Town Creek Farm Since 1993
FALL 2019
Volume 7, Issue 3 • Published by Town Creek Farm, West Point, Mississippi • Brangus and Ultrablack
More Pounds on the Ground Over A Longer Period of Time BY JOY REZNICEK
The Grit welcomes your inquiries and feedback. The Grit is published by Town Creek Farm, West Point, Mississippi.
Town Creek Farm Milton Sundbeck, Owner Office: 32476 Hwy. 50 East West Point, Mississippi 39773-5207 662.494.5944 www.TownCreekFarm.com Joy Reznicek, President 205.399.0221 Joy@TownCreekFarm.com Clint Ladner 662.812.8370 CLadner@TownCreekFarm.com South American Representative Ing. Agr. Federico Maisonnave (011) 595 981 362 898 Skype: federico.maisonnave Maisonnave.Federico@gmail.com TOTAL COMMITMENT
Since 1993 JOIN OUR EMAIL LIST TO RECEIVE THE MOST UPDATED SALE INFORMATION AVAILABLE. EMAIL INFO@TOWNCREEKFARM.COM TO JOIN OUR FOLLOWING. FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK.
Lot 9 – TCF Rapid Reward 1749E4
THROUGHOUT YEARS OF CONVERSATIONS WITH COMMERCIAL CATTLEMEN, COW LONGEVITY ALWAYS SEEMS TO COME UP IN CONVERSATION. How long cows stay in herds has significant economic impact to cattle producers. Consider development time and costs, time from conception to first calving, and open heifers. Replacing a cow is a costly venture whether she’s home-raised or purchased. “For every cow I don’t have to replace, it’s one more heifer I get to sell,” says Cliff Coddington of Longino Ranch. “For me it’s not about cow age, it’s about when she quits producing. As long as she’ll live and have a calf that is marketable, she stays in the herd.” The past decade the beef industry has focused on pounds, EPDs, carcass traits and DNA when selecting bulls with little or no mention of optimums in these traits, only that larger is better. Understood, these traits carry value. Cattlemen are paid for calves on the basis of weight, but what is happening with replacement heifer calf mates these bulls leave behind? “Too many of my females are leaving the herd way too young because they are coming up open,” said one Florida producer. In many cases, heifer mates to high performing steers have simply gotten too big. They require more feed to develop and reach puberty at a later age. Nutrition is going to fuel an extended growth curve, so fat coverage needed for cycling lags behind. As cows, they require more forage, hay and supplement to maintain. “Look at your cowherd,” says Cliff. “The best cows in your herd are the ones that breed as yearlings, breed back for their second calf and stay in the herd. These are the best producing cows and they have the most longevity. I keep daughters out of these cows and their daughters stay in my herd longer.” We hear more and more stories of herds where conception rates have declined. A speaker at a beef cattle symposium shared one such story. He said that after years and years of selecting high carcass Angus bulls and retaining daughters by these bulls, he witnessed his conception rates drop from 90 to 95 percent down to 80 percent. He realized his move from Angus maternal bulls to Angus carcass bulls was the reason for the decline.
Pay attention to how your cattle work in your environment. Every environment is different and has different levels of nutrition underfoot. Cattle adapted to their environment do everything better and do it with much less trouble. Breeds of cattle that are not heat tolerant won’t make us much money in our hot and humid climate and we lose any chance of cow longevity if we keep daughters from those breeds. “The higher Brahman content in a cow, the longer she stays in our herd,” says Cliff whose ranch is located in southern tier of Florida. “Cows with more Brahman blood take pressure better and last longer. But, there is a happy medium and balance. If you get something you give something. I still have to think about marketing steer calves.” Town Creek Farm’s Clint Ladner returned home this summer from a customer herd visit. This customer has been using our genetics for nearly three decades. Clint showed me a picture of a cow-calf pair he took during his visit. He said she was his favorite cow in their herd. “Just look at her calf. That cow is 23years-old,” said Clint. “She still has a good udder and has really good calf at side. They have a lot more like her still producing at 20 to 22 years-old.” Longevity has been a major player in our genetics for more than 30 years. Our maternal cowherd fits and thrives in our hot, humid climate. We’ve stuck to the same cow-culling protocol for 30 years; opens, dries, bad dispositions, bad feet, cows that are too big, bad bags and poor quality calves. It’s extremely important that our females are in production at 24 months and get bred back with their second calf to calve at 36 months. The last two decades we’ve taken longevity a step farther by eliminating Johnes from our herd and now we are surveillance testing for Anaplasmosis. These are the kind of cows that should be mothers of bulls that breed your cows. Cow longevity is the easiest trait to add to a set of cows. Study your lessons and use bulls from genetic systems that put cow longevity at the top of the list. All you have to do is use genetics suited to your environment and that are developed in a disciplined genetic system. Our way of raising cattle gives you more pounds on the ground over a longer period of time. It’s like
225 SOLID black brangus commercial bred heifers SELLING SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2019 AT 12 NOON
Commercial bred heifers are brought to you by Town Creek Farm customers. This customer-service program is designed to provide producers with high-quality replacement heifers backed by multiple generations of Town Creek Farm genetics. Lots and lots of half-sisters sell. Heifers are ranch raised, source-verified, uniform and genetically tracked to Town Creek Farm genetic dams and bred back to Town Creek Farm bulls. Heifer providers comply with the following guidelines: aHeifers are second (2nd) generation or more Town Creek Farm genetics. aHeifers are bred to Town Creek Farm bulls suitable for calving ease with heifers. aHeifers are bred to calve at 32 months of age or younger. aHeifers have been certified safe in calf by a veterinarian or ultrasound technician within 30 days of sale (certification is mailed to buyers after completion of sale). Pregnant heifers are considered breeders without further guarantee. aHeifers are calfhood vaccinated. Heifers will be on sale sight and can be viewed at Town Creek Farm Sale Facility Thursday through Saturday, October 17-19, 2019. Heifers will sell on video in groups of five (±) by consignor. Heifers will be videoed in groups in which they will be sold. Buyers have an option to roll two pens of heifers at the established price as long as heifers are from the same consignor. After three pens, the price is reestablished through the bidding process. All heifers have been screened and viewed by Clint Ladner. For additional information, please contact Clint at (662)812-8370.
■ LOTS 201-240 - Williamson Cattle Company, Faunsdale, Alabama, and Okeechobee, Florida 22-Year Sale Consignor
Reputation Brangus and Ultrablack sired heifers bred back to low birth weight Town Creek Farm and Cow Creek Ranch Brangus and Ultrablack bulls. Heifers are ranch raised, genetically sourced and selected out of 9000 heifer calves. Calving from 11/1/19 to 12/31/19. Heifers will calve as two-year-olds.
■ LOTS 241-275 – CP Bar Brangus, Paul Gray, Holcomb, Mississippi – 20-Year Sale Consignor
This gentle set of Brangus heifers is stacked Town Creek/Cow Creek genetics representing Thunder, Buckshot and Integrity and bred to TCF Rapid Reward sons. Heifers are forage developed and easy to handle on foot and four-wheeler. Heifers will calve from 2/4/20 to 4/6/20.
■ LOTS 276-316 – Megehee Cattle Company, Jacob Megehee, Macon, Mississippi - 16-Year Sale Consignor
Group 1: 35 Brangus heifers out of CCR Sleep Easy 9L2, CCR Integrity 355S4, CCR Thunder 641R4, and CCR Integrity 036P9 daughters and granddaughters bred to TCF Rapid Reward 546C and TCF Rapid Reward 460B5. Calving from 11/20/19 to 1/20/20. Calving at 30-months of age. Group 2: 14 Brangus heifers out of CCR Sleep Easy 9L2, CCR Integrity 355S4, CCR Thunder 641R4, and CCR Integrity 036P9 daughters and granddaughters bred to TCF Rapid Reward 546C and TCF Rapid Reward 460B5. Calving from 2/18/20 to 4/20/20. Calving as two-year-olds.
■ LOTS 387-396 – Montgomery Farms, Mark Montgomery, Moulton, Alabama - 11-Year Sale Consignor
TCF Rockstar 546Z2 daughters bred back to CCR Pathfinder 70Z2. Bucket broke heifers that are gentle and easy fleshing. Calving from 12/3/19 to 2/15/20.
■ LOTS 397-407 – B&B Farm, Gerome Burrell, Linden, Alabama – 7-Year Sale Consignor
Group 1: TCF Sleep Easy 067Z5 and CCR Ultrablack 1749Y5 daughters bred back to TCF Integrity 584E.. Calving from 12/10/19 to 2/10/20. Group 2: TCF Sleep Easy 067Z5 and CCR Ultrablack 1749Y5 daughters bred back to TCF Pathfinder 007E9. Calving from 3/15/20 to 5/25/20.
■ LOTS 317-386 – Longino Ranch, Cliff Coddington, Sidell, Florida - 5-Year Sale Consignor
SALE INFORMATION ■ SALE CATALOGS TOTAL COMMITMENT
TOWN CREEK FARM MORE THAN 25 YEARS
OF RANCHING HERITAGE
Since 1993
2019 • 12 NOON SATURDAY, OCTOBER•19, PI WEST POINT, MISSISSIP TOWN CREEK FARM
PAVILION
Sale catalogs were mailed September 20, 2019. If you have not received a catalog, you likely are not on our catalog list or it is lost in mail. To request a catalog go on-line to www.TownCreekFarm.com or call Town Creek at (662)494-5944.
■ SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
Friday, October 18, 2019 All Day – Cattle available for viewing. 6 pm – Boot Scootin’ BBQ Party Social, Dinner and Dancing Live western music by local West Point artists, Mookie and MOC. Meet and greet with West Point Professional Steer Wrestler, Will Lummus. Join us for an evening of good food, fun and dancing as we celebrate with hometown talents. Saturday, October 19, 2019 11 am – Lunch featuring Town Creek Farm Beef Burgers 12 noon – Town Creek Farm Brangus Commercial Bred Heifer Sale followed by Town Creek Farm Bull Sale
■ HOTEL ACCOMMODATIONS
Hotel Credit at Bull Sale Checkout Town Creek Farm will offer a $150 hotel credit with purchase for customers who stay at area hotels during sale weekend. For hotel reservations at Hampton Inn call Anne Sutherland at (662)295-6144 or (662)4945944 or Anne@TownCreekFarm.com. Hampton Inn & Suites 1915 6th Street, Columbus, Mississippi 39701 Americas Best Value Inn ....................(662)494-7090 5714 Hwy. 45 Alt. South, West Point, Mississippi Town Creek Campground...................(662)494-4884 10694 Witherspoon Rd, West Point, Mississippi Reservations must be made in advance.
Brangus heifers representing 10 generations of Town Creek Farm and Cow Creek Ranch genetics bred to low birth weight bulls. A.I.’d to CCR Integrity 355S4. ECD: 12/29/19. ECD: December 29, 2019. Pasture bred to TCF Rapid Reward 121E2 and TCF Rapid Reward 513E6. Calving from 1/2/20 to 2/22/20. Heifers were developed from weaning to sale day on Cow Creek Ranch, Aliceville, Alabama. Heifers will calve as two-yearolds. Heifers easy to handle. Handled on horse, foot and ATV.
■ LOTS 416-450, 466-468– Lowell Dollar Farms, Lowell Dollar, Bainbridge, Georgia - 4-Year Sale Consignor
Town Creek Farm and Cow Creek Ranch Brangus and Ultrablack sired heifers bred back to low birth weight bulls TCF Integrity 49E; TCF Ultrablack 9203D; TCF Rapid Reward 5281D6; TCF Sleep Easy 024C4; TCF Sleep Easy 145C6; TCF Integrity 788B4; TCF Sleep Easy 211B5; and TCF Pathfinder 518B4. Gentle and easy to handle. Calving from 1/28/20 to 3/30/20.
These heifers sell from Williamson Cattle Company.
Holy Smokes! This heifer (in back) sold as a bred heifer in our 2018 Sale from Longino Ranch. Shown with her first calf at side.
TOTAL COMMITMENT
3 Quality Assurance always comes first.
Town Creek Farm Sale
SATURDAY, OCTOBER 19, 2019 • 12 NOON at the Town Creek Pavilion near West Point, Mississippi
150 Town Creek Farm Bulls Lot 101. Brangus. Year Marbling 4.53%.
Brangus, Ultrablack, VigorMax™Half-Blood Bulls
INCLUDING 70 PLUS FULL 2 YEAR-OLD BULLS (Born Fall 2017) AND 20 VIGORMAX™ HALF-BLOOD BULLS. BULLS GUARANTEED JOHNES-FREE, TRICH AND BVD TESTED.
Bulls are backed by generations of highly productive females that have withstood the test of time. Bull selection includes many half, three-quarter and full brothers. Large selection maternal UserFriendly bulls and calving ease bulls to use on heifers.
Lot 46. Ultrablack. Heifer Bull. Full 2-year-old.
Lot 21. Brangus. Heifer Bull. Full 2-year.-old
■ 44% of bulls selling are full
2-year-old bulls (Born Fall 2017).
■ Bulls developed slowly on high
roughage, grass silage-based ration to ensure durability, soundness and weight maintenance.
■ Bulls are reproductively sound. The
Lot 32. Brangus. Year Marbling 4.04%. Full 2-year-old.
Lot 51. VigorMax™Half-Blood bull. Yearling Marbling 4.10%.
sale bulls dams average age of first calving is 741 days. Average calving interval is 371 days. 90% of dams have calving intervals less than 365 days.
■ Heat and humidity tolerant bulls.
Percent Angus stated on each lot.
■ Large selection of user-friendly,
high maternal and calving ease bulls needed to produce valuable replacement heifers. Profit begins with a live calf.
Lot 1. Brangus. Weaning Weight: 830 lbs. Full 2-year.-old.
■ Expansive herd health program. Lot 57. VigorMax™Half-Blood bull. Yearling Marbling 4.36%.
Annual whole herd Johnes testing. Bulls sell guaranteed Johnes-free, Trich and BVD tested.
Videos of bulls available on-line at www.TownCreekFarm.com October 9, 2019. Heifer videos will be on-line in selling groups on October 18, 2019. Bulls may be viewed at the ranch between now and sale day. Please call Joy at (205)399-0221 or Clint at (662)812-8370 for showings.
Lot 45. Brangus. Heifer Bull. Full 2-year.-old
Lot 70. VigorMax™Half-Blood bull. REA/cwt: 1.19 sq.in.
OBTAIN BUYER NUMBER ON-LINE
Go to www.TownCreekFarm.com to sign up for a buyer number. On-line bidding requires buyer number to be obtained from DVAuction.com.
ABSENTEE BIDDING
Lot 40. Brangus. REA/cwt: 1.19 sq.in. Full 2-year-old.
Lot 68. VigorMax™Half-Blood bull. Yearling Marbling 4.28%.
Bidding options for buyers unable to attend the sale include On-Line bidding. Contact DV Auctions at (402)316-5460 or go to DVAuction.com. Or, by contacting Joy or Clint and allowing us to work with you on cattle needs and budget.
International Brangus Breeders Association to Host Fall Meeting in Conjuction with Town Creek Farm Sale
John McKnight was recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association for his life’s work in the cattle industry. John is pictured with family and friends. From left to right: Son-in-Law Mark Tipton; Mary Bea Halimeh with the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association; Friend Sam Johnson; Daughter Lisa McKnight Tipton; Daughter Lynn McKnight; John McKnight; Friend Chambliss Lines; and Town Creek Farm’s Clint Ladner.
John McKnight Presented Lifetime Achievement Award JOHN MCKNIGHT HAS BEEN A FAMILIAR FACE AMONG THE TOWN CREEK FARM AND COW CREEK RANCH COMMUNITY FOR MORE THAN TWO DECADES. John owns and operates a commercial Brangus operation, River Oaks Farm near Searcy, Arkansas. He was recently presented the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Arkansas Cattlemen’s Association. John began his ranching career more than 65 years ago in the commercial and registered Hereford business. Twenty-one years ago he consigned his first set of Brangus heifers to the Cow Creek Ranch Sale. McKnight credits Joe Reznicek for his leap from Herefords and commercial cattle to Brangus cattle. “We had similar views on cattle,” McKnight says. “Joe was focused on producing cattle that could perform on forage. Before long, Brangus bulls were all I was using on my commercial cattle.” John bought his first registered Brangus bull from Cow Creek Ranch while it was operating in North Carolina in the 1980s. “I don’t think any breed does as well in the South and Southeast as the Brangus breed. The Brangus commercial female will out perform any other female with beneficial mothering ability, longevity and parasite-resistance,” McKnight said. “Using the Cow Creek Ranch based Brangus genetics has made all the difference in the world.” While in the Hereford business, John kept extensive performance records on his herd. His knowledge of, and experience in, reporting performance data would eventually prove beneficial in advancing the Brangus breed. After McKnight joined the International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) membership in 1983 he was instrumental in compiling and producing the first Brangus Sire Summary in which his experience with Hereford performance records proved beneficial. He was elected to the IBBA Board of Directors and served a term as the IBBA President in 1993-1994. Over the last 22 years, McKnight has focused primarily on raising Brangus commercial replacement heifers to supply to commercial cattlemen. He was recognized by the IBBA in 1996 as Breeder of the Year for his success in the seedstock industry, and in 2009, he was awarded the Commercial Producer of the Year award for his accomplished breeding program. During John’s time in the cattle business, he has served in many leadership positions, speaking roles, and is a nationally renowned cattle judge having judged national shows in several breeds. He graduated from Oklahoma State University (OSU) where he was a member of the national winning OSU Livestock Judging Team. In addition, he’s served in community and state leadership roles and is a Director of First Security Bank, Searcy, Arkansas. Town Creek Farm is honored to have John as a friend and for his guideance and support of the Town Creek Farm program.
THE INTERNATIONAL BRANGUS BREEDERS ASSOCIATION (IBBA) INVITES MEMBERS AND INTERESTED PARTIES TO JOIN THEM AT THE UPCOMING IBBA FALL MEETING on Friday, October 18, 2019. The purpose of the event is to discuss important topics such as the IBBA long term plan, REGSTR updates and demos, committee involvement, and discussions for the upcoming IBBA Board of Director elections. There's no cost to RSVP, we just need to know you're coming. To RSVP, call the IBBA office at (210)696-8231 or email Lori Edwards at ledwards@gobrangus.com. IBBA SCHEDULE OF EVENTS Friday, October 18, 2019 International Brangus Breeders Association (IBBA) Regional Conference, all events at TCF Pavilion 12 noon – Lunch Hosted by IBBA 1 pm – Review & Critique IBBA Long Range Plan 3 pm – Break 3:30 pm – Update on IBBA Interactive REGSTR Software and Demonstration of New Features 5 pm – Meet and interact with IBBA Executive Vice President, Dr. Darrell Wilkes. Join fellow IBBA members and Town Creek Farm for an evening of community and food. 6 pm – Town Creek Farm Hosts Boot Scootin Social and Dinner with a live band for IBBA members and sale attendees. International Brangus Breeders Association Hotel Block Wingate by Wyndham Columbus............(662)570-1918 129 Brickerton St, Columbus, Mississippi 39701 Ask for International Brangus Breeders Block TOWN CREEK FARM EXTENDS A BIG THANKS TO DESERET RANCHES, ST. CLOUD, FLORIDA, FOR PURCHASING A CREDIT, DONATED BY TOWN CREEK FARM, TO BE USED IN OUR OCTOBER 19TH SALE. Proceeds of the benefit auction go to the Political Auction Committee (PAC) fund of the Florida Cattlemens Association. TOWN CREEK FARM GENETICS AT WORK IN THE COUNTRY OF THAILAND. Sanya Suphappornchai of Thailand purchased TCF Ultrablack 9733E5 in our 2018 sale to export to Thailand. 9733E5 was quarantined, tested and then exported this spring. Since his arrival, he has become foundation herd stock for the newly formed Thailand Brangus Breeders Association.