Cattle.com Blog

Daily Web Summary 3/30/2013

2013-03-30T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

man among boys calves. - Steerplanet
100% calf crops? - Cattle Today
MONSANTO - Steerplanet
How will we feed a growing world? - Cattle Today
Best Irish Whiskey Son - Steerplanet
Calving Facilities - Cattle Today
Due Dates and calving - Steerplanet
heifers riding behaviors - Cattle Today
Wonder why guns and bullets keep going up in price...this explains it. N/C - Steerplanet
Angus bull feedback - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

AWESOME MONOPOLY CALF(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/30/2013 9:41:30 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

AWESOME MONOPOLY CALF(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/30/2013 9:41:31 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Twitter – Wichita State(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/30/2013 9:00:05 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Facebook – Cody Rice(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/30/2013 8:40:04 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Ryan Vehrs – Ohio(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/30/2013 8:40:04 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/29/2013

2013-03-29T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

bull calf - Cattle Today
New Angus Ads (no need for crossbreeding) - Steerplanet
What Do People Of Colorado Think Of This? - Steerplanet
Protien Tub? - Cattle Today
Meyer x angus cow - Steerplanet
Wonder why guns and bullets keep going up in price...this explains it. N/C - Steerplanet
Hereford Heifers - Cattle Today
black hereford ? - Cattle Today
Just some Simmentals - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Facebook – Levi Richards(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/30/2013 12:40:03 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

MLC Spring Kickoff Online Sale(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/29/2013 11:01:04 PM to For Sale
sired by:

MITTAG DESIGN WORK(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/29/2013 11:01:05 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/27/2013

2013-03-27T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

New Angus Ads (no need for crossbreeding) - Steerplanet
Cow has lumpy jaw? Ship now or 3 mos after hopefully calving - Cattle Today
Hereford Heifers - Cattle Today
Cows in heat?? - Steerplanet
Silver crossbred heifers - Cattle Today
spring vs fall - Cattle Today
Pulled cidr today, question about it - Steerplanet
Homedale accomplished - Steerplanet
FSF Stardust-FSF Hardline-any out calves there? - Steerplanet
shorthorn cow + 1 - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Updated Photo from OYE(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/28/2013 1:00:42 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Hiller Show Cattle - Alberta(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/28/2013 1:00:42 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Hiller Show Cattle - Alberta(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/28/2013 1:00:43 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Marc Lehmann - Saskatchewan(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/28/2013 1:00:43 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Marc Lehmann - Saskatchewan(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/28/2013 1:00:44 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Sunday's Best Steer Sale

2013-03-27T12:00:00-05:00

This Saturday in Hearne, Tx...

"Hidden" Parts of Cattle.com

2013-03-27T12:00:00-05:00

These are parts of the site I built for myself that are also publicly available.

m.cattle.com

Gestation table that lists when 283 days ago was and expected due dates for upcoming weeks. Has expected due date of calves bred a week ago for ET purposes.

Weight gain calculator to quickly tell you how much a calf needs to be gaining based on current weight, desired weight, and the target date.

Adjusted weaning weight calculator takes the inputs used to calculate it and throws it out for you.

Synchronization Calculator

www.cattle.com/ai/

Choose from a dozen different synchronization protocols, select a target breeding date, and it will spit out a scheduled for you.

Daily Web Summary 3/26/2013

2013-03-26T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Cattle Apps (iphone, android) - Steerplanet
Corriente - Cattle Today
calving - Steerplanet
Assisting cows at birth - Cattle Today
Genetic mysteries - Cattle Today
Cow Udder Full and Tight - Cattle Today
FSF Stardust-FSF Hardline-any out calves there? - Steerplanet
OCC genetics - Cattle Today
Body Clip or Not? - Steerplanet
bull lease? - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Winter Activities!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/27/2013 12:41:06 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Maternal Perfection(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/26/2013 11:41:36 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Blog Layout(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/26/2013 11:21:12 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

The Neighbor's Bull!(skinner cattle)
submitted 3/26/2013 9:42:45 PM to studs
sired by:

New Videos

Austin Geomap

2013-03-26T12:00:00-05:00

The Texas major show season ended last week with Austin.

The biggest dots are San Antonio (East Central FFA 3 + O’Connor FFA 1) and Midlothian with 4 steers.

On a side note, not that there's anything inherently wrong with the other shows but Austin has the most common sense breed format of all of the Texas majors.

They have a British class but take the Shorthorns and put them in their own breed because they don’t really belong in a British class and they don’t really belong in an exotic class either. To follow Mark Hoge's football analogy in Houston, they're sort of the tight end of steer breeds.

Unlike Fort Worth, who oddly treats Red Angus completely differently than the rest of the British breeds even though the Red Angus association is in their backyard, they throw Red Angus in with the British cattle.

They give Brahman cross steers their own breed because while the F1 Brahman cross is the backbone of commercial cattle production down here, they really don’t fit with the ABCs. Hopefully, the fact that they missed the 15 steer mark because a small handful of steers decided to stay home and mope doesn't come back and bite everyone that raises and shows Brahman steers next year.

They split the clubby calves up by color instead of making everyone decide whether they want to pretend their Charolais cross is a Limousin, Simmental, or Maine-Anjou. As far as I remember, splitting between black and all other colored AOBs was done long before the color bias of slick cattle was known but it actually makes a ton of sense within that context.

Oh...

And the Austin grand champion's money steer ratios were 0.993 for length/height and 0.585 for depth.

Daily Web Summary 3/25/2013

2013-03-25T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Irish Blacks - Cattle Today
Twin Bull Calves - Steerplanet
Suggestions on what kind of bull I should use? - Cattle Today
New Angus Ads (no need for crossbreeding) - Steerplanet
Genetic mysteries - Cattle Today
opinions on easy calving bulls - Steerplanet
Shorthorn Bull Calf - Steerplanet
What kind of Bulls will give me waht I am looking for? - Cattle Today
Vet supplies? - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Twitter(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/25/2013 11:40:40 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Jeff Williams – Nebraska(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/25/2013 9:40:03 PM to winners
sired by:

From Ron Kreis - Ohio(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/25/2013 9:20:27 PM to blogs
sired by:

From Zack Eagle - Oklahoma(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/25/2013 9:20:27 PM to blogs
sired by:

Messenger females produce too!(frye cattle)
submitted 3/25/2013 9:01:59 PM to blogs
sired by:

New Videos

Trausch Farms New 2013 Sires

2013-03-25T12:00:00-05:00

Weekend Sale Report

2013-03-25T12:00:00-05:00

Quality "name brand" American steers are really expensive.

I mean really, really expensive.

Daily Web Summary 3/24/2013

2013-03-24T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

A Country founded by geniuses but run by idiots!! N/C - Steerplanet
calve won't suck! - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Bigfoot - Cattle Today
Good Day for a Nap... - Cattle Today
opinions on easy calving bulls - Steerplanet
Anyone let a Bottle Baby run in a pasture? - Cattle Today
What kind of momma's are the Bojo's making? - Steerplanet
What kind of Bulls will give me waht I am looking for? - Cattle Today
opinions on shorthorn cross steer - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

From Andrew Lange – Indiana(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/24/2013 10:00:05 PM to blogs
sired by:

BIM Grand Champion Picture(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/24/2013 9:42:00 PM to winners
sired by: Believe in Me

NCAA Brackets – top Scores As Of 9:30 Sunday Night(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/24/2013 9:40:02 PM to blogs
sired by:

Selling April 1st!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/24/2013 9:00:32 PM to for sale
sired by:

Selling April 1st!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/24/2013 9:00:33 PM to for sale
sired by:

New Videos

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 3/18/2013

2013-03-24T01:30:02-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$21,750 - Bull sired by Carpe Diem
Tree Lane Online Fall Born Sale 2013 #20
$18,500 - Heifer sired by Monopoly
Lackey Livestock Online Steer Sale 2013 #1
$18,000 - Bred Heifer sired by SVF Steel Force S701
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #56
$17,551 - Steer sired by Torque
Floyd Cattle Co Online Sale 2013 #1
$16,500 - Steer sired by Salty Dog
Casey Horn Diva Cattle/Heldermon Boys Show Cattle Online Steer 2013 #1
$15,000 - Steer sired by Monopoly
Casey Horn Diva Cattle/Heldermon Boys Show Cattle Online Steer 2013 #20
$13,000 - Bred Heifer sired by WAGR Driver 706T
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #57
$11,500 - Heifer sired by Monopoly
Floyd Cattle Co Online Sale 2013 #11
$11,500 - Steer sired by Walks Alone
Cactus Rose Show Cattle Online Steer 2013 #1
$11,500 - Steer sired by Monopoly
Casey Horn Diva Cattle/Heldermon Boys Show Cattle Online Steer 2013 #2

Daily Web Summary 3/23/2013

2013-03-23T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Best Steer Ever - Steerplanet
Chopper - Steerplanet
Very bad day - Cattle Today
Hard pull - Steerplanet
What Do People Of Colorado Think Of This? - Steerplanet
Beginning operation in TX help? - Cattle Today
Good Day for a Nap... - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Mexican Vultures - Cattle Today
Cedar Fiber - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Updated pic Walks Alone res Grand OYE(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/23/2013 9:21:04 PM to winners
sired by: Walks Alone

Grand Steer Bloomington, Indiana – Sired By Monopoly(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/23/2013 9:00:04 PM to winners
sired by: Monopoly

ISU Block & Bridle: TOP 5 MARKET ANIMALS(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/23/2013 8:20:57 PM to winners
sired by:

Daily Web Summary 3/22/2013

2013-03-22T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Double Muscled - Cattle Today
A Country founded by geniuses but run by idiots!! N/C - Steerplanet
Feeding small springer heifers - Cattle Today
What Do People Of Colorado Think Of This? - Steerplanet
Anyone got experience of a cow that knocks down fence posts? - Cattle Today
Calving Trouble - Steerplanet
Will this work? - Cattle Today
Does anyone see Gert here? - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
show stock planet - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Jenna Brower – Facebook(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/22/2013 10:40:02 PM to blogs
sired by:

Lutrick & Coover Online Sale(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/22/2013 9:00:03 PM to For Sale
sired by:

Lutrick Online Sale(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/22/2013 8:41:27 PM to For Sale
sired by:

The "Money Steer" Ratios of the OYE Grand

2013-03-22T12:00:00-05:00

I said haired winners tend to be around that .95 and .60 mark and...

Length/Height - .955

Depth - .610

It works. It doesn't teach you anything, but it does work.

The are 7,461 domains listed on Sedo RIGHT NOW

2013-03-22T12:00:00-05:00

...that have the world "planet" in them.

Daily Web Summary 3/21/2013

2013-03-21T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Anniversary of Red's passing - Steerplanet
What Do People Of Colorado Think Of This? - Steerplanet
Black Hereford Stock Update - Cattle Today
Deer and electric fence - Cattle Today
Dumb and dead - Cattle Today
Will this work? - Cattle Today
A Country founded by geniuses but run by idiots!! N/C - Steerplanet
OCC Unmistakable 946U - Cattle Today
Best Bull for SE Texas? - Cattle Today
I am looking for a calving ease bull to add frame - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Stetson Copus – Facebook(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/21/2013 10:40:02 PM to winners
sired by:

OYE Market Steer Show(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/21/2013 9:20:20 PM to winners
sired by:

Walks Alone Reserve Grand OYE(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/21/2013 9:01:04 PM to winners
sired by: Walks Alone

Man Among Boys calf(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/21/2013 8:41:25 PM to blogs
sired by:

Glen(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/21/2013 8:40:03 PM to blogs
sired by:

New Videos

Money Steer Analysis of Houston Grand Steer

2013-03-21T12:00:00-05:00

That’s what I’m calling that little set of ratios I came up with a few months ago.

Don’t remember? It uses a profile picture to generate a balance score for a show calf. It calculated the ratio from the top of shoulder where the neck comes out to the spot right underneath the tail (the anus) divided by the top of shoulder down to the bottom of the hoof. Basically, it’s length divided by height.

Virtually all slick shear grand champions fall into the 0.98-1.02 range for that and then cluster around 0.55 for the ratio of heart girth to height. Haired show grands tend to be shorter bodied (0.95) and deeper (0.60).

So how did this year’s Houston grand score?

0.985 for length/height

0.561 for depth/height.

Right on target. Do you think it's a waste of time and all steers will fall around that mark? Not even remotely the case.

But more importantly, how did he score as a prospect? Using the pictures from Stetson Copus on Matt Lautner’s blog, his ratios as a prospect were…

0.990 for length/height

0.557 for depth/height

Using my ‘prospect score’ algorithm on that younger picture, he rated out at a whopping 97.4 as a slick shear prospect (95.0 is about as high as it gets in the top end sales) and 94.7 as a haired.

For clarity's sake, I don't run those numbers to judge the steers that win, I'm doing it to judge the "money steer" system itself. It’s obviously not a surefire way to judge a calf, just a quickie little method I worked up that the more I use it, the more I think it works.

Daily Web Summary 3/20/2013

2013-03-20T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Run of heifer calfs - Cattle Today
Dumb and dead - Cattle Today
Man Amoung Boys vs. 2 Tone - Steerplanet
Walks Alone vs. BIM - Steerplanet
what are we going to breed all these I-80 heifers to? - Steerplanet
Best Carrier Bull - Steerplanet
My Lim-Flex Girls - Cattle Today
AI calving dates [variation] - Steerplanet
hereford bull calf *picture is up* - Steerplanet
fort dodge show weather - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Carpe Diem - High Seller!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/20/2013 8:20:20 PM to blogs
sired by:

From Justin Blumer – Minnesota(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/20/2013 8:00:04 PM to winners
sired by:

From John Maples – Alabama(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/20/2013 8:00:04 PM to for sale
sired by:

Updated Picture – March Madness – Albert Lea, Minnesota(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/20/2013 7:20:02 PM to winners
sired by:

New Videos

NOT cool YMCA soccer

2013-03-20T07:33:01-05:00

T cool YMCA soccer.

Posted via Twitter for Android

Top 4-H & FFA Clubs in Houston by Branded Steers

2013-03-20T12:00:00-05:00

Which 4-H clubs and FFA chapters branded the most steers in Houston?

1. Brazos County 4-H - 9
2. Kendall County 4-H - 7
3. Marion FFA - 6
Randall County 4-H
Midlothian FFA
5. Ellis County 4-H - 5
Lynn County 4-H
Wilson County 4-H
9. Channelview FFA - 4
Franklin FFA
Hamlin FFA
Hays County 4-H
Hill County 4-H
Midland County 4-H
Nolan County 4-H
San Patricio County 4-H
Scurry County 4-H
Tahoka FFA

Daily Web Summary 3/19/2013

2013-03-19T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Dumb and dead - Cattle Today
Sullivan vs. Weaver fitting products - Steerplanet
Small Group of Steers - Cattle Today
Doing a school project, need ideas and data concerning cattle - Steerplanet
WW Beefmaster Squeeze - Cattle Today
Hereford Cross Heifer - Steerplanet
Thought this was cute - Steerplanet
A couple bull pics - Cattle Today
Sell him as a show steer, or keep him a bull? - Steerplanet
help please with steer. - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

From Steve White – Ohio(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/19/2013 9:20:02 PM to for sale
sired by:

Facebook – Stetson Copus(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/19/2013 8:20:04 PM to winners
sired by:

From Josh Kastel – Michigan(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/19/2013 8:20:04 PM to blogs
sired by:

From Travis Pembrook - Oklahoma(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/19/2013 7:20:20 PM to for sale
sired by:

From Five Bar J Ranch (Justin Jones) - Colorado(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/19/2013 7:20:20 PM to blogs
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/18/2013

2013-03-18T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Dumb and dead - Cattle Today
Houston livestock show - Steerplanet
Steer not eating any grain..ANY TRICKS? - Steerplanet
Going for black baldy market - Cattle Today
Opinions on this heifer. - Steerplanet
NCAA tournament challenge - Steerplanet
Hereford Cross Heifer - Steerplanet
AWOL FULLBLOOD MAINE BULLS - Steerplanet
Calves won't nurse - Cattle Today
17 Month Angus Bull - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Order Today!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/18/2013 8:20:27 PM to blogs
sired by:

Ohio Beef Expo Recap Video(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/18/2013 8:20:01 PM to blogs
sired by:

Order Today!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/18/2013 8:00:32 PM to blogs
sired by:

Happy Birthday Chuck!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/18/2013 7:40:38 PM to blogs
sired by:

Updated Photo - Ohio Beef Expo(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/18/2013 7:40:27 PM to winners
sired by:

New Videos

Houston Branded Steer Geomap

2013-03-18T12:00:00-05:00

The largest dots are College Station and Boerne with 7 branded steers followed by Franklin and Seguin with 6.

Ft Worth turned out to be the only one of these maps that had that level of concentration it did with the I-27 corridor.

In an effort to ride this little geomap pony into the ground, I’m going to run a bunch of breed based maps for all of the Texas majors later this month.

Daily Web Summary 3/17/2013

2013-03-17T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Breeding .?? - Steerplanet
Best Carrier Bull - Steerplanet
Clearing brushy areas--need herbicide recommendations - Cattle Today
New Bull - Cattle Today
Land Issue - Steerplanet
What do ya'll think of this exciting bull calf? - Steerplanet
Best bull new or old to add color - Steerplanet
Hereford bull - Cattle Today
Some good cow.... - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

MITTAG DESIGN - LATEST WORK(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/16/2013 4:01:36 PM to blogs
sired by:

CHANCE TO WIN A FREE HAT(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/17/2013 9:41:11 PM to blogs
sired by:

Ohio Beef Expo Recap Video(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/17/2013 9:40:03 PM to blogs
sired by:

Ohio Beef Expo(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/17/2013 8:00:31 PM to winners
sired by:

Ohio Beef Expo - Grand Prize Draw(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/17/2013 8:00:24 PM to winners
sired by:

New Videos

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 3/11/2013

2013-03-17T01:30:03-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$33,000 - Heifer sired by CF Solution
Cates Farms Modoc Madness Online Auction 2013 #7
$24,500 - Steer sired by Milk Man
Grand Drive Online Steer Sale 2013 #1
$22,500 - Heifer sired by SULL GNCC Eldorado
Cates Farms Modoc Madness Online Auction 2013 #6
$22,000 - Steer sired by Choppin Wood
Grand Drive Online Steer Sale 2013 #3
$18,000 - Bred Heifer sired by SVF Steel Force S701
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #56
$16,000 - Steer sired by Made Right
Grand Drive Online Steer Sale 2013 #5
$13,000 - Bred Heifer sired by WAGR Driver 706T
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #57
$10,500 - Bull sired by Welshs Dew It Right
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #14
$10,000 - Steer sired by Eye Candy
Schenk and Trausch Farms Vol 4 Online Sale 2013 #1
$9,500 - Bull sired by SVF/NJC Built Right N48
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #35

Daily Web Summary 3/16/2013

2013-03-16T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

checking livestock - Cattle Today
Best Carrier Bull - Steerplanet
Cow losing weight - Cattle Today
Kinda politacal - Steerplanet
AWOL FULLBLOOD MAINE BULLS - Steerplanet
AI Question - Cattle Today
Powerflex Fiberglass Post - Cattle Today
Craigslist bull - Cattle Today
Calf ate a plastic bag. Concern? - Cattle Today
Laurners new bulls - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

MITTAG DESIGN - LATEST WORK(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/16/2013 4:01:36 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

MITTAG DESIGN - LATEST WORK(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/16/2013 4:01:37 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

MITTAG DESIGN - LATEST WORK(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/16/2013 4:01:38 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/15/2013

2013-03-15T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Fullblood Maines- pictures - Steerplanet
A&T Renegades first calves! - Steerplanet
Kinda politacal - Steerplanet
What do you think of my claves? and Does SULL Fed Ex throw good calves? - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
MONOPOLY 2 baby calves - Steerplanet
Sugar Ray - Steerplanet
Need help with heifer breeding decision - Steerplanet
Hc touchdown - Steerplanet
Thriller - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

RHD Inspiration(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/14/2013 11:00:31 PM to blogs
sired by:

Aron(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/15/2013 11:00:04 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Maternal Perfection embryos sell for $2500!(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/15/2013 10:21:05 PM to blogs
sired by:

Houston Livestock Show – From Brian Martin(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/15/2013 9:00:06 PM to winners
sired by:

New Videos

Thursday Houston Thoughts

2013-03-15T12:00:00-05:00

Hoge is doing an excellent job in Houston, just not much else to say about it. Unless you’re an absolute zealot for one particular trait, be that on the soundness side or the power side, it would be hard to disagree with what he’s been picking. He’s taking as complete a steer as he can find to win and then playing give and take without being overly discriminatory regarding any particular trait.

He’s also been flat out outstanding on the mic.

Forgive Mark Johnson

He knows what he did. Let’s admit the obvious, he wasn’t the only guy that was too quick in evaluating calves lately. He just went way overboard with it and the stage he was on created a tidal wave of anger.

The long term result of Ft Worth is that every judge to enter the ring from now on is going to know what they’re there for and what’s expected of them.

One of My Favorite Major Show Games

…is “will they acknowledge I exist.” It’s no surprise that the mixture of the tone of this blog and the amount of large egos in this little niche don’t mix well but sometimes I’m not even aware of it when I tick somebody off.

Bus Drivers

The only negative experience I had at Houston was catching a shuttle bus out to the park and ride to meet my wife. I got on the bus and needed to know how long a trip it was so I could let her know when to pick me up.

I asked the driver how long the trip would be. She had the radio pretty loud and evidently didn’t hear me. I said “excuse me” in an effort to get her attention. She still didn’t respond so I spoke louder, “EXCUSE ME, about how long is this trip?”

She went off on me with a full waving finger snap for yelling at her.

After her rant about how she “done have to take dis disrespec” I said “mam, I wasn’t trying to be ru…”. She cut me off and tore into me for calling her “mam” because it’s evidently a racist term. She said she didn’t have to talk to me if she doesn’t want to and that was that. It was an awkward bus ride being the only passenger.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the city of Houston.

In a passive aggressive move I’m quite proud of I tipped her $10 and said “MAM, it sure looks like you’re having a bad day, hope this helps a bit, nobody was trying to ‘disrespec’ you”

The Reason I Was So Pissed

We’ve had steers class out, we’re not rubes, it’s part of the game. The reason I was so pissed Tuesday was we worked seven years to get a calf that could play with the best Brahman cross steers in the state and you know what…

The Champion Brahman Steer

The champion Brahman steer was a calf that just wasn’t going to get beat by anything else in that barn under a Midwestern judge. He was so unique in his design and build that you just weren’t going to beat him unless you had some Brahman aficionado that likes a more traditional build and even then it would be almost impossible to get by the design. He had the thing won about two seconds after Hoge put eyes on him and rightfully so.

It wasn’t an accident either. He was bred by a family that it would be hard to argue are not the top of the Brahman steer breeders in the state right now, the Naeglins (who also bred the reserve champ and ironically, had their kid's Brahman steer class out). He was sold by and fed a few miles from Lucherk who is as good at the American game as it gets.

That calf has won almost every time he’s been in the ring and took grand overall against even the exotics at a couple solid prospect shows.

I say almost every time because he was beaten head to head in the ring once, just once.

By our calf.

The one that classed out.

That’s not saying we would have beaten them, we wouldn’t. We didn’t have the power to take the reserve steer either. For all I know we could have been two spots out of the sale in the Brahman steers the same way the calf I’m whining about ended up two holes out in class 3 of the ABCs. But I highly doubt it.

What I was pissed about was the effort and work to produce one of those finally paid off and we had a calf that could play with the big boys and we didn’t get to do it.

It was a reminder I'm taking this stuff too seriously and need to chill the heck out before my ego gets so big that I won't even acknowledge that I exist in my favorite little game.

Daily Web Summary 3/14/2013

2013-03-14T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Shrink question? - Cattle Today
Big Calves - Steerplanet
Kinda politacal - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Finally Got Some Pictures(Lots) - Cattle Today
White Jazz - Steerplanet
Name suggestions wanted- Walks Alone X Galloway - Steerplanet
Rolling the dice with TH, PHA - Steerplanet
Sugar Ray - Steerplanet
"Brainer"? - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

RHD Inspiration(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/14/2013 11:00:31 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Chase Miller - Alberta(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/14/2013 11:00:31 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Trae Simmons - South Dakota(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/14/2013 11:00:31 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Trae Simmons - South Dakota(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/14/2013 11:00:32 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Wheatland Cattle Co. - Saskatchewan(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/14/2013 11:00:32 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Just a Note on Houston

2013-03-14T12:00:00-05:00

Houston is as solid a stock show as you are going to find in the nation. Nobody outside Texas has anywhere near as many entries. Even in Texas, just the gap between Houston and the next two is bigger than just about any other steer show around.

Even with the huge scale of it they manage it like a well oiled machine. From the modern facilities, the excellent ventilation we as spectators take for granted, to the way they take care of the kids while they’re there they leave no stone unturned in trying to make sure it’s a great experience for all involved.

Their lower placing steer payments only seem low because they place such a huge number of steers. Once you throw in the $1,500+ bonuses they give, they’re right there with anybody and far ahead of anything outside of Texas.

It would be nice if they included archival of their classes but the broadcast they are doing in house this year is a high quality broadcast with cameramen that are following the action closely and keeping the shots relevant.

On the judging, Mark Hoge is being thoughtful, patient, and deliberate in his selection of calves. In the first breed he mentioned several times that he realizes the work that goes into the animals and he’s going to give them the time they deserve. Nobody is going to question his dedication to making sure he gives every kid a fair shot.

You midwestern boys need to go watch the show. It will be worth the trip.

I'm saying all of this because I want to make sure those that read my griping about some classifiers throwing a bunch of our work in the trash know I wasn’t trying to condemn anything outside the three guys with those chips and their misguided and erroneous interpretation of the classification guidelines.

Daily Web Summary 3/13/2013

2013-03-13T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

AI Sires- Dial up BEWARE a BUNCH of pictures - Steerplanet
Breeding decisions finished (please comment) - Steerplanet
Classifying Angus at Fort Worth Stock Show - Steerplanet
I-80 calf pictures, please. - Steerplanet
Genetic inheritance or super freakish coincidence? - Cattle Today
Best bull new or old to add color - Steerplanet
Pathfinders - Cattle Today
Solar or battery hook up fence energizers? - Cattle Today
Jesse James & I80 bulls - Steerplanet
Opinions on some PB Simmi Bulls - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Another champion moment from Heat Wave(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/13/2013 9:40:01 PM to Uncategorized
sired by: Heat Wave

From Mark Williams – Nebraska(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/13/2013 9:40:01 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Dave Gropper(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/13/2013 8:41:20 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Chase Miller - Alberta(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/13/2013 8:40:39 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Stan Soehnlen – Ohio(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/13/2013 8:00:04 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

MLC - Breeder of the Year Video

2013-03-13T12:00:00-05:00

Livestockjudging.com Power Rankings

2013-03-13T12:00:00-05:00

As if I haven't done enough to get on the bad side of big time judging coaches lately, here's the first update of the power rankings since the National Western.

Now with results from…

NCBA
Iowa Beef Expo
Dixie National
Fort Worth
San Antonio
Houston

It currently takes a team’s top three finishes of the year into account.

Rank	Team	Rating
1	Texas Tech University	1.555
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 National Western
2	Oklahoma State University	1.539
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 Dixie National
3	Texas A&M University	1.534
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 Fort Worth
4	Kansas Sate University	1.526
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2012 Griswold Cattle Company
5	University of Arkansas	1.499
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 Arizona National
6	Colorado State University	1.481
	Top Finish: 3rd @ 2013 Fort Worth
7	University of Illinois	1.478
	Top Finish: 2nd @ 2013 Iowa Beef Expo
8	University of Nebraska	1.455
	Top Finish: 5th @ 2013 National Western
9	Iowa State University	1.444
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 Iowa Beef Expo
10	West Texas A&M University	1.440
	Top Finish: 4th @ 2012 Griswold Cattle Company

Full Ranking Here

Tech has separated themselves with wins at the two biggest contests of the year, including a quite dominant performance at Houston. There's a bit of cause vs effect going on but the rankings actually follow the Houston results pretty closely.

Houston Champion Details List

2013-03-13T12:00:00-05:00

I’m going to try to put the details of all of the Houston breed champions in one spot this year.

This has been one of the most suggested things to post over the past few years and we’re going to make a run at doing it this year. I have no idea how well it will work but we’re going to make a solid run at it.

If you know the story on a calf, send it to jeff@cattle.com or text it to 210.380.7459 and we’ll get it posted here ASAP, probably each night. It's free advertising and a link.

Breed	Shown By	Breeder	Sold By	Sire
Limousin
Chianina
Maine-Anjou
Angus
Red Angus
Shorthorn
Charolais
Simmental
Brangus
Santa Gertrudis
Brahman
Simbrah
ABC
AOB
Hereford
Polled Hereford

Daily Web Summary 3/12/2013

2013-03-12T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Flushing ? - Steerplanet
Thoughts on this new clubby bull.... - Steerplanet
Best bull new or old to add color - Steerplanet
Weighing a newborn calf - Cattle Today
Jesse James & I80 bulls - Steerplanet
Solar or battery hook up fence energizers? - Cattle Today
What's with all the calving issues this season? - Cattle Today
I-80 calf pictures, please. - Steerplanet
What do you think of our Eye Candy steer? - Steerplanet
Trump Three - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Grand Drive Online Steer Sale - Choppin Wood Steer - Carr Cattle(lautner farms)
submitted 3/12/2013 12:41:14 PM to for sale
sired by:

Schenk/Trausch Farms Round 3 Sale Photos!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/12/2013 11:00:26 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

I told you I'd calm down

2013-03-12T12:00:00-05:00

Sorry for the nastiness earlier today.

That post has been toned down significantly.

Classification Whining

2013-03-12T12:00:00-05:00

Edit: All nastiness removed.

This is what is called a Brahman bull…

That particular bull is one we bought from a VERY prominent Brahman ranch that I really don’t want to drag into this petty bickering. We like his calves an awful lot. He puts pretty fronts on them and makes sure to pass on gigantic ears so you don't get classed out by somebody who doesn't know how to class Brahman steers.

Before we move on, notice the insanely large hump. Think about what you'd expect that hump to look like when crossed with an exotic cow.

This is that particular Brahman bull breeding a cow…

Ironically enough, that’s the actual mating I'm talking about today. That’s the cow and that’s the bull breeding her naturally (I take pictures of weird things sometimes) back in December for a flush of full siblings to this calf…

That’s a straight bred, no ABC foolishness, true F1 Brahman cross steer.

Nobody trying to pull anything, just a Brahman bull on an exotic cow to produce a Brahman cross steer.

You guys classed him out and you were wrong to do so.

No, don't go to your classification guidelines for a crutch or make excuses, you were just plain old wrong. Anybody that knows Brahman steers and has seen that calf in person knows he's a Brahman steer in a second flat.

Whatever criteria you used to decide that calf is not a Brahman cross calf is flawed. It's not the calf's fault, he's a legit half blood. It's not the families fault, the steer has classed 5 out of 5 times at prospect, county, and major shows before today, they were showing him where he belonged. It's your fault for misinterpreting the guidelines or taking a classification assignment you weren't qualified for.

This isn't an Angus or Red Angus crap shoot. It's not hard to spot a Brahman cross steer based on just that color pattern and ear size.

You screwed up and we're paying for it.

[The comments might look a bit off base because this post was a lot meaner and frankly pettier earlier today]

The show calf bubble hasn't bust yet

2013-03-12T12:00:00-05:00

Through March 12th, the average price of show steers sold online this spring is up 9.6% over the same period last year (391 vs 419 steers counted).

The median price is also up $250 to $2,750.

Daily Web Summary 3/11/2013

2013-03-11T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Fullblood Gelbvieh - Cattle Today
Charolais heifer- is she worth hauling around? - Steerplanet
Western High Altitude Cattle to Kentucky - Cattle Today
Farm Dog ? - Cattle Today
Make a living off Cows - Cattle Today
Breeding suggestions on my Pb Shorthorn cow - Steerplanet
equipment purchases - Cattle Today
Time for bull to breed heifers - Cattle Today
Agressive bull - Cattle Today
Trump Three - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Baldy BIM Champ(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/10/2013 12:01:14 AM to winners
sired by: Believe in Me

From Dusty Rich – Nebraska(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/11/2013 8:40:02 PM to winners
sired by:

Bodacious & Big Foot – Kastel Show Cattle(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/11/2013 8:00:07 PM to blogs
sired by:

From Nick Schroeder - Ohio(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/11/2013 7:40:34 PM to blogs
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/10/2013

2013-03-10T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Heatwave 5 Heifer - Steerplanet
Best Prospect - Club Calf Bull - Steerplanet
Talladega - Steerplanet
Genotype and Phenotype - Cattle Today
ideal cow - Steerplanet
Best profit - Cattle Today
Barn 3/9 - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
A Hereford to look at? - Cattle Today
$600,000 world record Hereford - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Baldy BIM Champ(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/10/2013 12:01:14 AM to winners
sired by: Believe in Me

Selling March 12th - Breedersworld(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/10/2013 10:20:20 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Sneak a Peek Champ Pictures(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/10/2013 10:01:07 PM to winners
sired by:

Selling March 17th - Breedersworld(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/10/2013 10:00:25 PM to for sale
sired by:

New Videos

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 3/4/2013

2013-03-10T01:30:04-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$30,000 - Steer sired by Yellow Jacket
Drager and Carr Online Steer Sale 2013 #1
$20,500 - Heifer sired by Cerveza
Doris Show Cattle Online Sale 2013 #5
$18,000 - Bred Heifer sired by SVF Steel Force S701
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #56
$17,000 - Heifer sired by Monopoly
Doris Show Cattle Online Sale 2013 #2
$15,000 - Steer sired by Jakes Proud Jazz
Drager and Carr Online Steer Sale 2013 #3
$15,000 - Steer sired by Solid Gold
Drager and Carr Online Steer Sale 2013 #4
$13,000 - Bred Heifer sired by WAGR Driver 706T
Simmental Sale Nebraska Cattlemen's Classic 2013 #57
$12,000 - Steer sired by Walks Alone
Doris Show Cattle Online Sale 2013 #1
$11,500 - Heifer sired by Mr NLC Upgrade
Doris Show Cattle Online Sale 2013 #7
$11,000 - Steer sired by Heat Wave
Choate and Langford Back Home in Texas Online Sale 2013 #5

Daily Web Summary 3/9/2013

2013-03-09T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Shootings!!! N/C - Steerplanet
Wanting Red Angus maternal bulls - Steerplanet
Calf down in the chute - Cattle Today
Burning Bulls for the Sale on Saturday - Cattle Today
My bull is da man! - Cattle Today
Salty Dog Heifer - Steerplanet
Barn 3/9 - Cattle Today
please help us in the survey of our course project - Cattle Today
Werewolf, Searsboro, and Young Money calves - Steerplanet
Help! Cow Down - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Baldy BIM Champ(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/10/2013 12:01:14 AM to Uncategorized
sired by: Believe in Me

From David Parks - Ohio Maine Anjou Sale(lautner farms)
submitted 3/9/2013 10:41:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From David Parks - Ohio Beef Expo Chi Sale(lautner farms)
submitted 3/9/2013 10:41:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Ridin in style(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/9/2013 10:40:31 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Kastel Show Cattle - Bodacious Heifer(lautner farms)
submitted 3/9/2013 10:01:04 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Daily Web Summary 3/8/2013

2013-03-08T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Sick of Barbed Wird - Cattle Today
contracted tendons? - Cattle Today
Brahmas? - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
ideal cow - Steerplanet
Would you use a bull this colour??? - Steerplanet
Interesting - Cattle Today
$600,000 world record Hereford - Steerplanet
Lumpy skin disease - Cattle Today
Burning Bulls for the Sale on Saturday - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

SOLD!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/9/2013 12:40:41 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Foster Brothers - Texas(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/9/2013 12:40:29 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Call today!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/9/2013 12:40:29 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/7/2013

2013-03-07T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Pricing heifers straight off the farm? - Cattle Today
Electric fence options/alternatives - Cattle Today
Maine bull on first calf heifer... - Steerplanet
PTO Shafts - Cattle Today
Brangus bull - Cattle Today
Lumpy skin disease - Cattle Today
pasture disappearing? Dry lot? - Cattle Today
Saw this today.. ONE heifer? - Cattle Today
Simmental Bull/Eli - Cattle Today
Pull behind spreader? - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

From Dennis Serhienko - Saskatchewan(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/7/2013 11:20:24 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Congrats!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/7/2013 11:20:24 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Austin Gibson – Oklahoma(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/7/2013 10:20:03 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Walks Alone winning big and selling High!!(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/7/2013 9:41:18 PM to Uncategorized
sired by: Walks Alone

Riemann Ranch and Chad Thompson Show Steers buy 1000 units of Man Among Boys!!!!(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/7/2013 8:21:01 PM to blogs
sired by:

New Videos

Bid Off Drink Supply Strategy

2013-03-07T12:00:00-05:00

We had a small bid off this past weekend and it went surprisingly well. I didn’t market it outside of a brief mention in a post here, it was all word of mouth. As far as I know, all of the calves we sold ended up in the hands of good feeders and we’re happy with what we got for them.

We were sort of encouraged to do a bid off this year, perhaps a bit early. Frankly, our approach was that if the sale was a flop we’d at least make sure everyone has a good time. There were good ribs, sausage, beans, rice, and deserts in excess. We at least attempted to keep it as laid back as we could with the understanding that about 40 people had to sit and watch us try to connect via phone to bidders.

Enough with the background you don't care about, here’s a detailed list of priority (based on research conducted entirely in one sale) when buying beer and soda for an in person bid off.

1 - Coors Light

2 - Lone Star – Probably due to our clientele

3 - Miller Lite

5 - Water

6 - Dr Pepper

7 - Coke

8 - Bud Light – Doesn’t really get touched until everything else is gone

9 - Corona – Not really sure what I was thinking. I actually like the stuff every now and then.

10 - Diet Coke – Anybody want 22?

Daily Web Summary 3/6/2013

2013-03-06T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

FSA Loan Program Tips? - Cattle Today
Talladega - Steerplanet
Bojo News - Steerplanet
Black Hereford Stock Update - Cattle Today
Brangus bull - Cattle Today
Rodgers Bull Sale - Steerplanet
Hey color experts!! - Steerplanet
what to use to add frame?? - Steerplanet
Could I be on to something? - Cattle Today
Brahmas? - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Introducing.... PREMONITION(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/7/2013 12:40:33 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Introducing....MOB BOSS(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/7/2013 12:20:25 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Eye Candy steer - WOW!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/7/2013 12:20:26 AM to Uncategorized
sired by: Eye Candy

From Seth Shaver - Kansas(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/7/2013 12:20:26 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New In 2013 – Call To Order(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/7/2013 12:00:08 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Dutch Cows

2013-03-06T12:00:00-05:00

Going outside for the first time in the spring...

Promise

2013-03-06T12:00:00-05:00

...I'll start writing again tomorrow.

Daily Web Summary 3/5/2013

2013-03-05T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Brangus bull - Cattle Today
Best smoke bull??? - Steerplanet
sire verification - Steerplanet
STEER PLANET STATISTICS - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Feed company called me - Cattle Today
Not all junk on craigslist.... - Cattle Today
Got my bull - Cattle Today
bottle feeding newborn question - Cattle Today
Anyone noticing breeding/calving changes from the drought? - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

2 New Sires for 2013(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/4/2013 6:00:54 PM to studs
sired by:

Jesse James – #1 Proven Calving Ease Option For 1st Calf Heifers!(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/5/2013 11:40:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Jesse James – #1 Proven Calving Ease Option For 1st Calf Heifers!(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/5/2013 11:00:03 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

First Class Bull Sale March 11th(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/5/2013 11:00:58 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/4/2013

2013-03-04T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

American Black Hereford Association - Cattle Today
New Blog: A Steak in Genomics - Steerplanet
Black Hereford Stock Update - Cattle Today
HELP NAMING THIS HEIFER!!! - Steerplanet
Barn 3/2 - Cattle Today
Fire Water??? - Steerplanet
Calving 2013 - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
November steer calf - Steerplanet
Bummed out a bit - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

2 New Sires for 2013(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/4/2013 6:00:54 PM to studs
sired by:

BIM from Tyler McVay(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/4/2013 11:41:13 PM to Uncategorized
sired by: Believe in Me

First Class Bull Sale(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/4/2013 10:41:19 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Daily Web Summary 3/3/2013

2013-03-03T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Unstoppable - Steerplanet
Death toll rising - Cattle Today
Barn 3/2 - Cattle Today
LOOSING HAIR!! - Steerplanet
Am I lacking anything supplement wise for heifers? - Cattle Today
Bought 3 heifers today - Cattle Today
$340,000 1/3 Semen Interest - Steerplanet
[Pics]Some limo/limflex bulls - Cattle Today
Angus on Devon - Cattle Today
Wagyu and wagyu crosses... - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Must Use Calving Ease Sire of 2013(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/2/2013 11:20:59 AM to studs
sired by:

First Class Bull Sale Now Posted(rodgers cattle)
submitted 3/4/2013 12:21:08 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Eric McCrea @ KY Beef Expo(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/3/2013 9:20:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Becky Talley – Virginia(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/3/2013 8:40:03 PM to blogs
sired by:

From Kurt Muir - Iowa(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/3/2013 6:40:35 PM to blogs
sired by:

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 2/25/2013

2013-03-03T01:30:03-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$340,000 - Bull sired by EXAR Upshot 562B
Express Ranches Annual Spring Bull Sale 2013 #1
$340,000 - Bull sired by EXAR Upshot 562B
Express Ranches Bull Sale 2013 #1
$45,000 - Cow sired by LAMBERT OF BRINKS 317R3
Ideal Video Production's Customer Appreciation Sale 2013 #7
$38,000 - Bull sired by Ali
Goddard Cattle Company Online Bull Sale 2013 #2
$29,000 - Bred Cow sired by CSONKA OF BRINKS 30R4
Ideal Video Production's Customer Appreciation Sale 2013 #4
$27,000 - Bull sired by DAMERON FIRST IMPRESSION
Express Ranches Bull Sale 2013 #23
$26,000 - Bull sired by Connealy Consensus 7229
Express Ranches Bull Sale 2013 #8
$25,000 - Bull sired by EXAR Upshot 562B
Express Ranches Bull Sale 2013 #2
$25,000 - Bull sired by Connealy Consensus 7229
Express Ranches Bull Sale 2013 #10
$24,000 - Bull sired by Dameron First Class
Express Ranches Bull Sale 2013 #21

Daily Web Summary 3/2/2013

2013-03-02T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Very, Very Old Angus Genetics - Cattle Today
Bottle baby . . . this belongs on the beginner's board - Cattle Today
Am I lacking anything supplement wise for heifers? - Cattle Today
retain placenta - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
How do you ask them? - Cattle Today
AWOL FULLBLOOD MAINE BULLS - Steerplanet
Bull Calf Rectal Prolapse - Steerplanet
BC Lookout - Steerplanet
CATTLE PRICES ON THE DECLINE - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Must Use Calving Ease Sire of 2013(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/2/2013 11:20:59 AM to studs
sired by:

Monopoly X Heatseeker(mittag cattle)
submitted 3/2/2013 10:41:12 AM to blogs
sired by: Monopoly

Eye Candy x Hannibal Steer - Bushman Cattle Co (Utah)(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/2/2013 10:20:19 PM to Uncategorized
sired by: Eye Candy

JD Parker - Instagram(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/2/2013 10:00:31 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Andy Dorn @ Nebraska Big Red Beef Show(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 3/2/2013 9:00:04 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 3/1/2013

2013-03-01T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

It's Not About Winning, It's About Deserving to Win - Steerplanet
Maines & commercial acceptance - Cattle Today
God Made a Stock Show Kid - Steerplanet
Three weeks until steer's final show and starting to lose hair - Steerplanet
What would you do. - Cattle Today
BA X Gert -vs.- BA X Braford - Cattle Today
What's your "don't leave home without it" show box item?? - Steerplanet
I think I'm sold on A.I. - Cattle Today
The kids new nures cow and calves - Cattle Today
$340,000 1/3 Semen Interest - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Master of Puppets heifer for sale!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 3/1/2013 11:00:26 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Selling March 3rd(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/1/2013 11:00:19 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Trausch Farms - Ohio Beef Expo Semen Special!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 3/1/2013 10:00:22 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 2/28/2013

2013-02-28T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Do Cows Like You? - Cattle Today
Pitfalls of seeded bermuda grass - Cattle Today
Vinyl Fence - No? - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
simmi breeders in oklahoma - Steerplanet
How would you handle this? - Cattle Today
Judge Says Not Sound. Help? - Steerplanet
Best angus crosses - Cattle Today
For those that feed round bales in this weather - Steerplanet
Breeding Down Cows - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

From Don Putz(mittag cattle)
submitted 2/28/2013 6:21:00 PM to blogs
sired by:

From Austin Fisk - Alberta(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/28/2013 5:40:31 PM to blogs
sired by:

Sugar Rush - BOOM!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/28/2013 5:20:26 PM to studs
sired by:

Sugar Rush - Impressive Every Day!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 2/28/2013 5:20:16 PM to studs
sired by:

From Chance Lautner at REI(lautner farms)
submitted 2/28/2013 2:21:39 PM to studs
sired by:

New Videos

Sincerest apologies to your bandwidth.

2013-02-28T12:00:00-05:00

Coming to the FW network next spring...

Daily Web Summary 2/27/2013

2013-02-27T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Hybrid Vigor & Brangus cattle - Cattle Today
Proper shelter --- For beginners - Cattle Today
Year round breeding vs. seasonal breeding - Cattle Today
how do you catch and weigh your calves - Cattle Today
Do Cows Like You? - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Best Clean Bull for Steers? - Steerplanet
Pitfalls of seeded bermuda grass - Cattle Today
Opinions - Cattle Today
geting cow to accept new calf - Cattle Today

New Videos

San Antonio Branded Steer GeoMap

2013-02-27T12:00:00-05:00

The biggest dots are for San Antonio (East Central 6 and Clemens 1) and Lampasas with 6 branded steers.

ShowBarns!!!!

2013-02-26T12:00:00-05:00

Tired of your immune system swatting off those old cold and flu bugs like they’re nothing?

Is that $400/month for twins mother’s day out program not bringing home the high powered disease you’re used to?

Try ShowBarns!!!!

We bring cold, flu, and several completely unknown viruses to one location, mix them up, and give them out to you like candy.

Stop wasting time with local cold germs that your body has developed immunity to. Our patent pending system brings you cold germs from 500 miles away that you have absolutely no chance of fending off.

But wait, there’s more…

Our advanced system of delivery doesn’t just stop at the fact that show people like to shake hands. Our floors are covered in recently mixed up dirt that is constantly kept loose. We have a virtual fleet of high school kids that constantly rake and walk cattle over the ground ensuring that the dirt is loose enough to float in air, pick up viruses and make it to your nasal cavities.

But wait, there’s more…

Sure, your friends from out of town may just decide to stay home if they’re sick when they’re supposed to visit you. That’s no problem for us!!!! We’ve developed a system that requires entire families to show up even if they know they are sick. You can rest assured that you will be in close proximity to at least several dozen people that really should have stayed home but had to be there because they are required to be there or there simply isn’t someone to take their place.

But wait, there's more...

You know your body is better at fending off disease when you are healthy and well rested. Our proprietary system of taxing schedules and fried foods ensures that you will be tired from traveling and remain in a highly exhausted state throughout the entire week of germs attempting to invade your body.

Is that it? You know it’s not, there’s more…

Pigs!!!!!

We all know you can stay in the cattle barn for a week and the smell really won’t be that bad. Just walk into the pig barn for five minutes though and that smell will stick to your boots for months.

That’s because of our ground breaking technology that allows the diseases of the medically speaking most human similar animal in the barn to stick to your lungs too. Don’t think that it’s just pigs that are highly prone to catching disease when in congregation. Those diseases are custom made to go after your immune system too.

You hope your KIDS are a strong enough disease delivery system? That’s so ten years ago. Do you still think your Blackberry is cool too?

Stop wasting time hoping you’ll catch Joe’s cold from the office. Don’t worry whether that guy in Sunday school’s cough will defeat your white blood cells.

Come catch ShowBarn Crud Today!!!!

*Mucinex sold separately.

Daily Web Summary 2/25/2013

2013-02-25T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Proper shelter --- For beginners - Cattle Today
If I decide to breed her to a clubby bull, which one ?? UPDATED 02-25-13 - Steerplanet
The saga continues - Cattle Today
How much Angus (pics) - Cattle Today
BEST ROGERS BULLS - Steerplanet
This Calving Season Just Plain Sux.... - Cattle Today
Renting rates - Cattle Today
Char influenced cattle Vs. All black - Cattle Today
Which BULL TO USE?? - Steerplanet
Embryo splitting - Steerplanet

New Videos

This Guy's Opinion of San Antonio

2013-02-25T12:00:00-05:00

You’re not going to hear the overwhelming complaints about San Antonio like you did about Ft Worth because it would be stupid of people to do so. Anybody that tells you they didn’t get at least a few seconds of Greiner's time to evaluate their calf is lying to you.

It’s no secret that Greiner is a guy that likes market ready cattle and he stuck to that type pretty darn well. It is a safe bet that the “would somebody please think of the hypothetical heifer mates” crowd has a few issues with some of the cattle that branded. That being said, put the carcasses that were branded last week up against the carcasses that run of soundness judges (McClintock, Edwards, etc.) put together and it would be no contest.

Personally, we were 4th in lightweight Brahman and 5th in the heavies (they only brand 3) with two steers that, for various reasons, don’t know what Zilmax is. While disappointed for the kids, I’m actually quite okay with that under an end product judge. Ironically, as much as I like to complain about soundness judges in terminal market steer shows, we had soundness and style steers for a judge that wanted market steers.

(None of that was a complaint about anything at all. Some of you are too stupid to safely read this blog.)

To Beat a Dead Horse

Those of you that said Mark Johnson just made a mistake in Ft Worth and that people shouldn’t be as upset about it as they got are just plain old wrong. How much so didn’t really sink in until watching Greiner go through each calf and not even pull them until he handled them. Yes, of course, Greiner’s a pretty big market readiness guy so feeling the calves is pretty important to how he evaluates them.

San Antonio stuck a fork in the already shaky and poorly formed argument that Ft Worth was just something people should accept because we don’t know how good we have it in Texas and don’t want the mid-westerners to think we whine too much.

Don’t move on, fix it.

A Solution to the Ring Rush Problem

The method Greiner used to evaluate cattle started by watching everything walk into the ring without pulling anything. He then walked behind the calves along the fence from the first to enter to the last. When he got to the end of them he felt each one and pulled them, starting with the last cattle to enter. He gave them one more evaluation on the way out.

The (I assume) unintended consequence of pulling from the last in to the first was that there weren’t fights to get into the ring first. The few minor disagreements that did arise were kids trying to get into the ring last. The ring stewards put a stop to it after a while but by the end of the day Wednesday there were little whirlpools of kids trying to move to the back of the line in the makeup pen.

I don’t think it mattered that much; he pulled calves all the way through the lineup. Making sure you were next to a calf that wasn’t freakishly more powerful than you was more important than getting in first or last.

Sale Prices

If you hear about low sale prices, don't forget to add the floor price to it.

Daily Web Summary 2/24/2013

2013-02-24T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

I guess I give people too much credit - Cattle Today
Which BULL TO USE?? - Steerplanet
Year round breeding vs. seasonal breeding - Cattle Today
The saga continues - Cattle Today
Question and opinions wanted - Cattle Today
Holding pen - Cattle Today
Calving Season Starts - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
crazy farming stories - Cattle Today
Purebred? - Cattle Today

New Videos

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 2/18/2013

2013-02-24T01:30:02-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$20,500 - Heifer sired by Bodacious
Club Calves of Spring Round One 2013 #3
$16,750 - Bull sired by Foreman
Bushy Park Farm Online Simmental Influenced Bull Sale 2013 #1
$11,500 - Bull sired by SVF Steel Force S701
Bushy Park Farm Online Simmental Influenced Bull Sale 2013 #7
$10,250 - Bull sired by Who Da Man
Ryan Goehring Show Cattle Iron Man Online Sale 2013 #1
$8,250 - Bull sired by WAGR Dream Catcher
Bushy Park Farm Online Simmental Influenced Bull Sale 2013 #12
$7,750 - Bull sired by Foreman
Bushy Park Farm Online Simmental Influenced Bull Sale 2013 #5
$6,750 - Bull sired by Encore
Bushy Park Farm Online Simmental Influenced Bull Sale 2013 #3
$6,500 - Bred Cow sired by Eye Candy
Ryan Goehring Show Cattle Iron Man Online Sale 2013 #2
$6,500 - Heifer sired by Grizzly
Frasher Family Club Calves Online Sale 2013 #17
$6,250 - Bull sired by SVF Steel Force S701
Bushy Park Farm Online Simmental Influenced Bull Sale 2013 #10

Daily Web Summary 2/21/2013

2013-02-21T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

BIM VS Walks Alone - Steerplanet
Man among boys? - Steerplanet
Monopoly VS Walks Alone vs BIM - Steerplanet
Swollen Navel - Steerplanet
first calf heifers - Steerplanet
"special Needs" calf - Cattle Today
AI available 3/4 Simmental calving ease - Steerplanet
Almost afraid to ask... breeding suggestions. - Steerplanet
Understanding EPDs - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet

New Videos

If I Ran a Big Show

2013-02-21T12:00:00-05:00

I'd have a mobile friendly, exhibitor centered portion of my site where I'd post weight breaks ten minutes before hard copies are put on the wall in order to prevent the mob situations that inevitably arise when they're posted.

You'd be able to sell sponsorship on that thing in half a second.

Daily Web Summary 2/20/2013

2013-02-20T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Hereford Bull Calf - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Which shorthorn bull - Steerplanet
Take a look at this Craigslist bull! - Cattle Today
Potentially Killed a Calf - Unknowingly - Steerplanet
first calf heifers - Steerplanet
AI available 3/4 Simmental calving ease - Steerplanet
Some pictures of Western Canadian bulls - Steerplanet
Pioneer Son - Cattle Today
Cow dead..Answers? - Steerplanet

2013 San Angelo Steer Show GeoMap

2013-02-20T12:00:00-05:00

This isn't as accurate as the Ft Worth map just because of the fact that Ft Worth reports placing animals by city instead of FFA chapter or 4-H county.

Home of the placing steers in each class from the 2013 San Angelo steer show…

Sure, proximity to San Angelo plays a role in it, but you can almost see the distribution of placing calves moving southward like the hair falling from a steer being slick sheared.

Bored in San Antonio?

2013-02-19T12:00:00-05:00

You got through the line, you’ve turned your cards in, and now what are you supposed do with yourself? Take a 45-minute drive south to the beautiful land of Eagle Ford pipe yards, equipment shops, and rv parks to look at steers of course.

Head south on get to I-37 and head south to Hwy 97. Turn left and go 2-3 miles.

HK Farms – South Texas Select Sale

The sale will be this Sunday but the calves will be on display this week. Don’t ignore the impressive consignor list on their Facebook page.

Facebook Page

Website
Google Maps - 7225 East State Highway 97; Pleasanton, Texas 78064
(Google Maps will tell you it’s a few miles earlier than it is. Just stay on 97 for another 1 ½ miles and you’ll see the ranch on the right.)

Grothues Ranch

Two miles from there, you can stop by Grothues Ranch. Jolyn will start selling on Sunday but call ahead and look this week.

Facebook Page

Website

Google Maps - 175 Byrd Rd.; Pleasanton, TX 78064 - Call ahead

Three miles more and you’re at our place. I got convinced to do an informal bid-off March 2nd (I keep saying, it's not a sale, it's not sale, as it becomes more and more of a sale), phone bids more than welcome, we’ll work with anybody on leaving the calves here, etc.

We just pulled 30 steer pairs off and while we like just about all of them, a few of them in there are really worth driving some miles for. They’ll be available for viewing anytime from now through March 2nd and on after that.

Facebook Page

I don't have a website for our cattle

Google Maps - 9 FM 478; Floresville, Tx 78114 - Call ahead 210.380.7459

No, really, I don't.

Daily Web Summary 2/18/2013

2013-02-18T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

My first AI calves - Cattle Today
Year round breeding vs. seasonal breeding - Cattle Today
Do you believe we are experiencing climate change - Cattle Today
simsolution bull - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Some pictures of Western Canadian bulls - Steerplanet
Will vultures eat a live calf? - Cattle Today
BULL TO ADD POWER - Steerplanet
Rate of return ?? - Cattle Today
Two bulls to critique - Cattle Today

Monday Musings

2013-02-18T12:00:00-05:00

Klein ISD

…north of Houston has really stepped up in their support of their FFA chapters with that new show barn and deserves considerable praise for their new facilities.

I Finally

…got to see a high speed car chase on I-10 last night.

So Far, Only One Guy

…has claimed I was saying that Mark Johnson isn’t a good evaluator of cattle last Monday, at least to me. I have no doubt there are folks that are too stupid to use e-mail and believe that but I'm actually quite impressed the nuance wasn't lost on most.

Have You Heard All the Complaints

…about the San Angelo steer show? What about the San Antonio heifer show? No? Isn’t that supposed to happen after every big Texas show?

I Understand

…that being friends on Facebook is more of a business thing than personal when it comes to show calves but it still feels weird telling a 15 year old girl to friend you.

Speaking of San Angelo

They put on a pretty nice livestock judging contest and talk the classes. And we even shot the classes in HD, just because I’m tired of seeing the pros talk about it all the time.

Daily Web Summary 2/17/2013

2013-02-17T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Broker - Steerplanet
Bulls for Sale -- CLEMSON BULL TEST - Cattle Today
Year round breeding vs. seasonal breeding - Cattle Today
Capiche Calf Pictures - Steerplanet
BULL TO ADD POWER - Steerplanet
Monopoly VS Walks Alone vs BIM - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
bull picture - Cattle Today
Do you not sell at the sale barn? - Cattle Today
Show heifers vs commercial heifers - Cattle Today

New Videos

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 2/11/2013

2013-02-17T01:30:03-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$105,000 - Bull sired by Remington Lock N Load 54U
Werning Cattle Company 2013 #35
$105,000 - sired by KJ HVH 33N REDEEM 485T ET
Hoffman Ranch Hoffman-W4 LLC Bull Sale 2013 #1
$38,000 - sired by CL 1 DOMINO 955W
Hoffman Ranch Hoffman-W4 LLC Bull Sale 2013 #21
$36,000 - Steer sired by Starburst
Bruns, Criner and Jackson Online Club Calf Sale 2013 #1
$33,000 - sired by GOLDEN OAK OUTCROSS 18U
Hoffman Ranch Hoffman-W4 LLC Bull Sale 2013 #43
$32,000 - sired by KJ HVH 33N REDEEM 485T ET
Hoffman Ranch Hoffman-W4 LLC Bull Sale 2013 #2
$30,000 - Bull sired by Oahe Wind
Dykes Charolais Online Bull Sale 2013 #1
$26,000 - sired by KJ HVH 33N REDEEM 485T ET
Hoffman Ranch Hoffman-W4 LLC Bull Sale 2013 #3
$25,000 - Bull sired by Remington Lock N Load 54U
Werning Cattle Company 2013 #22
$25,000 - sired by CL 1 DOMINO 955W
Hoffman Ranch Hoffman-W4 LLC Bull Sale 2013 #25

Cattle Site Visitor Report Discontinued

2013-02-15T12:00:00-05:00

The cattle site visitor share report that we’ve put out for several years now will no longer be published.

It relied on data from Quantcast, Compete, and Google to give rough estimates of which cattle sites get the most unique visitors. None of the services are all that accurate on their own but we triangulated them to come up with something that, while flawed, was as fair an analysis of which cattle related sites get the most traffic.

In the last few months Compete.com started becoming more and more restrictive with their information. First, they required a login to access it. Next, the limited queries to ten per day. Now, you have to have a premium account (starting at $200/month) just to get any information on site they don’t have large sample sizes for. Since all but 4-5 of the sites we track fit into that description, it’s no longer feasible to pull in the Compete.com traffic data.

Without at least three different sources to pull from, the report has even shakier reliability than it did before and I don’t think it’s reliable enough at all to even waste time posting.

Nobody really tries to convince people they have a lot of traffic based on hit data or vague claims any more like they did when I first started running the report. In the world of both show and seedstock cattle, reaching the right 5-10 people is significantly more valuable than reaching large numbers of people. However, if somebody does try to do that when trying to sell you advertising, absolutely insist on seeing a traffic report from them based on Google Analytics data.

Last Ft Worth Comments from Me

2013-02-14T12:00:00-05:00

I like to facetiously pretend this is just some little blog that some know nothing down in south Texas writes because he doesn’t want to actually do the work he’s supposed to be doing. Truth be told, when you look at unique eyeballs, this is a pretty darn high traffic site for this little niche.

Every single year, like clockwork, we set a new visitor record the Wednesday that the Denver videos post.

The highest unique visitor counts we’ve had in our 7+ year existence were Monday and Tuesday of this week.

This Monday broke the record by 24%.

24%

Tuesday followed it up as the 2nd highest unique visitor count.

We had over 2,000 Facebook referrals on Monday. We had 2,000 Facebook referrals the previous seven months combined.

If you haven’t already noticed, this isn’t the same old “it happens in every show” stuff, this time is different.

That being said, I don’t want anybody to mistake me; I don’t have any desire for that Monday article to get lumped in with the ranting, raving, and personal attacks. There’s a reason I shut the comments on that down.

Keep me out of that. If you think that’s what I was going for on Monday, please go read it again because you are wrong.

It’s about kids.

Not how big a name is, tenures, judging teams, banners, schools, or any of that other stuff us adults like to run around simultaneously admiring and coveting.

It’s about those “God raised a farmer” kids, and if you can’t take the time to make sure you show them the respect they deserve for the work they’ve done, just move to the side for somebody who can. That's really not too much to ask.

Daily Web Summary 2/13/2013

2013-02-13T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

HELP: Starting club calf herd - Steerplanet
What do you think of Fort Worth Steer Show? - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
1 Bull to make clubby mommas - Steerplanet
How long to achive ideal weight - Cattle Today
Angus Bull Sires Scurred calf - Steerplanet
Limo, Simmi or Gelbvieh? - Cattle Today
nurse holstein cow - Cattle Today
Another attempt at pics - Cattle Today
Farm Dog ? - Cattle Today

New Videos

You want a viral ag video?

2013-02-13T12:00:00-05:00

Do a Harlem Shake video using the backdrop at San Angelo, Iowas Beef Expo, or San Antonio.

(it will be over by Houston)

Now that I can generate those maps quickly...

2013-02-13T12:00:00-05:00

Geographic distribution of the top five steers from each class at the National Western stock show...

For those that just learned about this site via Facebook posts on Monday, this is more the boring type stuff that gets put up on here from day to day.

Daily Web Summary 2/12/2013

2013-02-12T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Angus Bull Sires Scurred calf - Steerplanet
What's the most expensive semen? - Steerplanet
What do you think of Fort Worth Steer Show? - Steerplanet
Holstein ration will this work? - Cattle Today
cow behavior problems - Cattle Today
Black Charolais - Cattle Today
School me on Cameras - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Ethics - Steerplanet
Opinions on maine cow? - Steerplanet

New Videos

Where did the Ft Worth Placing Steers Come From?

2013-02-12T12:00:00-05:00

Where did the Ft Worth placing steers come from this year?

The first 1/3 of the steers in each class to enter the ring of course. Ba-dum-ching.

But seriously, this really has nothing to do with yesterday's post. It was about seeing how quickly I could generate this map.

What cities, towns, and glorified feedlots produced the steers that branded this year? I’m glad you asked, the correct answer is actually the I-27 corridor.

Click Here for a detailed page with that information. Warning: the map takes forever and a day to load on that page.

That big blue dot is Hereford which had 10 branded steers, twice as many as the next, Lubbock. There’s actually quite a cluster of branded steers there around Lubbock when towns like Abernathy, Idalou, and Slaton are thrown in.

So yes, today’s groundbreaking informative news is that the Texas panhandle is a good place to raise haired show steers.

(47 minutes but only because it was my first try)

Daily Web Summary 2/11/2013

2013-02-11T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Granny through the years - Cattle Today
What do you think of Fort Worth Steer Show? - Steerplanet
Limo, Simmi or Gelbvieh? - Cattle Today
Pasture rent - Cattle Today
Removing Steel Roofing ? - Cattle Today
Rock N Roll train new born - Steerplanet
New at showing.... - Steerplanet
what's a good price for renting a bull? or AI? - Cattle Today
Fertility or what? - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

From Will Boyd – California(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 2/11/2013 10:20:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Kurtis Reid – Canada(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 2/11/2013 10:00:03 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Ohio Beef Expo Chi Sale(American chianina Association)
submitted 2/11/2013 9:21:43 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

If you are going to judge a Texas major....

2013-02-11T12:00:00-05:00

There are enough people carrying the pitchforks over Ft Worth, that's not what this is. Relative to much of what’s being said, I’m taking the nice approach on this.

Newsflash: I highly doubt he really cares what you guys think.

So, if YOU are going to judge a Texas major…

The process began several years ago when the breeder bought the cows to breed. It continued through the purchase of a bull or semen. When that calf was born, he was dolled up and marketed. The family that showed the steer likely chose him out of quite a few choices and spent several thousand on him. The kid broke him in the school’s pens or the pens his family built. He worked the calf’s hair daily. She fed the calf on a regular schedule and once supplements were taken into account, the family easily put $2,000 in feed into the calf. The family drove to Ft Worth and got hotel rooms for the week. The day of the show, several people spent several hours getting the calf ready for your evaluation of him.

That's not a story about the grand champion or class winners, it's every single calf in the show.

That breeder, that kid, that family, and those ag teachers deserve at least two seconds of your time to look at their hard work.

If you don't have both the physical and mental endurance to give 1,400+ steers at least two seconds of your time over the course of two or three days, you are an absolutely horrible human being for agreeing to do so.

If you are a show manager and you make the choice to use a judge that doesn’t think giving every calf through the ring a fair evaluation is what he's there for, you’re just as bad.

If you are a show manager and decide that your loyalty to a certain weight break format that your facilities are not capable of handling is more important than your responsibility to the kids that enter your show, go jump in that same lake.

In a year when there has been more complaining about a show than I’ve personally ever heard, complaints about the cattle Mark Johnson used have been oddly absent. Nobody (well, almost nobody) is running around yelling that he played politics or that they should have placed higher.

What the complaints HAVE been about are they didn’t even get a look because his attention was elsewhere on the way in. They didn’t run over other kids so they ended up in the back half of the class and were therefore irrelevant. They were never examined while lined up on the wall. They cooked corn for weeks to get a calf just right to the touch only to never actually be touched by the judge. The walk out of the ring was nothing more than a formality.

If you weren't pulled on the initial walk in, whether Johnson saw you or not, you were done.

I don’t care who you are or what your judging team did in Louisville; you owe it to those kids to evaluate every last calf that is put in front of you.

If you cannot do that, do not agree to judge a major.

There are a lot of steers at those big Texas shows. You have to be able to look at one walking into the ring and then turn your attention to the next one without missing 3-4 steers while you turn your back on the line.

If you cannot do that, do not agree to judge a major. If it's the ring managers that keep the pace too fast, it's your job to tell them to slow down.

You are going to miss some on the initial walk because just like everyone else, you are human. If the kids are supposed to keep showing until they leave the ring, you have a responsibility to keep judging until they leave the ring.

If you cannot do that, do not agree to judge a major.

No, this isn’t about us getting snubbed; we don't really raise Ft Worth cattle (you think structure matters to heifer mates? try calving those shaggy monsters in July/August where we live) and didn't even have a calf there. I have no bone to pick about any calf that placed highly or vice versa. Frankly, I’m actually being quite polite and respectful relative to what’s generally being said about the situation after last Thursday and Friday.

Please don’t think this is about a person or the gripe fest that’s currently happening on social media and in barns.

It’s about grown men showing those "God raised a farmer" kids at least the absolute minimum level of respect they deserve for a year of hard work.

If you cannot do that, do not agree to judge a major.

The comments on this post were cut off Monday night because they got too heated. As mentioned in the first line, the pitchforks can be carried elsewhere.

Daily Web Summary 2/10/2013

2013-02-10T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

East Texas Pine to Pasture Conversion - Cattle Today
Fertility or what? - Steerplanet
???options/puts on feeder cattle??? - Cattle Today
Opinion on heifer - Steerplanet
Registered Angus Females - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Irish Blacks - Cattle Today
Has anybody tried Juiced???? - Steerplanet
Two Tone calfs on the ground - Steerplanet
Hair loss pics - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

From Si Pirogowicz - Ohio(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/10/2013 3:20:38 PM to winners
sired by:

Walks Alone @ Marsh Cattle 713-308-3828(rodgers cattle)
submitted 2/10/2013 2:01:07 PM to for sale
sired by: Walks Alone

Lot 6 In Round 1 Sale On Breeders World!(skinner cattle)
submitted 2/10/2013 10:01:32 AM to for sale
sired by:

GkhwlsguGVMu(http://cuazhmbjfjkh.com/)
submitted 2/10/2013 11:59:51 PM to winners
sired by: fgbBCkYOtrMnLFtMPrb
location: New York

From M&M Livestock – California(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 2/10/2013 10:40:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 2/4/2013

2013-02-10T01:30:02-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$67,000 - Bull sired by DCR Mr Moon Shine X102
TNT Simmentals 2013 #65
$56,000 - Bull sired by SydGen C C & 7
Hoover Angus Production Sale 2013 #22
$42,500 - Bull sired by DCR Mr Moon Shine X102
TNT Simmentals 2013 #64
$30,000 - Bred Heifer sired by SydGen C C & 7
Hoover Angus Production Sale 2013 #119
$26,000 - Bull sired by DCR Mr Moon Shine X102
TNT Simmentals 2013 #54
$18,000 - Bull sired by TNT Tuition U238
TNT Simmentals 2013 #17
$17,500 - Bull sired by TNT Tuition U238
TNT Simmentals 2013 #14
$17,000 - Bull sired by SydGen C C & 7
Hoover Angus Production Sale 2013 #34
$17,000 - Bull sired by DCR Mr Moon Shine X102
TNT Simmentals 2013 #56
$17,000 - Bred Heifer sired by SydGen C C & 7
Hoover Angus Production Sale 2013 #151

Daily Web Summary 2/9/2013

2013-02-09T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

What do you think of Fort Worth Steer Show? - Steerplanet
How do you feed your hay rolls? - Cattle Today
719T Bull - Cattle Today
Aj's Theory - Steerplanet
Butt first feet down - Cattle Today
Lease Country Prices - Cattle Today
building a hay shed. how tall? - Cattle Today
What is she? - Cattle Today
Irish Blacks - Cattle Today
Okotoks and jamie - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Be Sure To Check Out Wolff Farms Sale On Breeders World!(skinner cattle)
submitted 2/9/2013 9:21:20 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Updated Picture – Clark County Cattle Battle – Ohio(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 2/9/2013 8:40:03 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Lot 5 In Round 1 Sale On Breeders World!(skinner cattle)
submitted 2/9/2013 8:21:26 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Lot 5 In Round 1 Sale On Breeders World!(skinner cattle)
submitted 2/9/2013 8:21:27 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Daily Web Summary 2/8/2013

2013-02-08T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Arizona Nationals - Steerplanet
What do you think of Fort Worth Steer Show? - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Irish Blacks - Cattle Today
How do you feed your hay rolls? - Cattle Today
Should blackdiamond, aka kfacres being allowed back on? POLL - VOTE HERE - Steerplanet
The worse part of the business - Steerplanet
Breeding for longevity - Steerplanet
3 of my favorite yearling bulls - Cattle Today
Butt first feet down - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Bradley J(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/9/2013 12:00:32 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Junior Garcia - Texas(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/8/2013 11:20:25 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Holly Poad - Wisconsin(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/8/2013 11:20:25 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Champion Shorthorn Fort Worth Stock Show!(skinner cattle)
submitted 2/8/2013 9:41:51 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Stock Show U(Matt Lautner Cattle)
submitted 2/8/2013 9:40:02 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Australian Bull Catchers

2013-02-08T12:00:00-05:00

Am I the only one that didn't know about this Facebook account?

They catch feral bulls in the outback. 2:43 mark is the good part. By good part, I mean guys chase a literally wild bull around brush with four wheelers, grab him the the tail, run him over, and then jump on top of him.

Daily Web Summary 2/7/2013

2013-02-07T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Over Due heifer - Steerplanet
Best Feed to buy that is not a Home Mixture! - Steerplanet
Clubby Bull for Black Angus Heifers ? - Steerplanet
Multiple dose syringes - Cattle Today
Breed Heifer or Breed Cow/calf pair - Cattle Today
Think she'll wait another monrh? - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Semen Prices on New Bulls - Steerplanet
protein lick - Cattle Today
First of the year. - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Flashback!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/7/2013 10:20:29 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Prayers for the Gestrich family(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/7/2013 10:20:30 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

From Brennan Archdeakin - Canada(Trausch Farms)
submitted 2/7/2013 10:00:21 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Ft Worth Market Steer Show(Trausch Farms)
submitted 2/7/2013 10:00:21 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Sale now posted!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 2/7/2013 10:00:21 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Repost: Texas Majors for Midwesterners

2013-02-07T12:00:00-05:00

Repost from last year. Probably ought to add Odessa and the Rio Grande Valley but those are highly restrictive as far as breed or location goes....

----

This week marks the start of the Texas major steer show season. It’s a small world but it’s always surprising how little Texans know about shows outside the state and vice versa.

Texans: You call this a “major” and they only sell TWO cattle? Our county show sells 30 and the champions bring more than that.
Mid-Westerner: You can get classed out of Angus even if you have papers? Somebody needs to fix that.

So, this is a very basic tutorial on the Texas majors for you folks up there.

Other than the overwhelming scale of size of the shows and the money involved, there are two big differences...

Slick Shows - We cut the hair off because you don't eat it and you people aren't "rewarding hard work" when you have a different professional fitter on every leg of the calf.

Classification - There's a visual classification system where steers are shown in different breeds and let through or sent to the AOB class depending on the vote of a three person panel. It's not evil, it happens every day across the nation in packers with CAB and auction barn order buyers.

The five majors...

	Dates	Breeds	Hair?	2011 Entries	Entry Limit	Weigh In	Class Out
Forth Worth		6	Haired	1,600-1,700?	1	Turn In	Leave Show
San Angelo		3	Slick	314	2	Weigh	AOB
San Antonio		15	Slick	1,452	1	Turn In	ABC or AOB
Houston		16	Slick	1,743	1	Weigh	ABC or AOB
Austin		6	Slick	851	1	Turn In	ABC or AOB

While the amount of breeds in each show is different, you can show any validated steer in any of the majors. They're just divided up a lot more specifically in shows like San Antonio and Houston.

Fort Worth

The only haired show and typically considered to be right below Houston as the largest market steer show in the nation.

Breeds are broken up by Angus, Hereford, Polled Hereford, Shorthorn, ABC, and AOB. Fort Worth is the only show where if you are classed out, you are out of the show.

The British breed champions have a tradition of selling for significantly more than the champions of the other breeds in the sale.

San Angelo

Easily the smallest of the Texas majors. Steers are split into British, ABC, and AOB. The only major that allows two entries per exhibitor. Quality wise, a tick above Austin because of the timing and proximity to West Texas where there are amazing creatures lurking in every show pen.

San Antonio

The third of the 'big three' majors in terms of prestige and the first really big slick show of the year. The only breed that doesn't have it's own class is Polled Hereford and that's a fairly recent develoment.

Auction prices are quite a bit lower than Houston and Ft Worth but San Antonio gives $10,000 and $8,000 scholarships to the champion and reserve breed champion for all 15 breeds. Yes, all 15.

Houston

The biggest market steer show in the nation.

Huge auction prices ($300,000+) but the money paid to exhibitors is capped and guaranteed.

Austin

The end of the Texas major season and a show that has shown nothing short of dramatic growth in the past 10-20 years.

Daily Web Summary 2/6/2013

2013-02-06T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

NAME THE BULL! - Steerplanet
Should blackdiamond, aka kfacres being allowed back on? POLL - VOTE HERE - Steerplanet
Breeding for longevity - Steerplanet
donkeys vs. hogs - Cattle Today
What is she? - Cattle Today
What to do with this calf? Thoughts? - Steerplanet
Semen Prices on New Bulls - Steerplanet
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Lovings sale - Steerplanet
Some pics of our fall repo checks - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

Big Thank You(rodgers cattle)
submitted 2/7/2013 12:00:58 AM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Master of Puppets...check him out!!(diamond g cattle)
submitted 2/6/2013 11:40:36 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

Schenk/Trausch Farms Round 2 Fall Born Sale Photos!!(Trausch Farms)
submitted 2/6/2013 11:20:14 PM to Uncategorized
sired by:

New Videos

Confidence in Heifer Calving vs Time of Day

2013-02-05T12:00:00-05:00

Class One Calf

2013-02-05T12:00:00-05:00

A small framed calf that will have issues getting past 1,000lbs.

Class one refers to the lightest class at a major where the weight break typically goes from the show minimum to 1,050 lbs.

Daily Web Summary 2/4/2013

2013-02-04T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

bull pic to rip apart - Steerplanet
Paul Harvey...God Made a Farmer...Super Bowl Ad - Steerplanet
A&T Renegades first calf! - Steerplanet
What should I breed her to - Steerplanet
Superbowl Predictions - Steerplanet
Better to let 'em calve where they want or move em? - Cattle Today
Buying my first Bull. What should I know? - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Calf born early yesterday? - Cattle Today
I'll be danged - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

xThUiINYAPerLc(gqFduqiKkkXv)
submitted 2/5/2013 12:14:25 AM to Cattle Today

fydOMOxAgvYGO(nuLPZCXLsAbwWW)
submitted 2/5/2013 12:12:07 AM to Cattle Today

iRxniYQdEZqNMPHKMd(zwlKmiYQBfw)
submitted 2/5/2013 12:09:48 AM to Cattle Today

xbScPfRrJIpSGaw(RtQlItjFm)
submitted 2/5/2013 12:06:45 AM to Cattle Today

RvyDTInbVtAckEN(WkSBkTOFusmK)
submitted 2/5/2013 12:03:30 AM to Cattle Today

New Videos

The Paul Harvey Super Bowl

2013-02-04T12:00:00-05:00

So by now you’ve all heard the big news of the night, the only news that matters.

The Dodge commercial.

I wish the #agchat folks had cameras on themselves while watching that commercial for the first time. I like to imagine that the reaction in the living rooms of the people I follow on Twitter was similar to the reaction in mine when Deshazor Everett jumped that route against Alabama.

It’s a touchy subject but I kind of roll my eyes at most of that “tell the world about farmers” stuff. We spend a bit too much time patting ourselves on the backs for doing something that I guarantee you a million desk jockeys who weren’t born into families with land would kill to have the opportunity to do. That and the whole idea of telling people how great you are because you’re a farmer seems to fly in the face of the personality of every farmer and rancher I’ve ever known.

This was different.

It was blatantly using the perception of farmers to sell trucks.

Strangely enough…..that actually made it feel more authentic.

That commercial did more for the reputation of farmers and ranchers each second it aired than agvocacy has done in its combined history.

Heck if I know how, but there’s probably something to learn from that.

Top Web Sale Lots Week of 1/28/2013

2013-02-03T01:30:01-05:00

Top individual sale lots of the past week...

$76,000 - Bull sired by Monopoly
"The Peep Show," Online Sale Presented by Voegele and Paulsen 2013 #1
$33,500 - Bred Heifer sired by Irish Whiskey
Dakota Classic 2013 #130
$29,500 - Bred Heifer sired by Adrenaline
Dakota Classic 2013 #52
$23,750 - Bred Heifer sired by Hot Sauce
Dakota Classic 2013 #53
$22,500 - Bred Heifer sired by Damage Control
Dakota Classic 2013 #51
$21,750 - Bred Cow sired by RSVP
Dakota Classic 2013 #3
$21,000 - Bull sired by I-80
"The Peep Show," Online Sale Presented by Voegele and Paulsen 2013 #2
$20,000 - Bred Cow sired by Hooks Shear Force 38K
Hook Farms 2013 #74
$20,000 - Bull sired by Styles RMH Smooth Move J121
Bob Jon 2nd Annual Online Bull Sale 2013 #10
$19,800 - Bred Cow sired by Irish Whiskey
Dakota Classic 2013 #2

Daily Web Summary 2/2/2013

2013-02-02T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Shootings!!! N/C - Steerplanet
Ivermectin Injectable vs Pour-on for Herefords - Cattle Today
Is a immature jack safe? - Cattle Today
bull pic to rip apart - Steerplanet
Apple cider vinegar - Cattle Today
Still Born - Cattle Today
Word Association Game - Steerplanet
Bulls not so well known. - Steerplanet
Drought stocking rate ? - Cattle Today
Texas and Oklahoma Ranchers - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

sdhIuBYypXATjZzmakn(SrxAZLJtHdtKO)
submitted 2/3/2013 1:28:53 AM to Cattle Today

ArGKFZVOw(kprkEzJWQWUvIJy)
submitted 2/3/2013 1:26:20 AM to Cattle Today

nYeUWEVRXwMqGtHxVO(tWsxhZtWJqlxTveytIP)
submitted 2/3/2013 1:23:38 AM to Cattle Today

UTziJDwTXfodfk(PIoGunuHgEHXlhIC)
submitted 2/3/2013 1:21:11 AM to Cattle Today

mFznGZJavGeRAWEoa(jTZyZRYTovXyKSXqqhZ)
submitted 2/3/2013 1:18:09 AM to Cattle Today

Daily Web Summary 2/1/2013

2013-02-01T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Apple cider vinegar - Cattle Today
New bull! Texas Tornado!!!! - Steerplanet
4-H Steer; Which One????? - Cattle Today
Angus Bloodlines - Cattle Today
Jogeephus's Crimson clover - Cattle Today
Bulls not so well known. - Steerplanet
Gelbvieh roll call - Cattle Today
Why would anyone be a doctor? - Steerplanet
Need Help asap - Cattle Today
Still Born - Cattle Today

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

QfPKXdMKsEzQeodFm(QUQHamQkAPldn)
submitted 2/2/2013 1:29:28 AM to Cattle Today

FWXRRMKn(fRIBaZQJdZBJ)
submitted 2/2/2013 1:26:15 AM to Cattle Today

hoIhgqXpwvDq(dosBxXRIJDuZnGLXAuC)
submitted 2/2/2013 1:23:16 AM to Cattle Today

TXewxmdBPbyKYn(fhzsFcOJtHWXMk)
submitted 2/2/2013 1:19:49 AM to Cattle Today

MfeCiPDim(TMuHGNCxvNlEOKccN)
submitted 2/2/2013 1:16:53 AM to Cattle Today

First Livestock Judging Power Ranking of 2013

2013-02-01T12:00:00-05:00

So I was accused of playing favorites by not running this ranking yet after the National Western. They were only half joking but I want to be clear that you should NEVER assume I’m doing something deliberately when simple laziness would sufficiently explain my actions.

First 2013 collegiate livestock judging power rankings with the results from Griswold, Arizona National, and the National Western…

1	Texas Tech University	1.654
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 National Western
2	Kansas Sate University	1.642
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2012 Griswold Cattle Company
3	Colorado State University	1.597
	Top Finish: 4th @ 2013 National Western
4	Oklahoma State University	1.595
	Top Finish: 2nd @ 2013 National Western
5	University of Nebraska	1.573
	Top Finish: 5th @ 2013 National Western
6	Texas A&M University	1.560
	Top Finish: 3rd @ 2012 Griswold Cattle Company
7	University of Illinois	1.550
	Top Finish: 6th @ 2013 National Western
8	West Texas A&M University	1.513
	Top Finish: 4th @ 2012 Griswold Cattle Company
9	University of Arkansas	1.492
	Top Finish: 1st @ 2013 Arizona National
10	South Dakota State University	1.479
	Top Finish: 9th @ 2013 National Western

Mathematical Steer Picture Judging

2013-01-31T12:00:00-05:00

Want a quick heuristic for mathematically determining balance of a calf from a picture?

Take the length from the top of the shoulder where the neck starts to just under the tail head.

L = Top of shoulder (at the neck) to anus

Then take the length from that same spot at the top of the shoulder down to the bottom of the front foot.

H = Top of shoulder (at the neck) to bottom of front hoof

Now, divide the first number by the second.

L/H

Virtually all grand champion steers on ShowChampions, both haired and slick, have a L/H ratio of 1.00 +/- .02

There are exceptions of course. The Houston grand last year was longer than normal (1.07 L/H) and the last two National Western grands have been shorter bodied than normal (0.93 and 0.94).

How about depth?

D = Length from chest floor to top of back.

D / H is a surprisingly consistent 0.55 for slick grand champions and 0.60 for haired grands.

It works more than you'd expect. If you combine the two and measure calves by how close they are to those ratios you can even predict high sellers. Go ahead, try it on the prospects that sold on Breedersworld last night.

Daily Web Summary 1/30/2013

2013-01-30T11:00:00-05:00

Updated Websites

Updated Blogs

Most Active Forum Threads

Shorthorn Bulls of the Past - Steerplanet
Calf Testicles not decending - Cattle Today
Trask Cows - Cattle Today
Grassfed oxymoron? - Steerplanet
Best Bulls in Denver - Poll - Steerplanet
Hard Whisky/Irish Whisky - Steerplanet
American Black Hereford Association - Cattle Today
Your thoughts on the results of the National Red Angus show in Denver - Steerplanet
Giving Thanks, One Heck Of A County Show!! - Steerplanet
The bull that wasn't in Denver - Steerplanet

Top Five on Halterbreak.com

YXaiaymjymoGygXV(quHUAiLxuMBt)
submitted 1/31/2013 1:29:39 AM to Cattle Today

uMqVNxqRmRa(IoiODRAZctIG)
submitted 1/31/2013 1:26:29 AM to Cattle Today

GLZTiQiPu(KWoYUxQSWFRm)
submitted 1/31/2013 1:23:47 AM to Cattle Today

cXrYttXu(pZDlpkBj)
submitted 1/31/2013 1:21:07 AM to Cattle Today

TFVQeZTYSTDRmUJlFN(ToXdOAQs)
submitted 1/31/2013 1:18:09 AM to Cattle Today