Red Hot and No Bother - by Rudy Pooch

Su

mmertime can be a vile season for cattlemen in southern states. Producers must manage hot temperatures and high humidity. These factors can cause severe cases of heat stress for cattle resulting in reduced intake and gains. Simultaneously, producers must manage fescue endophytes. Fescue serves as a large portion of the grazing forage that many producers throughout southern states have available. In northwest Arkansas, along the southern edge of the Ozark Mountains, the topsoil is shallow and rocky. All of these added stressors can leave producers with second-rate cattle performance in the summer months if not managed properly. Rolling Hills Farms of Boone County, Arkansas, has found a leg up on their environment’s tough conditions thanks to the power of Red Angus genetics. “They work really well for the type of environment we have,” said Laura Wilburn.

Robert and Laura Wilburn, along with their children Katie and Hunter, are the first and second generations of Rolling Hills Farms. Robert and his father ran a commercial cow-calf operation until he and his wife, Laura, purchased their first parcel of land in 2013. A few years later, they had the opportunity to purchase additional land with a breeder hen operation included. Another breeder hen house was added two years later and is now housing its third flock. They also raise a few show goats. “We are unique because we are diverse. The Red Angus genetics add to that,” mentioned Laura.

Why Red Angus The Red Angus breed has turned the Wilburn family lifestyle into a more efficient endeavor – more results with less input. Before the inclusion of Red Angus genetics, “I started with some regular old cattle from the sale barn of every color, not knowing exactly what breeds they were made up of,” said Robert. He had tried many breeds, at one time leaning toward a Charolais cross and chasing bull sales across the country.

“Where we live, it’s very steep and a lot of the ground is pretty rough. I had trouble keeping bulls more than a couple of breeding seasons. Their feet couldn’t handle it,” stated Robert. Lo and behold, their solution was found with the purchase of Red Angus bulls from a local breeder.

“The cattle were raised in the same environment without being pushed, and were ready to work from the moment of purchase. These bulls could handle the environment without falling apart,” said Robert.

Built for Work Rolling Hills Farms has been satisfied with the breed’s very low maintenance requirements, easy fleshing ability and high fertility. Red Angus have excelled in the summer Arkansas climate and work well on endophyte-infected fescue.

“They don’t hair-up on the fescue grass compared to other breeds. Those other cattle will hair-up and want to go stand in the pond all summer while the Red Angus are out there grazing and gaining,” said Robert.

Primarily, the forages are fescue and bermudagrass. These grasses are extremely important in southern states due to their drought resistance. “Where we live, even though the spring has been super wet, we are always two weeks away from a drought. It dries up in a hurry,” said Robert. “When it gets dry and the ground is hard, these Red Angus don’t fall apart on you. They hang in there and work for what they are,” he added.

A good mineral program is supplemented to combat fescue foot, fat necrosis and fescue toxicosis. “Overall, the Red Angus cattle just perform,” said Robert.

“You don’t want to feed any more than you have to because that eats away profit,” he said. When sufficient forage is not available for grazing, Robert feeds hay to supplement the herd with protein. “That’s another reason we have stuck with Red Angus. They take care of themselves. You don’t have to push these cattle.”

Before weaning, calves are fed creep feed to make the transition easier. The calves are then weaned and fed a pre-mix until they are sold. Robert keeps up with the local markets weekly and maintains a routine of selling calves around the first week of August. He holds his spring calves until November.

Robert mentions how shocking it is to some at the sale barns how much weight the moderate-size Red Angus packs. “The cattle don’t have to be 6 feet tall to reach 700-800 pound weights. With feed prices high this year, I had to cut the amount of what I normally feed to about half, and those cattle still finished out the heaviest we have ever sold,” said Robert. “They did it all on grass.”

Robert’s biggest draw to the Red Angus females is their fertility even at a young age. He jokes that it’s sometimes a challenge to keep a fence strong enough to ward the bulls out. “That’s what we want though,” said Robert. In the last five years, they have pushed Red Angus genetics, which has resulted in a shorter calving season from 120 to 60 days without any hormone regimens. Today, they use AI for heifers and their base set of Red Angus cows.

The main group of cows calve September-October while the remaining cows calve late February-March. “We make sure our cows are on a good mineral program even when they are carrying, not just when they have the calf,” said Robert. Robert also attributes year-round rotational grazing to a consistent calving season, moving them every seven days.

EPDs: A Powerful Tool Robert shared how one cannot have enough of the sought-after Red Angus commercial female. These females are in high demand for their longevity, fertility, adaptability and efficiency, and coupled with their good disposition, make them the ideal cow. “As we kept buying more Red Angus genetics and understanding the EPDs, we noticed that we were raising better females than what we could buy,” explained Robert.

His ideal bull has a well-rounded set of EPDs so he can retain heifers, sell big steers and raise easy-fleshing, docile calves. Docility is highly valued with young Katie and Hunter working cattle and walking through pens to do chores.

Robert cannot push understanding EPDs enough. “It’s been a game changer for us. The more you learn about using them as a tool, the better off you will be,” said Robert.

He credits the local operation from which they first purchased Red Angus bulls for their willingness to share knowledge with others. Robert is inspired by their drive to learn more and do more to better their program and the Red Angus breed.

Value of Diversity Between the two barns, Wilburns house about 26,000 breeding hens at a time, collecting eggs to be sent out and hatched for Tyson Foods, Inc. broilers. “On a good peak, we will roughly gather 20,000 to 21,000 eggs per day, touching each one by hand,” said Robert.

Poultry litter doubles as an excellent, low-cost fertilizer. Robert applies the litter across grazing ground for two to three years consecutively, contingent on soil tests. This returns nutrients and organic matter to the soil, giving the shallow topsoil an extra boost of fertility and quality.

When no additional nutrients are needed for their soil, the poultry fertilizer is sold. The farm’s diversity offers the opportunity to increase profit while decreasing production costs.

Together as a Family The Wilburn family continues to buy Red Angus bulls from the same local breeder. Over the years their appreciation for the breed and relationship with the breeder’s family has grown. Robert admires how both farms operate as a family. “We don’t hire anything out – cattle, chickens and show goats – we do it all. We do it as a family,” he said.

Robert is especially thankful to everyone that has helped get him to where he is today and God for all His blessings.