is donor mother of four herd sires including AI Sire S Summit. Lot 87, Spickler’s comment: “Phenotypic standout with herdbull numbers.”

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BY TERESA CLARK

ith the cost of grainfinishing a 400-pound feeder calf approaching nearly $1,170 in Hawaii, cattlemen there started looking at ways to ship their stock to the U.S. mainland. By paying attention to detail, and being open to modifying the design, these cattlemen have developed a container and a cattle welfare program that keeps the calves both healthy and safe during their nine-day journey. Dr. Ashley Stokes, DVM, Ph.D., who is now the assistant dean of veterinary admissions at Colorado State University, formerly worked with the Hawaiian cattlemen while employed as an extension and research veterinarian at the University of Hawaii. “The cost to get feed shipped in to cattle in Hawaii is about $650 a ton,” Stokes explained. If four pounds of feed per pound of gain is needed to gain 900 pounds, that amounts to 3,600 pounds of feed. At $650 a ton, 1.8 tons of feed is equivalent to $1,170 to finish a calf on feed in Hawaii. Because of these exorbitant costs, Hawaiian cattlemen started looking at the cost of shipping the cattle to the mainland and finishing them in a feedyard here. “If we decide to ship them instead, it costs about 48 cents a pound,” Stokes said. For a 400-pound calf, that is about $192. Once some of the producers decided shipping the calves was the answer, they formed a cooperative and set to work designing a process with cattle welfare, safety and handling in mind. “The Hawaiian cattlemen are very proactive about cattle welfare during the transportation process,” Stokes explained. In addition to ensuring maximum efficiency in production to reduce financial loss to the industry, producers also set out to protect health and welfare, and improve upon Hawaii’s shipping process of getting cattle to the mainland. The producers developed a “cowtainer” design, which holds the calves during the nine-day journey from Hawaii to one of the western ports. The cowtainer is a large

Breeder’s Connection | 74

Hawaii cattle Hawaii cattlemen

Techniques to ship calves to mainland

metal container with non-slip flooring, ventilated windows, and drains for cleaning it out. It also has feeders and waterers, in addition to ample space for the calves to move around and lie down. During shipping, the cowtainers are cleaned daily to keep the cattle comfortable. To ensure healthy and safety of the calves during shipment, Beef Quality Assurance

representatives studied the calves during shipment to ports in California and Washington. The cowtainers had cameras installed so the calvesâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; behavior could be monitored during the entire trip. The temperature of the calves was also monitored, as well as the temperature and humidity of the cowtainers. This study showed the combination of temperature

and humidity in the cowtainer is important to study during transport, and neither ever reached a dangerous zone. In fact, the study revealed that the body temperature and stress level in the calves only increased when the calves were loaded and unloaded, or the cowtainer was moved from dock to the ship. Stokes said loading and unloading calves is a proven

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 75

The cowtainer has ample floor space, clean out drains, ventilated windows, and feeders and waterers to allow the calves to ride in comfort during their nine-day journey. Photo by Tim Richards

stressor, which is why the calves stay settled in the cowtainer until they are unloaded at the feedyard where they will be finished. “The cattlemen in Hawaii are very progressive,” Stokes said. “They have put a lot of work and effort into this process to maximize the health and welfare of their animals.” They also developed a preconditioning protocol to ensure the calves arrive healthy. Calves that will be shipped to the mainland must be weaned 30-45 days before shipping, on a good plane of nutrition by being introduced to the type of feed they will be offered during the trip, offered quality mineral, and have complete Breeder’s Connection | 76

vaccinations and deworming within a minimum of 14 days before the ship departs Hawaii. “The nutrition and mineral programs are very important in preparing the calves for shipment,” Stokes said. “Lowstress handling is also emphasized so the calves are prepared for their journey.” When the calves are loaded on the cowtainer, a mark on the chute measures any calves that are too tall to be shipped. Once loaded, the calves can co-mingle, and they basically have access to an unlimited buffet, Stokes said. When the ship is about 250 miles from Hawaii, the cowtainers are washed out everyday, and

any animals that become sick are treated. “Preconditioning, animal welfare, and bio-security are all important factors that have been considered to make this process work,” Stokes said. During the nine-day journey, the calves basically travel 2,435 nautical miles from Honolulu to Seattle in the cowtainers. “We are very happy with the current shipping process, and we are always looking for ways to improve,” Stokes said. “As agricultural producers, we should always be cognizant of adjustments we can make to advance animal health, welfare, and industry sustainability.” ❖

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Far Out Cattle Co.

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Simmental / SimAngus Rod - 303-775-1730 www.ahlbergcattle.com

Holyoke • 970-854-3303 Yearling SimAngus bulls for sale haynesranch@pctelcom.coop

Selling 120 bulls-40 open heifers March 19, 2016 • Fort Collins altenburgsuperbaldy.com All Terrain Bull Sale March 21, 2016 • Walsh 719-529-0564 or 0087

John Lee • Brush 602-541-8826 Bull & female sale March 30

Curt & Susan Russell Joint bull sale March 26, 2016 719-469-BULS • ReflectedRRanch.com

Troy & Lorna Marshall family 719-342-0001 • Sale March 15 www.marshallcattlecompany.com

Robert Campbell family Ignacio • 970-749-9708 Joint bull sale March 26, 2016

Gary & Tina Bogott • Niwot 303-517-6112 • tbogott2@aol.com Red & black Sim bulls & females

Ron Mari • Holyoke 970-520-7333 Black & red bulls available

James Dilka • Briggsdale Sim / SimAngus bulls for sale 970-396-8791 or thedilkas@aol.com All Terrain Bull Sale guest March 21, 2016 • Walsh Jerrid 719-688-0838

Mike Rains family • Oakley, KS 785-672-7129 Bull sale on March 3, 2016

719-850-3082 or 850-3083 175+ high-altitude Simmental & SimAngus bulls March 26, 2016

Fleckvieh & Fleck/Black/Red Angus Phoenixcattleco website EDJE Roger 303-550-5592

Selling 60 open & bred heifers Jan. 19, 2016, Brighton 970-481-2570

90 Sim/Angus bulls in 4th annual sale 1 pm March 23 @ Eckley Trevor Tuell 970-630-4108 www.ColoradoSimmental.com

Improperly baled hay can be a source of botulism BY TERESA CLARK

Cattle and horse ranchers should carefully evaluate hay before purchasing it. Hay contaminated with botulism can kill horses and cattle, who only have to consume very little of the toxic organism. Photo by Teresa Clark Botulism is a serious illness that ivestock and horse owners should use is typically fatal. It is caused by a caution when purchasing hay from bacteria that dates all the way back to the Roman Empire — clostridium unknown sources. botulinum. Hay that has been improperly baled, stored in wet conditions can be a “This group of bacteria produce contains dead animals or trash, or thriving source for botulism. some of the most devastating diseases

Breeder’s Connection | 80

known, as the effects of their toxins have very rapid and frequently fatal results. As a group, these bacteria can be common in many soils and are frequently associated with poor sanitation or contamination of food sources,” according to Dr. Donald Cobb, a Casper, Wyo., veterinarian who has dealt with botulism cases. Botulism is a anaerobe that grows in environments lacking oxygen. “Any type of feed where there is a lack of oxygen can have botulism growing in it,” Cobb explains. “Any time you have feed like a tight hay bale or a pile of grain where there is no air circulation, there is a chance for this organism to grow. The organism itself, while it grows, does not produce problems. However, it emits an incredibly potent toxin that does.” Cobb recalls a guy who shot a fox on top of a hay bale and left the fox there to deteriorate. As the decomposition ran down through the

hay, the bale became contaminated with botulism. The guy fed the bale, and seven horses died as a result. In another well-documented case that occurred several years ago, a tremendous corn crop was harvested in the Midwest, and some corn was stored on the ground. Over 150,000 migratory fowl were lost to botulism after consuming the corn. Cobb explains that when feed sits on the ground, and has become wet and moldy on the bottom, botulism can occur. Cobb shared another instance when a client had a down mule, and a missing saddle horse. Both animals died. Cobb suspected botulism, and when he and his client tore open the bale of hay, they found a dead deer baled up amongst the forage. “Why anyone would knowingly put garbage, dead animals, or anything other than clean hay in a bale and cover it up is difficult to understand,” he said. “Big square balers can pick

up anything, and some producers will pick up trash and throw it into the baler to hide it.” Unfortunately, if these bales become contaminated with botulism, the person feeding the bale won’t notice a lot of outward signs in his livestock. The first symptoms may be a bunch of dead animals. Susceptibility can be pretty uniform in any animal, Cobb says. If a producer doesn’t find the animal dead, the main symptom of botulism is a flaccid paralysis. “The animal will be fairly bright, alert, down, and either lateral or sternal recumbency. They will be totally unable to mount a muscular response,” Cobb explains. “What kills them is when it paralyzes the muscles of respiration,” Cobb continues. “Botulism destroys the nerve transmission to the muscles. The animal will be totally incapable of responding to any stimulus, and they have no control of their muscles. Depending upon

Hay producers need to make sure their fields are clean and free of dead animals and debris before haying their crop. Photo by Teresa Clark Breeder’s Connection | 81

the dosage, death can occur in a relatively short period of time. They can go from normal, to staggering, to death within a few hours.” Although the condition can be treated with the right antitoxin, botulism has multiple strains, so the right strain would have to be identified for the treatment to be successful. In most instances, isolating the organism, and determining what strain it is, is a postmortem diagnosis. However, in Kentucky, where botulism occurs more frequently, some strains have been isolated and some animals are given vaccines to prevent botulism. Cobb says no test exists to test bales of hay or feed for botulism. However, botulism has a putrid smell similar to the 7-way clostridial vaccine. “There is no such thing as good,

Breeder’s Connection | 82

poor quality feed,” he continues. “It only takes a small amount of botulism to kill an animal. Even if the contamination is removed from the bale, the bale is a total loss. The toxin can permeate through the bale.” If bales are contaminated with botulism, Cobb recommends burning the hay. “If the hay is hot enough to burn, it should kill the toxin. It shouldn’t be able to survive that much heat,” he adds. If the toxin is in one bale of hay, chances are good that it could be in more than one. “Most producers take a lot of pride in what they produce,” Cobb says. “I would recommend sticking with good, reputable hay producers who are concerned with what they produce and have repeat customers year after year. If you do that, you have done about everything you

can to prevent the problem.” Cobb suggests producers can also help prevent botulism by stacking hay to allow air circulation under the bottom bales, which can stop mold and other issues. He also suggests investing in a covered hay shed to prevent moisture from seeping into the top of the bales and traveling through them to the bottom bales. It also keeps the bottom bales dry. On a final note, Cobb says producers need to use common sense to protect themselves because no one else will do it for them. “We will be in a hay shortage for some time, and you may be forced to feed some feed you don’t want to,” he said. “If you think that feed may be bad, don’t take a chance on it.” ❖

One of Nebraska’s Best Sources of Quality Two-Year-Old Angus Range Bulls

48th Annual Production Sale

Friday, March 4, 2016 • 1 P.M. CST ION THE TRADIT CONTINUES

Sale To Be Held At The Ranch, Near Rockville

Selling Registered Angus • Big Stout 2-Year-Olds • Quality Yearlings • Bred Heifers • Open Heifers

VOLUME DIS COUNT OFFERRED!

Carl Dethlefs & Sons

Jerry and Gary Dethlefs • 78119 S. River Rd., Rockville, NE 68871

308-372-3200 • dethlefsangus.com

40TH Annual Production Sale

THURSDAY, MARCH 10, 2016

1:00 PM • Lincoln County Fairgrounds • North Platte, Nebraska

Selling 130 Yearling Red Angus Bulls

MODERATE FRAMED • LOW MAINTENANCE • THICK AND POWERFUL • CALVING EASE

WWW.HALLREDANGUS.COM Marty Ropp 406-581-7835 Garrett Thomas 936-714-4591 Clint Berry 417-844-1009 www.alliedgeneticresources.com

BROADCAST LIVE ONLINE Broadcasting Real-Time Auctions

BRAD AND PAULA POKORNY 308-636-2275

76 County Road, Stapleton, NE 69163 bbpokorny@gpcom.net

HELEN HALL 308-654-3220

83222 Rodeo Lane, Bartlett, NE 68622 hallreds@nntc.net

Selling

Yearling Bulls

“Rock

25th Annual

Solid” Bull Sale

March 14, 2016, 1 p.m.

At the Ranch 5 miles west of Springview on Hwy 12

SALE FEATURE!!

Pick of the 2015 Heifer Calves!

Barstow Cash Reg #17145326

“ROCK SOLID” GENETICS

Bulls from these sires will sell!

CED+11 BW+.2 WW+70 YW+136 SC+1.72 M+23

Vision Unanimous 1418 Reg #16992096

Connealy Black Granite Reg #17028963

Mohnen Impressive 1093 Reg #17532083

CED+0 BW+2.8 WW+78 YW+134 SC+1.26 M+16

CED+13 BW+.3 WW+63 YW+111 SC+1.16 M+28

CED+12 BW-1.3 WW+62 YW+112 SC+.84 M+24

HF Tiger 5T • Reg #16526314 CED+12 BW+.2 WW+60 YW+119 SC+.94 M+31

For Sale Book and Information Contact: Neri & Patty Barstow 402.497.3448 Neri cell 402.322.0286

43185 State Hwy 12, Springview, NE 68778 Web site: www.barstowangus.com

e Son ck Granit la B — s u Ang

Selling sons from the following AI sires and more: 

PA Power Tool 9108



Connealy Black Granite



SAV Priority 7283



Connealy In Focus 4925



Wulfs Zane X238Z

Lim-Fl

ex—Po w

er Too l

S on

Stop by and evaluate the bulls at the ranch at Iliff, CO View the bulls at www.amenangus.com or www.lewislimousin.com

Call us: Ken Amen (970)580-8211 or Mat Lewis (970)580-8209

R eyes / R ussell

25th AnnuAl sAle

day n o M

February 29, 2016 • 1:00 p.m. At the Ranch in Wheatland

Selling 250 Coming 2-Year-Old Angus Bulls & 15 Yearling Angus Bulls

PAP TESTED • BVD & DEFECT FREE BULLS RAISED & DEVELOPED IN A REALISTIC RANGE ENVIRONMENT. READY TO GO TO WORK FOR YOU. Your source for high altitude bulls ~ PAP tested at 8,000’.

FEATURED SIRES

BARSTOW CASH

GRANGER GREAT FALLS 053

TOMBSTONE 050

CCA UNO 049

WOODHILL GAME DAY U6-Y98

WOODHILL DISCOVERY W2-Y20

AAR TEN GAUGE 1501

M R LEADER 1781

Jennifer Reyes-Burr

5104 Hwy 34 • Wheatland, WY 82201 307-322-1530 • 307-331-1530 (cell) • mrangusranch@gmail.com

MR ANGUS • Juan Reyes 98 Olson Rd • Wheatland, WY 82201 307-322-4848 • 307-331-1568(cell) • joreyes@wyoming.com

KMR ANGUS • Keith Russell

21419 WCR 13 • Johnstown, CO 80534 970-587-2534 • 970-371-7819 (cell) • kmrangus@gmail.com

WWW.MRANGUSRANCH.COM

At the Kraye Sale Facility Mullen, Nebraska

Selling 120 Performance Bred ARE YOU A COLORADO Registered AngusANGUS Bulls WATER RIGHTS HOLDER?Yearling KRAYE ANNUAL PRODUCTION SALE Featuring sons25th of South Dakota, KRAYE ANGUS Concerned about the future of water for April 2, 2016

Valor, Sirloin, agriculture in Colorado? JoinSAV DARCAMomentum, today! At the Kraye Sale Facility Mullen, Nebraska April 2, 2016 Payweight 1682, Cash and more. The Ditch and Reservoir Company Alliance is At the Kraye SalePerformance Facility Mullen, Nebraska Selling 120 Bred All Performance Data Available Selling 120 Performance Bred Colorado’s premier source of networking and Registered Yearling Angus Bulls Also selling 25 Purebred Commercial Yearling Angus Heifers Registered Yearling Bulls advocacy for ditch and reservoir companies. Featuring of South SouthDakota, Dakota, Featuringsons sons of Annual DARCA Convention in Fort Collins January 13th - 15th SAV Momentum, Valor,Sirloin, Sirloin, SAV Momentum, Valor, Payweight1682, 1682, Cash more. Payweight Cashand and more. For more information, please visit: Performance Data AllAllPerformance DataAvailable Available www.DARCA.org 25th ANNUAL PRODUCTION SALE

or contact John McKenzie at

john.mckenzie@darca.org (970)412-1960 The Ditch & Reservoir Company Alliance, a nonprofit established in 2001, is dedicated to serving the needs of mutual ditch and reservoir companies, irrigation districts & lateral companies through its efforts of advocacy, education, and networking.

Also selling 25 Purebred Commercial Yearling Heifers

Kraye Angus

35791 Antelope Valley Rd KRAYE ANGUS Mullen, NE 69152

KrayeSALE Angus 25th ANNUAL PRODUCTION John 308-546-2524

35791 Antelope Valley Rd

April 2, 2016 Mullen, NE 69152 Cell 308-546-7309 Kraye Angus

John 308-546-2524 Sale Facility Mullen, NebraskaValley Rd Family Owned……... At the Kraye 35791 Antelope David 308-546-7015 Cell 308-546-7309 Nebraska Grown Selling Mullen, NE 69152 120 Performance Bred Family Owned……... jkraye@neb-sandhills.net David 308-546-7015 Nebraska Grown John 308-546-2524 www.krayeangus.com Registered Yearling jkraye@neb-sandhills.net Angus Bulls www.krayeangus.com Cell 308-546-7309 Featuring sons of South Dakota, Family Owned……... David 308-546-7015

Nebraska Grown SAV Momentum, Valor, Sirloin, jkraye@neb-sandhills.net Payweight 1682, Cash www.krayeangus.com and more.

All Performance Data Available

Also selling 25 Purebred Commercial Yearling Heifers

• • • •

All Bulls are Performance & Fertility Tested Carcass Merit Ultrasound Data Free Delivery within 300 miles or delivery rebate Back by a Breeding Season Guarantee

Kraye Angus

(308) 458-2540

David Hebbert 62075 Hebbert Lane Hyannis, NE 69350

Mose Hebbert Box 292 Hyannis, NE 69350

www.HebbertRanch.com

35791 Antelope Valley Rd Mullen, NE 69152 Family Owned……... Nebraska Grown

John 308-546-2524 Cell 308-546-7309 David 308-546-7015

jkraye@neb-sandhills.net www.krayeangus.com

Booth’s Cherry Creek Angus Performance Cattle for ANY Altitude!

For the past two years we have summered 90 of our weaned fall bulls at 8,000’ feet in Centennial, WY where we had Dr. Tim Holt PAP test them. We couldn’t be any happier with the results. V A R Reserve 1111 18 Sons Average PAP 39

B/R Destination 928-630 3 Sons Average PAP 39

Cherry Crk Destination 2513 M 3 Sons Average PAP 39.6

KM Broken Bow 002 3 Sons Average PAP 39.6

Haynes Upward 307R 032 10 Sons Average PAP 39.9

They All Sell In Our Annual ‘Progress Through Performance’ Bull Sale SELLING: 170 BULLS

150 20-month-old Bulls • 20 Spring Yearlings

February 11, 2016

At the Ranch in Veteran, WY Lunch: Noon • Sale: 1 p.m. Shawn & Diane 307-837-2994 • Michael & Lindsy 307-837-0164 • Kacey 307-532-1532 boothangus@scottsbluff.net • www.boothscherrycreekranch.com

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HIS Fee IS a reaL BargaIn Shipped semen is available Introductory Showcased

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Two ID Boonerang Our up and coming ranch sire, Two ID Boonerang, a 2007 red roan stallion. He’s cowboy colored, and performance made. Performance bred, ranch made – Peptoboonsmal, Doc ‘s Jack Sprat, Watch Joe Jack, Two ID Bartender. On his way to making a big time rope and ranch horse. Great minded and an impressive athlete. 88% foundation bred, EVA negative and vaccinated.

HIS Fee IS a reaL BargaIn Shipped semen is available at reasonable charges

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KIng BIjou 15 h. 1996 golden buckskin stallion. 83% foundation bred, athletic ability, conformation, cowyness, & amazing color. He is loaded with natural talent, a gentle disposition, a phenominal mind, & an eye for a cow - which along with his good looks, he consistently passes on to his prodigy. Seasoned ranch horse & a proven big time rope horse on both ends, Sired by Bijou Tony Fols, 4 time World Contender in Roping & Skips Fols was the 1987 calf roping champion. Predominant color producer, EVA negative & vaccinated. Realistic fees, performance bred.

www.starlightfarms.net

Come visit us to see our nice prospects for sale, an extended pedigree and/or for more information.

Starlight Farms

455 SCR 137, Bennett, CO

303.644.4456 • natrlropenride@aol.com

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C o m p e l l i ng H u m a n Interest Stories Ag Calendar Horse Events

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Donna Ackerman and her magnificent black paint named CF Whirlin Thunder, by CF Chief Blackhawk and out of MK Daily. Both his sire and his dam were black/ tobiano which makes Whirlin Thunder homozygous black and homozygous tobiano and a 100 percent black, tobiano producer. Photo by Tony Bruguiere

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 96

Good reputation follows family breeding business Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 97

Donna Ackerman of Ackerman Performance Horses in La Salle, Colo., puts her show mare, Peppys Promises, whose sire is Peppy San Stray and her dam is Dusty Promises, through some drills in the practice pen. Photo by Tony Bruguiere

BY TONY BRUGUIERE

ckerman Performance Horses and Donna Ackerman have been in the business of breeding and training horses for 29 years.

The core of Ackerman Performance Horses business is producing baby foals. Not just any foals, but babies that are sired by top performance horses that have excellent bloodlines, good conformation, athleticism, trainability, and most importantly, a mellow disposition. From the time they are born until they are weaned, the foals are handled and gentled. Ackerman Performance Horses is a family business. All of the breeding is done on the family ranch in La Salle, Colo. Assisting Donna Ackerman is longtime friend, Cheryl Bailey. Ackerman feels that Bailey’s assistance is critical to the smooth daily operation of her breeding program. “We collect stallions for other clients and Artificially Inseminate (AI) their mares and ship out for them. I do embryo transfers on my own horses. We collect the stallions here and ship semen all over the United States,” Ackerman commented. Ackerman began her business as a trainer and worked all over the country with the incredible trainer Monty Forman. The breeding part of her operation began back in 1982. “When I started on my own, I had so many stallions in training and the owners wanted to leave them in training, so I went to Colorado State University (CSU) and took the reproduction course and learned how to collect and to AI. In order to keep the stallions in training and breed those clients’ mares, that’s how it started,” said Donna Ackerman. “My main focus at that time was training. We did all around. We did 13 events including English, Western, reining, and working cow horse. When we branched out and started looking for our own stallions, we were primarily interested in all-around horses that would work for family members and for Breeder’s Connection | 98

their kids,” said Ackerman. Ackerman continued, “Through the years we have specifically bred or bought stallions that were top-of-theline for performance and disposition. In our breeding program, I bought and raised stallions that I did not feel were putting colts on the ground that were safe to be around, high strung and as talented as they could be, the primary thing is — can anyone ride this horse?” Horses that did not meet Ackerman’s critical standards of disposition and conformation, and the most important standard of “can this horse be ridden by anyone other than an experienced trainer?” were quickly sold and no longer remain in the Ackerman breeding program. This philosophy has gained Ackerman Performance Horses a loyal following. Donna Ackerman is very proud of the fact that she has had the same customers since 1979 and those loyal customers have become friends and their children are now buying horses from her. Summing up her business, Ackerman had this to say, “We produce babies. We breed about 200 outside mares a year. The customer has to choose their mare. They are bringing their mare in and saying I want a baby out of this mare. Our biggest part is in breeding mares. Secondary to that is selling our own foals. Our job is putting babies on the ground, because most of the babies sell before they are weaned.” Ackerman continued, “The client will pick them up when they are weaned. Then down the road, the client will start that 2-year-old and they will have a good horse with a good disposition, athletic, good confirmation to go on and use a long time ... I’m talking riding this horse into their 20s.” The top stallion at Ackerman Performance Horses is Hollywood Dunit Good, a son of the great Hollywood Dun It, whose sire was Hollywood Jac86

and his dam was Blossom Berry. Donna Ackerman says that Hollywood Dunit Good is “One of the most beautiful sons of the great Hollywood Dun It, Hollywood has his sire’s temperament. He is gentle, smart, amazingly athletic and will try his heart out to please.” “I’ve got a very nice Blue Roan stallion specifically purchased because he will throw 100 percent Roan, but he is gentle and nice and quiet and he

“

Ackerman also has a magnificent black paint named CF Whirlin Thunder, whose sire was CF Chief Blackhawk and his dam was MK Daily. Both his sire and his dam were black/ tobiano which makes Whirlin Thunder homozygous black and homozygous tobiano and a 100 percent black, tobiano producer. Donna Ackerman is justifiably proud of this beautiful horse, “I’ve got a homozygous black, homozygous tobiano paint stallion that I purchased last year that even the kids can ride. He is a big gentle horse that anybody can be around him and go in his pen with him. He is our newest stallion and we are very excited about him. We have had a lot of paint stallions over the years and just keep upgrading and trying to get better.” “Our horses are good-looking, color is a big factor, and have pretty heads, all of that is something that is an important part of it,” said Ackerman “Even with the economy going up and down we have been incredibly busy. We added on another 20 more pens last year. We filled all of those up and just kept adding more through the breeding season. It surprised me sometimes, because I know the economy and just what is going on. It surprises me that it’s been incredibly good ever since I’ve been in it.” “We will have up to 100 mares in here at a time. They are coming and going during the breeding season. We also board horses and will have 20 or 30 boarders here at a time. We get incredibly busy around April and we will be full through part of July. I have totally sold my foal crops every year by the time they have been weaned,” said Ackerman. So if you want a foal by one of the outstanding Ackerman stallions, you should not wait too long to begin making preparations with Donna Ackerman. ❖

Through the years we have specifically bred or bought stallions that were topof-the-line for performance and disposition. In our breeding program, I bought and raised stallions that I did not feel were putting colts on the ground that were safe to be around, high strung and as talented as they could be, the primary thing is — can anyone ride this horse?

”

Donna Ackerman Business owner rides really good,” stated Ackerman. The stallion is named Black Hawke and he is by Rojo Goose, a double bred Blue Valentine, and out of Funny B Blue on Blue. Black Hawke is a halfbrother to Funny B BlueMuchaman, whose sire was the great Leo Hancock Hayes. Ackerman describes Black Hawke as “This colt has an easy, quiet disposition, is very trainable and very pretty mover at a trot and lope. Good bone, with a nice large hard hoof, these horses do not have soundness problems as a rule, they are bred to ride all day, work cattle, rope, team pen, ranch versatility, rein, working cow horse and bring home at night and let the kids ride.”

Breeder’s Connection | 99

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Colorado horse trainer Shane Brown always brings his A-game to the Dodge Invitational Freestyle Reining competition at the National Western Stock Show, and 2015 was no different. Aboard Hollywood Golden Gun, who is deaf, Brown took first place with 224.5 points after a performance that left no doubt the duo was the best partnership in the competition. Photo by Lincoln Rogers

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 102

Trainers talk

Q & A

BY LINCOLN ROGERS

he Mile High state boasts a number of accomplished trainers and breeders in the performance horse industry.

Four successful Colorado-based trainers were asked their thoughts on training and riding performance horses. They are: » Aaron Ralston: Ralston Ranch in Silt, Colo., www.AaronRalston.net and Ralston Ranch on Facebook. » Dori Schwartzenberger: Schwartzenberger Equine in Longmont, Colo., www.SSEquine.com and Schwartzenberger Equine on Facebook. » Drake Johnson: Drake Johnson Performance Horses in Wray, Colo., Drake Johnson Performance Horses on Facebook. » Shane Brown: Shane Brown Performance Horses in Elbert, Colo., www.ShaneBrown.net and Shane Brown Performance Horses on Facebook.

: WHAT IS IT YOU ENJOY ABOUT WORKING WITH PERFORMANCE HORSES? AARON — “The thing I probably enjoy the most, especially now that I am a little older, is kind of the stewardship aspect of it. We’re going into some generations now of horses where I rode both the parents and rode the grandparents, especially the horses we raise. It’s a stewardship of developing and preserving the integrity of the horse. To be able to accomplish something and to do it the right way, at least according to my standards, that’s the big joy in it.” DORI — “Every horse brings something new to the table. If they were all the same, it would just be routine. It’s not just get on and put on time to put in time. I think the really fun part is figuring out each horse’s best attributes and learning how to emphasize those and get around the other stuff.” DRAKE — “Just in general, working with horses is the journey. Basically, it is the process and the progress that they make. Whether you are starting a young one or getting a new one that has been

shown and trying to figure it out and putting your own tune on it or progressing one from a baby. I coach a lot of youth and amateurs. It’s the same process with them, too. It’s kind of a journey and that’s what I enjoy the most.” Shane — “I love going to horse shows and going to competitions. To truly enjoy it, you have to be able to honestly get in that mental state where you are judging yourself. Are you getting better, are you getting things figured out? You can be a success if you walk in there and that horse is improving and you are getting some things better.”

: WHAT IS IT YOU LOOK FOR IN A PERFORMANCE HORSE THAT GIVES YOU A GOOD IDEA THAT HORSE WILL BE SUCCESSFUL? DRAKE – “Obviously, you are always looking for the talent side of it, how much talent and ability they have. But probably the most key component is the trainability of one. How willing they are to learn and do their job? Some horses, when you get the talent, the ability, the trainability and a little bit of heart and grit, when you put those things together, then you’ve got that really upper level kind of horse. There’s some that aren’t as talented, but they’re forgiving and real trainable, so you can be competitive because they can do everything a little above average and stay out of the penalty box, and you can be consistent on a horse like that.” DORI – “There are a few things. You look at the way they move, how they carry themselves, they need to be balanced. A think a lot of us put our horses that are naturally balanced at a deficit by getting their heads too low or too high, too forward or back. It is learning to ride centered that is really critical. That helps in the turns and the stops. A horse that looks really centered Breeder’s Connection | 103

and balanced and proves himself well is the first thing I kind of look for. AARON – “It has to be heart and try. I’ve had a lot of talented horses that didn’t really want to do the job. The job that I was asking them to do did not fit the job that they wanted inside their minds. Athletes separate themselves, but for me it is more of the mental aspect of it. So first and foremost the horse has to be made mentally for that job.”

: WHAT IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF YOUR TRAINING PHILOSOPHY THAT YOU BRING TO THE TABLE? SHANE — “We’ve always really tried to use a lot of education on our horses and teach our horses, not just use a physical theory. We kind of come from the philosophy of we’re going to try and show them one and one makes two, that mentally you need to think about what you are doing. We don’t need to take these horses and put them all into this exact same box. We need to have the ability to realize they are all individuals and some of them may do very well with that structure, and others may not do very well with that structure. So we have the theory and thought of treating each one as an individual.” AARON — “Everything I do, I try to have some kind of physical purpose to it, even if it is an abstract training situation, like reining or dressage. We know what we’re after, but the horse will probably never know in its life why we are doing this. It allowed me to get my horses to develop tolerance, to develop resilience in a horse, where I am using objects like a mechanical cow or a real cow. When a horse is mentally sound, then you are able to avoid the repetitiveness of maneuvers that breaks down a horse’s mind and body. It allows you a higher ratio of success when you are implementing the abstract maneuver.” DORI — “Our philosophy is that the horses have to come first. It is too easy to blame the horses for our faults. I think a big crutch for most riders is to blame the horse. We try to look more at what we did to get in their way or give them problems. That’s one of our big

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emphases is to help us help that horse do what it knows how to do. Don’t blame the horse. Look at yourself.” Colorado reiner Drake Johnson shows off Sonny Chiic Dream’s big slide ability on his way to earning fourth place at the 2013 Dodge Invitational Freestyle Reining competition at the National Western Stock Show. Johnson is a perennial contender and a crowd pleaser at the annual competition. Photo by Lincoln Rogers

DRAKE — “I always keep going back to my toolbox. I have a consistent program, but I always try to keep thinking of how I can get this horse to want to do its job. The one component is that you always have to keep thinking and try to train one that likes and wants to do its job. How can I go about this so they get it and learn it as easy as possible and they like doing it? Because then you will like it, too.”

: ANY LAST ADVICE?

DORI — “Don’t be too impatient. Give the horse time. Find out what that horse is good at, what its best venue is ... Maybe they are not a great reiner, but maybe they are a great trail horse or great with cattle. There are so many avenues these days we can go with these horses. Maybe they will be an all-around horse. Not great at any one thing, but good at many things. Just be patient.” DRAKE — “The best thing for anyone to be successful is to get some good instruction and guidance in what they want to do. Go and lease one, ride one, find a trainer or instructor to where they can get some kind of exposure to it. Then they will find out if they like it or don’t like it. When people have good guidance and good instruction, I don’t see many of those people quit. There is so much enjoyment we get out of this. It’s amazing what animals and horses will do for people.” SHANE — “I’m going to sound like some old fogey saying this, but it’s very honest. I’ve lived through the being young and just wanting to win and that kind of stuff. The people and the relationships you build in this industry are really what matters and winning isn’t everything. I know of nobody that, on their headstone when they pass away, has their credentials of what they were in this industry. It is way more of what they were as a husband, father, family person, friend, and that means so much more. Enjoy the ride and the people are way more important.” ❖ Breeder’s Connection | 105

T-Cross Ranch Horse division embraces changes

Bobby Norris, General Manager of T-Cross Ranches horse operation, working one of the ranch horses on cattle. The T-Cross built its reputation on solid working horses, which it will continue to sell along with top performance horses. Photo by Tony Bruguiere

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 106

BY TONY BRUGUIERE

-Cross Ranches horse division is headed in a new direction.

For over 50 years the T-Cross produced hardworking cow horses that a cowboy could rely on to work all day long. The T-Cross is foundation bred. Years ago Bob Norris bought a horse named Poco Pico from the Waggoner Ranch, which goes back to Poco Bueno and Tee Cross is by a horse named Otoe. Along the way they acquired top quarter horses like Smokin Jose and Doc Tari and added cutting horses to their performance lines. These stallions have passed, but their bloodlines continue in the 46 mares in the T-Cross current mare band. T-Cross Ranches was started by Robert “Bob” Norris near Colorado Springs in 1950. The famous T-Cross brand was the first brand registered in the state of Colorado, and is well-known for producing some of the best working ranch horses in the country. The T-Cross has been nominated for the prestigious AQHA Best Remuda Award and in 2011 Bob Norris was awarded the American Quarter

Cowtowns Cat is the leading stallion at Colorado’s T-Cross Ranches. Cowtowns Cat comes from cutting royalty. He is by NCHA All-Time leading sire High Brow Cat and his dam is Cute Little Magic, a top NCHA earner. Photo courtesy of T-Cross Ranches Breeder’s Connection | 107

Horse Association (AQHA) Legacy Breeders Award. The Legacy Breeders Award recognizes those breeders that have raised quarter horses for 50 consecutive years. Bob Norris has decided that it is time to take a well-deserved break from the day-to-day operation of T-Cross Ranches horse division and his eldest son, Bobby Norris, will take over the reins as general manager of the T-Cross Ranches horse division. Bobby Norris shares his dad’s love of top quality working cow horses and performance cutting horses. Bobby Norris moved to Texas in 1982, where he started his own equine operation and currently trains cutting horses at his ranch in Burleson, Texas. He looks forward to the fact that he will now be spending a lot of time back in his home state of Colorado. Like his father, Bobby Norris has given freely of his time in service to the equine industry. Norris is a member of the National Cowboy Hall of Fame. He served three terms as president of the American Cutting Horse Association (ACHA), and is currently a board member of the National Cutting Horse Association (NCHA) and a member of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association. Bobby Norris has won several world championships in the equine world, and in 2014, Norris was inducted into the Texas Cowboy Hall of Fame. “We are really excited about the new virtual selling site that we are working on,” said new General Manager Bobby Norris “We are coming into the modern digital age with an interactive site where a prospective buyer will be able to feel like he is actually on the horse that he is interested in.” “We have a full-time digital photographer on staff and will be able to take special requests from qualified buyers to photograph horses that

they are interested in,” said Norris. “T-Cross wants to get out in front and be ahead of everyone else.” One thing that will not be changing at T-Cross Ranches is the quality of horses that they have built their reputation on. “We will still be selling horses to folks that just want a solid weekend riding horse. We always have and we always will,” said Bobby Norris. “We are not just a performance horse breeder. We want to sell the

“

whose sire was Otoe and the dam’s sire was Poco Pico. “We are going to continue in the show pen whether it’s cutting or roping horses or even the ranch horse competitions,” said Norris. “We will continue to sell a lot of horses to team sorters and team penners, because frankly that’s where the largest market is, simply because it is not cost prohibitive like cutting can be.” To get all of this accomplished, the T-Cross has a new ranch foreman. JD Wing will function as both the ranch foreman and the head trainer. He will also be in charge of the breeding program. Wing is a thirdgeneration horse trainer and rancher and he has a degree in ranch management from Vernon College in Texas. “We haven’t been showing here lately, but we are about to fire that back up and go back showing some of these horses that we have made,” said JD Wing. “We’re definitely still breeding working type horses, good using horses that can go all day long, that have good bone and foundation and have a lot of cow sense and speed to ’em.” Wing stressed that Bobby Norris, just like his dad, has a No. 1 priority to produce using horses that are calm and gentle and can easily be trained. There have been a lot of positive changes at the T-Cross and things are moving forward and the T-Cross is looking ahead to bigger and better things. You can always count on the fact that the T-Cross will continue to produce quality horses that a cowboy can work on all day long. Bob Norris and his son Bobby Norris will give you a true cowboy’s hand shake guarantee and will stand behind T-Cross horses. “Keep the horse for 30 days. If he’s not fitting you, or you don’t like him, bring him back and you’ll get your money back,” said Bob Norris. “That’s one way I can express myself in the faith I have in these ponies.” ❖

We are coming into the modern digital age with an interactive site where a prospective buyer will be able to feel like he is actually on the horse that he is interested in.

Breeder’s Connection | 108

”

Bobby Norris General manager

kind of horse where folks can throw a saddle on their horse and just track off without worrying about anything,” said Norris. “We sell horses to everyone from your weekend pleasure rider to the guy that makes a living pushing cattle on the ranch.” T-Cross ranches will be adding new stallions in the very near future, but right now they have a proven winner standing at T-Cross. Cowtowns Cat is the leading stallion at Colorado’s T-Cross Ranches. Cowtowns Cat comes from cutting royalty. He is by NCHA All-Time leading sire High Brow Cat and his dam is Cute Little Magic, a top NCHA earner. Also standing at T-Cross is Charmin José, a 1996 sorrel by Smokin José and from Miss Tee Charm. Miss Tee Charm is a daughter of Tee Cross,

Nate Miller shows off the cutting skills of Starlight N Stylish at a recent T-Cross Ranches Horse Sale. Starlight N Stylish is a 2002 Sorrel Gelding by Docks Stylish Oak and out of Commander Starlight. Photo by Tony Bruguiere

Breederâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Connection | 109

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