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September 2023 09/13/23 9:47:00 AM
9-21-2023
A little bit of a shower came through last Saturday afternoon dropping two tenths of an inch of rain. Areas to the north received over an inch and some farther south didn’t get any. Temperatures dropped, cooling everything off nicely by Saturday evening. The forecast is calling for a few more scattered showers throughout the week and very normal temperatures.
Saturday had a balanced run of all classes of livestock and another big run of big bales of hay. The hog market had fat hogs selling from $45 to 50 a lb. Sows were mostly $45 to 50 and feeder pigs were from $25 to 40 per head for all weights. Most of the pigs went home to feed as there is zero demand for roaster pigs.
The sheep and goat market is steady to slightly better. Kids were mostly $2.50 to 2.85 when weighing 50 to 70 pounds. One big wether weight 120 pounds and brought $3.10 per lb. Nannies were mostly $1.00 to 1.50 a lb. Big billies were $2.10 to 2.35 a lb. Lambs from 60 to 80 pounds brought $1.40 to 1.80 and fat lambs were mostly $1.60 to 1.82 a lb. Weigh up ewes brought $80 to 90 a lb.
Big bales of hay were solid at $100 to 120 with a few at $145 and poor-quality hay at $60 to 80 a bale. Small squares sold from $3.50 to 7 this week. The demand for hay continues to be strong as the volume we are selling is moving up.
The cattle sale had right at 1400 head this week. Baby calves sold from $250 to 450 for beef calves and $100 to 225 for dairy. A few pairs were selling from $2000 to 2300. Feeder cattle demand is solid on all weights and classes with lower corn price and solid fat cattle values. A single 450-pound steer brought $3.10 and a couple of black white face steers at 543 pounds brought $3.01 a lb. 37 steers weighing 671 pounds brought $2.90; and 18 head at 738 pounds were at $2.75. Two loads of crossbred steers that were 70% black brought $2.52 averaging 809 pounds. Two loads of crossbred steers 80% black brought $2.47 at 924 pounds. Heifers kept right up with eight unweaned black heifers weighing 434 pounds at $2.90; 31 black white face heifers weaned and vaccinated weighing 558 pounds were at $2.85 a lb. Fifteen black heifers at 609 pounds brought $2.55; 20 head at 760 pounds brought $2.40 and even 8 head of fleshy heifers at 975 pounds brought $2.09 a lb.
Weigh cows are easing up but only very slightly. Big fleshy, high yielding cows sold from $1.15 to 1.22. Most cutter cows were $95 to 1.05 a lb. Bulls were pretty much $1.10 to 1.40 a lb. The weigh cow run had 200 head this week.
The small showers we received have our rye up and going really nicely already. Hopefully with another shower, we will be able to turn cattle out there and graze it for a while this fall. Combines are going around the area and it seems very generally the yields are much better than expected.
We finished weaning Hereford calves and collected weaning weights this week. The top bull calves came in at 725 to 755 pounds! This was also the week to ultrasound fall born yearlings. That means we have hauled Herefords around for a couple of days this week! Ted & Rachelle are still getting new calves every day in the fall Hereford herd. They only have about twenty left and will be done.
A regular sale is coming up this week. We will sure have a good offering of cows and pairs as well as 200 feeders.
Have a Dandy Week!
9-12-2023
It seems as I get older, I cannot stay up as late at night as I used to! I might be up a couple of extra times throughout the night but by 9:30 to 10 I am usually looking to rest a little! So, I haven’t been keeping up with the news very well the past couple of weeks.
The weekend the crew was gone to the big horse sale I flew to northwest IA to attend the IA Hereford tour. Ben dropped me off at 7:30 and I hitched a ride for the day to all the stops with Joe Rickabaugh, the AHA fieldman. Ben left there and went to Ogallala NE and picked up Luke, Cody and the girls and dropped them off in Fairfield then buzzed back up to Sioux Center and picked me up. We were home by 8 p.m. The horse sale went great as they sold more than they bought! The IA tour was good with two herd visits, a feed yard stop and Trans Ova to round out the day. It was really a good day and the crop in that country is extremely impressive!
We were able to get silage cut the following week. The corn at Keosauqua was sure better than I expected it to be. Curt & Lauren made a real nice pile of forage sorghum and Ted ended up with a darn good pile of cane and corn at Troy. I am sure glad to get that job completed but more thankful the good Lord provided us with the pile of feed we have with so little moisture!
We weaned several calves and have them starting out pretty well. Ted & Rachelle are calving the fall Hereford cows and have nearly 50 calves out in the first three weeks.
The hog market last Saturday was lower on pigs with most at $15 to 30 per head. The fat hogs ranged from $50 to 55 and sows sold from 50 to 52 for the top end kind.
The sheep and goat sale had 480 head. Kids weighing 50 to 70 pounds brought $2.20 to 2.65. Nannies sold higher at $1.15 to 1.50. A big billy that weighed 155 pounds brought $.10 a lb. Lambs averaging 50 to 90 pounds brought $1.60 to 2.15 a lb. fat lambs brought $1.90 to 2.03 and ewes were ranging from $50 to 92.50 per lb. Bucks ranged from $95 to 1.20 a lb.
The outside sale had a good run of hay again with 900 small square bales and 350 big bales. Small squares sold from $3.50 to 9.00 a bale. Big rounds mostly sold from $100 to 120 with a top at $155 on some fine quality alfalfa fourth cutting hay. Several misc. items out there again this week but no hedge posts.
The cattle sale was a cow sale. The top heifer pairs brought $2850 while cow pairs brought from $2100 to 2750. Fall bred cows ranged from $2000 to 2300 for the better end of the cows that were six and under. Spring bred cows off a dispersal brought $1800 to 2050 per head. Weigh cows were mostly $1.10 to 1.20 with a $1.37 top. Bulls were mostly $.130 to 1.40 with a $1.46 top.
We received a beautiful inch of rain over night Sunday into Monday morning. More rain to the north and less to the south this time. We were able to get some help to drill rye in the stocks and were sure thankful for the inch of rain!
Colby’s machinery sale is on Wednesday night this week. Luke is getting ready to pour cement for a couple of new line bunks. Ted is going to put up a stretch of new fence up at Troy this week as well.
Thursday and Friday last week I was able to be a part of the American Hereford Association’s first young breeders academy. Six young breeders from across the country spent two days in Kansas City with staff. Thursday, I caught up with them in Harrisburg NE at Olsen Ranch. We spent the morning with Douglas Olsen looking at cattle and the systems they are using to collect data. After lunch we went to Fort Colins Co and Colorado State University. We had meetings there throughout the afternoon and Friday until 2:30. With Ben’s help I was home again by 8:30 Friday evening. Things are moving right along for sure. I am headed to load country cattle in the morning, and we have a special feeder cattle sale coming up this Saturday.
Have a Dandy Week!
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