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July 2025 07/03/25 4:02:00 PM
7-28-2025
Well, the big rain lined up on us this week, leaving 3.6 to 3.8 inches on Friday night, into Saturday morning. That gave us 4.5 inches for the week. It ran down the ditches some, but it really didn’t do much harm unless you had hay left out in the wind rows! It’s been hot with very nasty humidity the past week. The temperatures going into the lower and mid 90’s and the grass continues to grow at a very serious pace. In my mind, it’s as good as it gets in Southeast Iowa in July! The forecast calls for another rain event Tuesday evening into Wednesday and then cooler milder weather for the next several days!
Saturday’s sale had a large run of hogs, sheep and goats and a lighter run of cattle. The hog marker was fully steady with barrows and gilts bringing mostly $0.77 to $0.82. Sows were higher, getting to $0.88 on the top-heavier weights. The big butchers were sneaking on the sow trucks this week with 330lb to 400lb barrows bringing $0.75 to $0.80. boars were only $0.07 to $0.10 and light boars brought $0.35. We had just a few feeder pigs this sale with some 110lb bringing $92.00.
The sheep and goat run was right up at 500 head this week. The lambs weighing 50lb to 85lb brought $2.30 to $2.70. There were several nice fair lambs coming in and selling at $2.05 to $2.20. The weigh ewes were scarce and sold at $1.00 to $1.20. There were 12 head of Hampshire crossbred running age open ewes that averaged 164lb and brought $335.00 per head.
The goats held steady with better kids weighing 50lb to 80lb bringing $3.50 to $4.10 and the heavier weight wethers brought $2.90 to $3.35 per pound. The nannies were mostly $1.50 to $1.80 and billies brought $2.20 to $2.40 per pound. The quality of the kid goats was really good this week!
The outside sale had a few small squares of hay selling from $2.50 to $5.00 per bale. The big round bales were no fun at all, selling form $2.00 to $35.00 this week. The $2.00 stuff might have been the highest sold too!
The ranger brought $1700, the bumper hitch camper brought $500 and the bigger camper brought $1800. There were few less small items out front his week and with the smaller stuff Derek and Colby were able to handle all the outside sale and were finished by noon.
The cattle sale was active on anything that appeared healthy! The baby calves brought up to $1300.00. A single cow/calf pair brought $3975.00. The 500lb heifers sold at $3.70 and 600lb heifers brought $3.50. The black bull calves weighing 330lb brought $5.00 and some weighing 386lb brought $4.70. The weigh cow numbers were lower but a steady market and big bulls topped at $2.20 this sale.
The truckers were loading later Saturday night, hoping to handle the heat better. The stock doesn’t always load or handle the best in high temperature and humidity. We got through the sale and loaded out without anything dying. There was a Sunday morning truck that did not start hauling hogs until 10am and they lost a couple after they left Keosauqua! I always feel like it’s a win on a weekend like this with no deads!
We are having a special bred cow and feeder calf sale this week August 2nd. There is an outstanding dispersal from the Heisel farm at Cantril.
Have a dandy week!
7-22-2025
The heat and humidity has started boiling up around here this week. We received 1.6 inches of rain here Friday and Saturday, which was good for us. Now we are headed into the mid 90’s for the next few days and it’s pretty uncomfortable this afternoon. The crops around the area are doing exceptionally well. The timely rains and good heat units have it looking as good as you could ask for this time of year!
Saturday was big for July at the sale barn. We started off with over 300 hogs this week and a good active market. The fat hogs ranged from $0.70 to $0.80. Sows were $0.71 to $0.81 for the over 500lb kind and $0.66 to $0.70 for the bulk of the rest. The feeder pigs weighing 43lb brought $33.00, 57lb brought $54.00, 63lb brought $61.00 and 80lb brought $76.00 per head. Big boars brought right at $0.07 to $0.10 and small butcher sized boars brought $0.30 to $0.35.
The sheep and goat sale had 660 head this week. The market continues to be strong in the middle of the summer. The lambs weighing 50lb to 80lb were mostly bringing $2.30 to $2.55. The fat lambs sold at $2.05 to $2.20. The ewes ranged from $1.00 to $1.325. The bucks sold at $1.20 to $1.60 a pound. The goat market was just as well with the top bringing $4.00 to $4.15. The bulk brought $3.35 to $3.60. Even the big wethers would bring over $3.00 per pound. Nannies brought $1.40 to $1.80 per pound. The big billies were $2.00 to $2.40 per pound. A couple extra buyers were participating in the market added some nice, spirited competition to the sale!
The hay sale is tough with the big volume of bales in the country and extra lush green grass across all grazing areas this year. The small squares ranged from $0.50 to $1.00 a bale after the rain. The big rounds topped at $40.00 this week and a low of $3.00 on string tied rye bales. There was a lot of hay in the $20.00 to $35.00 range. The straw bales sold at $15.00 to $20.00 on just average quality straw.
A large array of miscellaneous items kept Derek and Colby busy out front. An old cadet mower brought $500.00, a well-used livestock trailer brought $1500.00, the prius brought $650.00 and calf huts sold at $75.00.
The cattle sale had over 500 head. The baby calves sold from $950.00 to $1400.00. A couple groups of middle-aged pairs brought $3600.00 to $3900.00. The feeder cattle continue to be very solid 385lb steers sold at $4.25, 461lb steers brought $4.05, 580lb black steers at $2.95, 650lb red steers sold at $3.375 and a couple of 850lb steers brought $3.15. Some 390lb heifers sold at $4.00, 500lb heifers sold at $3.45, 609lb brought $3.40 and a package of 671lb heifers sold at $3.29.
The weigh cows were steady on 250 head. The top end brought $1.80 to $1.86, with a lot of them bringing $1.60 to $1.75. The bulls topped at $2.20 this week with 38 head of big bulls in the running.
Fair season is in high gear with 5 area fairs going on the past week. The crew put on the ranch rodeo at the Van Buren Co fair Friday evening. It was an awesome evening outside for it, with a light breeze and 72 degrees. Hattie carried Ol’ Glory going in the area while Alan Jackson sang the national anthem. It was really awesome to see as Hattie rode around the contestants that were in the center of the arena. She was grinning from ear to ear and was so proud to get to do a big job! Luke’s team the 5G cattle company ended up in first in the average. A team from Labelle and Shelbina Missouri won second place. It was a good show and a beautiful evening to be at the fair.
Monday, I loaded yearlings early to beat the heat then I headed to the Davis county 4-H auction. The numbers were good and merchants supported the kids in good fashion. We finished up about 12:30. I grabbed lunch on the go, turned in paperwork at the office and went to the hay field and mowed some pretty 3rd cutting alfalfa. Mother nature may not let me get it up nice, but it sure looked nice going down! I finished up just in time to get back into town for the Van Buren County 4-H sale. It was very good again, with huge community support. Thank you to all the area businesses for turning out and making a great sale for the kids.
The sweet corn is coming right along and I would guess that in a week to 10 days the girls will have some ready to go. Boy it looks very good now if we can keep the coons out of it, there will be a terrific crop this year!
We have a regular sale this week.
Have a dandy week!
7-14-2025
We had a nice rain come through the area Thursday evening, leaving right at 2 inches across our area. It was a welcome rain with only a short blow at about 6:30pm. The wind did not bother anything except a patch of sorghum/sudan grass that should have been turned into 10 days ago! It was at least 6ft tall before the wind and only 1ft tall after the wind and rain. I’m sure the cattle would have made it look the same in a few days, but it was really nice while it was standing! The forecast looks good most of the week with chances of rain coming after Wednesday. There was a big fog here this morning. So, 100-day fog, we should have rain very close to November 1st.
Saturday, we had a very large run of hogs. Fat hogs sold mostly $0.75 to $0.80. Light butchers sold at $0.70 to $0.75. Sows sold at $0.65 to $0.70 for under 500lbs and heavier weights were $0.72 to $0.78. Boars ranged from $0.10 to $0.12. Feeder pigs weighing 45lb brought $80.00 and 66lb brought $84.00.
The sheep and goat run had over 500 head again. The bulk of the fat kid goats sold higher at $4.00 to $4.60 per pound. The 80lb to 100lb fat wethers sold at $3.30 to $3.90 per pound. The nannies sold at $1.50 to $1.75 and one big billy at $2.00. The top lambs weighing 60lb hit $2.85, mostly $2.40 to $2.75 for the majority of them. The fat lambs sold at $2.20 to $2.30 per pound. The weigh up ewes sold at $0.85 to $1.17 and bucks brought $0.80 to $1.00.
The outside sale was loaded with hay as producers move hay out of the field right to the auction. The top full-sized bales brought $50.00, most 45ft bales brought right at $30.00, and the ones that were small or maybe damp brought $11.00 to $20.00. The oat hay was $30.00 to $35.00 and a stack of big squares of straw brought $17.50. There were over 400 big bales at the week’s sale. If there is any shed space available out there, hay is sure not too pricey to put away. The hedge post market was $6.00 to $12.00 on lines and $25.00 to $40.00 on corners.
There was a very big run of miscellaneous items of all kinds again and a big, big crowd! The older gravity wagon brought $525.00, t-posts were $3.00 to $5.50, a well-used green cox creep feeder brought $1300.00, hanging baskets topped at $30.00, rabbits brought $2.00 to $7.00 and even a wheelchair for $20.00!
The cattle sale had baby calves ranging from $950.00 to $1200.00. Bred cows in the 3rd period sold at $2800 to $3400. The 2nd period cows were more $3200 to $3500. A couple packages of pairs were $3150 on the older plain end, up to $3800 on the better kind. There was a light run of feeders, but a very strong interest in the 100 head that were here. The weigh cows hit a stronger gear this week on a run of 205 head. The better yielding cows ranged from $1.80 to $1.86 on nearly 25 head, $1.70 to $1.80 brought the next big cut and fuller cows would get in the $1.55 to $1.65. There were 5 cows that sold from $3000 to $3525 that were just good big pound cows! The bulls sold from $1.80 to $2.10. The top bull sold at $4890 per head.
I ran over to Donnellson for the Lee County Cattlemen’s open carcass beef show on Sunday afternoon. The area cattle producers have continued to hold this fed steer show for many years. I was there to sort them about 3 years ago and I found several darn nice cattle. Sunday, it went to another level! There was 35 head of very high-end cattle that came through the ring from 10 to 15 producers. What was so impressive is that there were no poor cattle in the group! I’m sure I will look very foolish when the data comes back, but I ranked what I thought were the top 10. They were headed to Tyson, as soon as, we were done to get harvest data. It will sure be interesting to see how they rank! Great job to those Lee County cattle feeders! We are going to finish up 2nd cutting alfalfa this week and it looks like 3rd cutting is getting really close.
We have a feeder cattle special this coming Saturday.
Have a dandy week!
7-8-2025
Saturday was a lighter sale over the holiday weekend. The hog market was very steady with top hogs going for $075 to $0.80 again. The sows were mostly steady at $073 to $0.81 on the 450lb and up. The boars were only $0.05 to $0.07 for boars over 350#. Light boars brought right at $0.33 to $0.35. No feeder pigs in this week’s sale.
The sheep and goat market was steady this week as well. The 60lb to 80lb lambs were $2.30 to $2.70. The 100lb lambs were at $2.20 per pound and weigh up ewes sold at $0.70 to $1.00. The goats topped at $4.05 on 50lb boer kids. Nannies sold at $1.30 to $1.80 per pound and big billies sold at $1.95 to $2.05 per pound.
The hay market was very solid at $50.00 to $55.00 on the better kids of full-size net wrapped bale. Small lighter and hold crop bales sold at $20.00 to $40.00. Big squares ranged from $25.00 to $40.00 this week and now straw around of any sized bales. Small squares of hay were $1.50 to $5.50.
We had a very big outside sale merchandise sale again this week. Used inline hog feeder brought $200.00 to $250.00, a one-sided creep feeder that would hold 500lb calves brought $750.00. T-posts sold at $3.50 to $6.00, 12 new rolls of barbwire sold at $100.00 each. Hedge posts were $17.50. The crew out front worked from 11am to 1pm and had a good-sized crowd.
The cattle sale had 150 head of everything. Baby calves sold at $850.00 to $1100.00. The 385lb char heifers sold at $4.20 per pound, bwf 435# calves sold at $4.17. Black heifers weighing 611lb sold at $3.375 and a handful of heifers weighing 708 brought $3.025. Steers weighing 465lb sold at $3.90. Some 629lb steers sold at $3.65 and a package of 767lb steers sold at $2.95. Weigh cows totaled 35 head and sold to a $1.81 top. The bulls topped at $2.10. As these cow numbers get really short the next few weeks watch this market move up some more!
We were able to get some nice 2nd cutting alfalfa baled last week. The dang humidity and wet mornings make it an awful short window. We had some big squares until we lost a slip clutch. Then we just sent 2 round balers to finish and one made it to the finish line! One broke the door latches. So, we will hopefully get the repairs done and try to find another few days of dry weather to finish up second cutting! It’s sure heavy and nice even though it’s pretty much in full bloom by now!
It’s been hot and humid all week, reaching up into the 90’s. Showers have mostly missed us the past week. The forecast is to be cooler with several days over the next week having a chance of rain. It’s sure green here for early July. The crops look really incredible. The sweet corn is tasseling and looks like we need to get the electric fence up before the weekend!
We moved another group of pairs out of a tick infested pasture last week. The ticks did not get completely off with the pour on we used last week, so we went back with an ivermectin pour on. The cows and calves in this pasture are not showing any signs of Theileria, but it’s a challenge to keep the ticks off in this pasture. We continue to hear of locations to the west and south that have found the Asian Longhorn ticks or cattle that have tested positive. Be sure to watch Dr Old’s presentation from last Wednesday evening by the clicking the link on the front page of our website, if you missed the meeting.
The cow sale this Saturday. We are expecting a large run of weigh cows, a few pairs and bred cows.
Have a dandy week!
7-3-2025
We had some nice rain again last Sunday. The crops, hay and grass are sure in really good shape for now. We have turned back to warm and humid after being very hot before the rain. The forecast look warm and dry today into Friday, then rain chances go to popping up Saturday through a few days next week.
Saturday’s sale had an active hog market with sows, fat hogs and pigs all at stronger money. Sows topped at $0.78 and butchers at $0.75 to $0.80. The feeder pigs sold at $1.20 on 60lb to just over $1.00 at 80lb to 90lb. There is strong demand for all classes.
The sheep and goat auction had a bigger run. The light feeders were higher at $2.00 to $2.40. The 60lb to 80lb lambs were steady with the better end at $2.60 to $2.80. The fat lambs were not tested very much, but were at $2.00 to $2.20. The ewes brought $0.60 to $0.85. Kid goats sold from $3.50 to $4.00 per pound. A few heavy wethers weighing 90lb to 110lbs at $2.50 to $3.20 per pound. The nannies were at the range of $1.00 to $1.45 per pound.
The outside sale had a big run of round bales, big square bales and a few small squares. The little bales sold at $1.00 to $3.50 per bale. The big rounds sold from $17.50 to $50.00 for a top. Most of them bringing in the $30.00 to $40.00 range on a bigger volume that the past couple weeks. No new crop straw has been brought in yet this summer. The fellas harvesting wheat are rally tickled with the yields right at 100 bushel!
The cattle sale had a few less baby calves, selling at $800.00 to $1100.00 per head. The feeders had a very solid interest on a lighter run. The weigh cows held steady on about 65 head. The top cows in the $1.70 with heiferettes and young cows were over $2.00 to $2.50 per pound. The big bulls topped at $2.18 this week.
We had a really good turnout for out producers meeting last evening with close to 300 people in attendance. The food was dang good, being catered in from Fire and Flavor owned by Seth and Jen Ogle of Arbela, MO. They were a great outfit for us to work with easily adjusted our head count upward on short notice. They were ready and going early and got folks through and fed extremely quick! The brisket and cheesy potatoes were a big hit! I would like to send a big, big thank you for them for really doing a great job!
Becky and the girls had everything set up and organiz3ed to start. Paige Thomas and our local FFA chapter stepped right up to help serve and kept everyone flowing smoothly. Big thank you to all of them as well!
Over the past couple days spending time with Kansas State Entomologist Dr. Cassandra Olds, we knew we had the right person to help navigate through this tick challenge. She was born and raised in South Africa and she grew up with Asian Long Horned ticks and Theileria in that country. She has studied them and all the disease for all of her career. Cassandra gave the feature presentation at the meeting and did a fascinating job. The presentation will be available on our website for any to review or watch, if you weren’t able to attend. We sincerely thank her for her time and knowledge that she was able to share with everyone.
We hope to get some very nice 2nd cutting alfalfa hay baled this afternoon and tomorrow.
We are expecting a nice little summer feeder cattle sale this week.
Happy 4th of July to everyone and have a dandy week!
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