For Amanda Price, there are always challenges

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Keeping Up With the Challenges

By Terry Ropp

Circle L Ranch has multiple facets of its operation

Circle L Ranch is a five generation operation, work- she won grand champion market steer at the Arkansas State Fair ing on the sixth, dating back to 1884. After the Civil when she was 16. Her steer brought $16,000, which she used to purWar, S.D. Leonard came by covered wagon from Georgia. S.D.’s chase a new, 2004 Chevy diesel truck, which she still owns and plans brother Silas homesteaded with S.D. purchasing land nearby. That to never sell. purchased land became Circle L Ranch with additional land ac- The ranch supports 250 heavily Angus-influenced breeding fequired through the generations. The ranch is now comprised of males and 10 registered Angus bulls purchased from 44 Farms in 800 acres used for a cow/calf operation with a highly specific and southern Texas and Jac’s Ranch in Bentonville, Ark. The linchsequenced breeding program. The ranch is family owned with Mike pin of the Circle L Ranch‘s cow/calf operation is purchasing bulls and Tricia Leonard living in one house and their daughter Amanda from 44 Farms on a calf buyback program with the meat from those Price and her family living in another house nearby. calves appearing in the Walmart certified Angus beef case.

Amanda showed animals in 4-H growing up, mainly market steers in Heifers, all of which come from the ranch’s herd, are bred by AI her high school years. When Amanda was 15 and showing a steer at which eliminates the need for having a low-birth-weight bull. the Arkansas/Oklahoma State Fair, she was introduced to Levi Price, “Being able to utilize AI, I can outcross genetics and retain heifher future husband. ers, which increases their The couple attended college at Oklahoma State until Levi graduated. After his graduaAmanda Price is a fifth-generation rancher and the primary operator at Circle L Ranch. genetic potential since I am able to use high-quality bulls.” Amanda uses ultration, he began working sound on all heifers to at Decatur State Bank check for proper develin Siloam Springs, Ark. opment, as well as pregAmanda transferred to nancy checks all breedthe University of Ar- ing females. kansas her last year to The females are in two finish her animal sci- groups, with about half ence degree. Levi has bred by embryo transnow been a loan man- plant in the spring or AI. ager at the Arvest bank They run a cooperative in Siloam Springs for herd with their cattle, the last three years. The putting others embryos couple has two children, into their cows, almost son Sayer, who is 3, and Submitted Photo like a surrogate mother. daughter Shae, who is 10 months old. Those calves are raised on the farm and then delivered back to the

Amanda does a lot of the day-to-day work on the farm, along embryo owner after weaning. They have been doing this for almost with her dad when he isn’t running his dirt work business. Levi 15 years. The remainder are bred naturally by the ranch’s cadre of chips in on the weekends. Amanda credits all her knowledge and bulls. These bulls are selected by genotype and phenotype, mostly experience to watching and working along with her for growth. father and his father before him. “It’s a long legacy that I am so thankful to be a part Gravette, Ark. “Since I can AI heifers, we don’t have to use a low birth weight bull. That means the bulls we purchase of,” Amanda said of the Century Farm. “Not many peo- can be selected for bigger growth potential. ple are fortunate enough to have a family history like “The last three years we have sold back to 44 Farms, ours to help them.” which uses a third-party verification indicating that the

While Amanda knew early on that she wanted to be in the cattle industry, the real turning point occurred when — Continued on Page 9