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Highlights
from the February 2005 Issue
CONTENTS
- 2004 Sale Summary
- Alberta Influence
- BC Bulletin
- From Field To Desk
- Bob Balog Named 2005 Canadian Livestock Industry Leader Of The Year In Denver
- Cameron Farms
- Evaluating Bull Fertility: Scrotal Size And Shape
- Kozlinski Ranch...Where The Heifer Calves Can Bring More Than The Steers!
- Manitoba Mainstream
- Obituaries
- Saskatchewan Cow-Man Sense
• • •
ON THE COVER
These herd bulls are part of a large and impresssive group used on the Kozlinski Ranch at Provost. See complete story on page 36 in this issue.
Photo by Kurt Gilmore• • •
TOTAL AVERAGE 1,130 1/12 BULLS 1,111 FEMALES 2,241 1/12 LOTS • • •
The Alberta Hereford Association is pleased to announce the winner of our first $5,000 Bull Lottery. Any bull purchased in 2004 and transferred by January 15, 2005 became automatically eligible to win. The lucky winners are Cory and Monty Arendt of Eastend, Saskatchewan, who purchased C&N L1 STANDARD 69N from Nyle and Clint Stromsmoe of Stromsmoe Herefords, Etzikom, Alberta. Cory and Monty will receive a $5,000 certificate toward the purchase of another bull. Congratulations! This lottery will be offered again for 2005 so remember that any bull purchased in 2005 and TRANSFERRED may be a winner!The AHA Annual Meeting will again be combined with the Alberta Juniors Annual Show. These events will take place at Olds on June 24-26. Watch for further details.
Calgary District Hereford ClubThe Calgary Club is hosting their Semen Auction and Semi-Annual Meeting on Friday, April 1, 2005 at the Balzac Community Hall.
6 PM Cocktails
Dinner and Auction to FollowContact Dwayne Fulton @ (403) 337-2890 or Karen Sutton @ (403) 938-3024 for
further information.Mark your calendars now for the Field Day set for Saturday, July 30, 2005. This event is being held in conjunction with the 100th Anniversary of Jones Hereford Ranches, Allen & Shanna Jones and Gladys Jones, at the Jones Ranch at Balzac.
Peace River Hereford Club
The Peace River Hereford Club would like to announce the 'Top Notch' Hereford and Hereford Influence Sale. It will be held April 16 at Willowview Auctions in Beaverlodge. There will be pens of 3, 5 and 10 commercial females and prizes will be awarded to the Top Selling Pen as well as the People's Choice Pen. There will also be purebred bulls and females on offer. For more information contact Serena Reber @ (780) 774-2337.
Congratulations go out to Rod and Lorraine Polukoshko, Hines Creek, for receiving the Commercial Cattleman Award for 2005.Ring Creek Farms of Fairview fared well at the Peace Country Beef Congress January 7 and 8 in High Prairie. Congratulations to Pat and Len Freidel on receiving Reserve Champion Pen of Purebred Heifers.
East Central Hereford Club
You are invited to help celebrate the 50th Anniversary of the East Central Bull Sale on Friday, April 8, at the Crossroads Centre in Oyen. On offer will be approximately 40 Horned and Polled Hereford bulls and several packages of replacement heifers. For more information contact Dianne Westerlund @ (403) 676-2086Central Alberta Hereford Club
Watch for our Annual Meeting and Semen Auction tentatively set for April 8 at the Elks Hall in Innisfail. The evening includes a guest speaker, election of directors and a fabulous steak dinner. Join us for a fun evening.
A final decision regarding our Supremacy Sale will be made by the end of April. Hopefully the cattle industry will be strong enough so we can offer our top cattle to past and new buyers again.
The Central Club would like to thank all our members, Hereford breeders and everyone involved in our club who worked so hard in making last year, as tough as it was, a very enjoyable year and we look forward to more exciting events this year.Southern Alberta Hereford Club
Lethbridge Spring Bull Sale, Saturday, March 5
Medicine Hat Spring Bull Show and Sale, March 15 & 16Northern Alberta Hereford Club
Mark Thursday, August 4 on your calendar for the largest bull calf futurity in Canada at Hardisty. Entries are open to all breeders.If you are looking for a bull come spring - remember that Northern Alberta has more breeders and bulls for sale privately than any other area.
Memberships are now due for 2005. Become a part of the largest, most active Hereford club in the province. Watch for details on our Annual Meeting in June.
• • •
The news that the border will be open in the spring should give everyone a much needed boost. Despite the fact that another old cow showed up in Alberta should not be surprising and I am sure there are some in the USA if they were only identified. In any event it should make our commercial customers feel a lot better about raising beef.We have the usual number of bull sales coming up in BC this spring and one that was in doubt has been decided on. Because of a fire that took the Peace Country Livestock building to the ground, there was some concern that a facility for the Peace River All Breeds Bull Sale could not be found. According to my information the fairgrounds in Dawson Creek have a building that will work and on March 26 the committee will have the usual Spring Bull Sale.
• • •
There's a new attitude out there about buying bulls and selling bulls and it's not just talk! Last year, at this time, people were still in shock and the fall sales of 2003 hadn't seen much demand. By contrast, the fall sales of 2004 got stronger every day and virtually all saw significant increases in total sales and the average price paid for replacement bulls and heifers.Lots of cattlemen held back from their usual livestock shopping habits last year, but three things have changed to help bring some semblance of normality back to the marketplace. First, the cash available is greater than anyone thought possible. The price paid for feeder calves this past fall was far stronger than was predicted and, as well, the CAIS Program and the feeder calf "Set Aside" Program have both put a few dollars in producers' pockets.
Another important influence on this year's urgency for stock bulls is the fact that many cattlemen didn't buy any replacements at all last year. Faster attrition of their herd bull pens, due to the additional age of those bulls, has meant that most have no choice but to seek out new ones this year.Last, and probably most important, cattlemen have realized that they are here for the long haul. They have no intention of leaving their farms and ranches and are determined to maintain, as much as possible; the quality of their herd so as to maximize profits in years to come. We see this long term planning exercised, not only at bull sales, but also in the increasing value of straight-bred commercial Hereford heifers. For those looking to straighten out their 5-way cross cow herds and rebuild some uniformity in their calf crop, these heifers are essential.
The average price paid for pens of bred replacement quality Hereford heifers climbed steadily throughout the fall to the point where 41 head sold in groups of four to seven head each for an average of $1,226/head at the Stromsmoe Sale. We are already getting inquiries for open yearlings for this spring and, while they are valuable property, they also promise the greatest return. When their calves are sorted into large bunches for sale at the auction markets in the fall; they will command much better attention than the crossbred sorts of 1, 2 or 3 head that buyers gather at big discounts.
This issue of The Hereford Link promotes all of the large and many of the smaller bull sales to be held this spring. We look forward to visiting with you at a sale in your area. It promises to be a good season for purebred and commercial cattlemen alike!
• • •
BOB BALOG NAMED 2005 CANADIAN LIVESTOCK INDUSTRY LEADER OF THE YEAR IN DENVER
Reprinted Courtesy of The Record Stockman
The 2005 Canadian Livestock Industry Leader of the Year, Bob Balog, receives his award from Dan Green publisher of the Record Stockman.
The Record Stockman's 2005 Canadian Cattle Industry Leader of the Year at the National Western Stock Show is Auctioneer Robert C. (Bob) Balog.His company, Balog Auction Services in Lethbridge, Alta., is a family business operating since 1980. Two brothers and a 20 year old son are also auctioneers. His brother, Darwin, works with him but Bob says the real boss at the company is their sister Maureen who has been the office manager for 20 years.
Growing up literally a step away from the United States-Canada border on an 11,000 acre ranch at Milk River, Alta., (a fence of one Balog property is the border) raising commercial and purebred Horned Herefords Bob has strong ties to the USA.
• • •
They winter some 650 straight-bred Hereford and Hereford cross commercial cows in the "breaks" on the north shore of the Oldman River, about 25 miles northeast of Lethbridge, Alta., and just a few minutes drive southeast of the village of Turin. George Hofer is the cattle boss at Cameron Farms and it is a matter of privilege for those men chosen to work on his crew. Six fulltime cowboys assist with all the duties and challenges that a herd of this size carries and they do so with confidence gained by careful training and experience.The ranch includes a 1,000 head capacity feedlot and, while a few cattle can be custom fed, the great majority of this facility is devoted to feeding out to slaughter weight, the calves produced on the ranch as well as the Holstein and beef heifers that are selected as replacements. Such is the quality of the fat cattle leaving this lot that the major packing plants bid with confidence without seeing the cattle, but based on the information George provides to them. Last year Cameron Farms' steers sold at an average weight of 1,560 pounds and yielded 63 per cent. The steers were sold in 2004 at a weight approximately 100 pounds heavier than normal as a result of the slower demand by packing plants.
With the exception of minerals and a few feed supplements, the farm produces all of the silage and feed stuffs required for each of their livestock enterprises. They operate one of the largest feed mills in the country and, on occasion, market prepared feeds to other livestock operations.
Cameron Farms
Just one of three rooms making up the new packing plant which processes cattle, hogs, lambs and chickens. It is a provincially inspected facility.
The feed mill operations are extensive. With the exception of some supplements, all livestock feed is grown and processed on the farm.
Everybody pitches in at branding time.• • •
EVALUATING BULL FERTILITY: SCROTAL SIZE AND SHAPE
by Heather Smith Thomas
Scrotal shape and size can be a good indication of a bull's fertility. Size can be measured, but you can usually tell by visual inspection whether or not a bull is adequate in scrotal circumference. If testicle size is questionable enough that he must be measured, he is probably on the small end of the scale. Measurements are useful, however, when evaluating very young bulls, to see if they are up to standard for their age group.
Shape of the scrotum is important also, since a bull must be able to raise and lower his testicles easily for proper temperature control. The testicles should hang down well away from the body in warm weather. There should be an obvious "neck" at the top of the scrotum, with the testicles hanging down large and pear shaped. A bull with a straight-sided scrotum or a V-shaped scrotum (tapering down to a pointed tip) is often not as fertile as a bull with a normal scrotum.
Also, beware of selecting a bull with odd-shaped testicles, such as one obviously smaller than the other. Any abnormalities should be noted. Scabby, thickened skin - especially on the back, bottom third of the scrotum - may be an indication of frostbite. This can cause temporary or permanent infertility, depending upon the extent of damage and scarring.
• • •
THE KOZLINSKI RANCH ...
.... WHERE THE HEIFER CALVES CAN BRING MORE THAN THE STEERS!
by Kurt Gilmore
The first thing you notice is the smile. And behind that smile is a bright and enthusiastic outlook for the cattle business. Don Kozlinski has done a lot of things right. The bar over 4X brand on the right rib speaks volumes in terms of quality recognition wherever his cattle go.Don was born in 1931 on the farm his father, Simon, homesteaded in 1913, 16 miles south of Provost, 12 miles west of the Alberta-Saskatchewan border. Today the ranch carries 330 Hereford cows on some 8,000 acres. Together with his wife Marjorie, his son Lonnie and wife Kim and his daughter Patti with her husband Chris Snortland, Don maintains one of the great ranches and one of the most enviable cow herds to be found anywhere in the country.
Situated on the northern edge of the Neutral Hills, Don explains that the ranch "sits on an ocean of water. There is lots of water underneath this sand. Thirty-five or 40 feet down here, I've got a well that will produce 35 gallons a minute and another one over at the barn that does the same thing. We have dugouts all over the ranch that are spring fed from underground water." Lonnie added, "Back in the '70's you could dig a posthole in this area and you would get water before you could tamp the post in."
Mature cows on the winter feedground.
Bringing the pairs in for branding.
Lonnie and Don Kozlinski tag and innoculate a young calf. they have kept detailed cow performance records since 1968.
Don surveys a pen of his steers being finished at the YT Bar Ranch, Consort. Russell Jones of the YT Bar has purchased and were a large portion of 1,000 steers fed at the YT Bar and then assessed for carcass merit at Cargill Foods. Sixty-five per cent of the group graded AAA for marbling and the whole 1,000 head had an average yield grade of 60 per cent.• • •
Manitoba Hereford Association Good As Gold SaleSALE SUMMARY
Bull Calves Averaged $2,050 Heifer Calves Averaged $1,439 Bred Females Averaged $1,197 Total Sale Averaged $1,318 The Good As Gold Sale was held on Dec. 10 in the Canada Room of the Keystone Centre in Brandon, Man, Eighteen consignors brought 50 head to this annual sale that showcases many of the top genetics offered by Manitoba breeders.
Some of the top animals selling were:
BULL CALVES
Lot 31 - LEVELDALE PROWLER 15M 14P
Sire: Triple-J Oakland Wildcat 15M
Sire of Dam: Square-D Fullback 615C
Consignor: Leveldale Polled Herefords, Douglas
Buyer: Bruce Rosling, Gladstone $3,000Lot 36 - WLB TEX'S 33K 49P
Sire: Shell-River WLB 10E Rex 33K
Sire of Dam: TA-Bar WLB Formula 035J
Consignor: WLB Livestock, Douglas
Buyer, Robert Graham, Holland $2,000BRED HEIFERS
Lot 34 - RAWCLIFFE 60D DESTINY 44N
Sire: RU Duster 60D
Sire of Dam: Chickadee 26R Mr. Grazer 20W
Service Sire: Rawcliffe 73J Johnson 221N
Consignor: Rawcliffe Grange Stock Farm, Rosser
Buyer: Rafter U Polled Herefords, Osage, SK $1,900Lot 30 - LEVELDALE NATASHA 19L 26N
Sire: Leveldale Lonestar 23C ET 19L
Sire of Dam: Remitall Director 182D
Service Sire: Double-U Kreeger 32K
Consignor: Leveldale Polled Herefords, Douglas
Buyer: Thornton Farms, Thamesford, ON $1,850Lot 4 - ROSELAWN SCARLET 4G 52N
Sire: Roselawn Odyssey 850A 4G
Sire of Dam: RY Keynote 84B
Service Sire: Leveldale Lincoln 23C ET 17L
Consignor: Roselawn Polled Herefords, Killarney
Buyer: Rafter U Polled Herefords, Osage, SK $1,700HEIFER CALVES
Lot 28 - TIL-TOBA TERYSE 27L 5P
Sire: Til-Toba Rambo 33C 29M
Sire of Dam: Walpole Tandem 32F
Consignor: Til-Toba Polled Herefords, Tilston
Buyer: Hi-Cliffe Polled Herefords, Esterhazy, SK $1,750Lot 53B - GNF 122L TEQUILA ET 100P
Sire: Remitall Online 122L
Sire of Dam: Kilmorlie Prospecter ET 96X
Consignor: Glennethy Farms, Russell
Buyer: Crystal Creek Polled Herefords, Crystal City $1,300• • •
Murray Houston, Sibbald, Alta
Willa McGibbon, Lachute Que.• • •
As you toured the commercial barn at the Agribition, our Hereford-influence cattle continue to increase in presence at the show. These Hereford-influenced cattle are topping many classes as well as taking home the prize money.
The Saskatchewan Hereford Association, once again, organized the sponsorship of the "Hereford-Influenced" cattle. This year hats and gloves were presented to each and every commercial exhibitor having Hereford-influence in their pen. Thanks to all the Hereford supporters who donated to this very much appreciated promotion:
ANL Polled Herefords Barber Farms
BBG Polled Herefords Bertram Herefords
Big Bully Farms Bonaventure Hereford Farm
Braun Hereford Ranch Carlrams Hereford Farm
Cattleman's Choice Bull Sale Crittenden Bros.
DKC Herefords Gillespie Hereford Ranch
Haroldson's Polled Herefords Hills Galore Stock Farm
Johner Stock Farms Maple Creek Beef Breeders
McKerricher Polled Herefords Misty Valley Farms
Mountain Coulee Herefords Parkvista Hereford Farm
Parkvue Polled Herefords PK Herefords
River Bridge Ranch RMK Herefords
Rocky Haven Ranch Sky Track Ranch
Touchwood Trail Triple-A Herefords
Triple-Hill Farms Willow Creek Ranch
Sore Foot Creek Polled HerefordsThe Saskatchewan Hereford Association pays out breed special prize money to all Hereford-influence that are declared 50 per cent or more Hereford at the time of entry.
Maple Creek Beef Breeders supplied a $500 credit towards the purchase of a bull at their 2005 Bull Sale - winner Elford Ranch, McCord, SK. Cattleman's Choice Bull Sale, held at Swift Current, also supplied a $500 credit towards the purchase of a bull at their 2005 sale - winner Tom & Karen Grieve, Fillmore, SK. Thanks to these bull sales for your support and congratulations to the winners!
Champion Pen of Five Feeder Steers - Bar-Crossroads Ranch, Edam, SK Reserve Champion Pen of Five Feeder Steers - Horsehill Land & Cattle, Edam, SK Champion Pen of Ten Feeder Steers - Bar-Crossroads Ranch, Edam, SK Reserve Champion Pen of Ten Feeder Steers - Gord & Sandy Gerrard, Southey, SK Grand Champion Pen of Feeders Steers - Bar-Crossroads Ranch, Edam, SK Champion Pen of Five Feeder Heifers - Bar-Crossroads Ranch, Edam, SK Champion Pen of Ten Feeder Heifers - Bar-Crossroads Ranch, Edam, SK Grand Champion Pen of Feeder Heifers - Bar-Crossroads Ranch, Edam, SK Champion Pen of Five Open Replacement Heifers - Gord & Sandy Gerrard, Southey, SK Reserve Grand Champion Pen of Open Replacement Heifers - Gord & Sandy Gerrard, Southey, SK Congratulations to Hereford-Influence Class Placings: - Williamson Ranch Ltd., Mankota, SK
- Doug Westman, Vermilion, AB
- Woodlands Ranching, Craven, SK
- Myrna & Elroy Enns, Eyebrow, SK
- Elford Ranch, McCord, SK
- Knapp Farms, Southey, SK
- Perry & Johanna Powell, Qu'Appelle, SK
- Garon Pretty, Weyburn, SK
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