The FFCP this year took place in Holt County, Nebraska. This was our 4th year of holding a tour in the fall to promote our member's calf crop & bred heifers.
We started the morning off at Atkinson Livestock Market, thanks to our board member Wes Kilmurry. We enjoyed coffee and donuts sponsored by Tri-County Bank of Stuart/Atkinson! Then we got our tour started at 9 a.m.Our Board Members Brad Kaup & Darian Fuelebrth really helped organize and execute this event and they were our ‘tour guides’ for the day!
First, we went to Mark Lemmer’s ranch. We got to see a really great set of uniform-bred heifers, some of the nicest I’ve seen! One of the attendees mentioned that the heifers looked like the exact Atkinson Livestock Market every year. After that, we went over to Brad Kaup's beautiful meadow pasture and visited about his cattle & the history that his family had in the area. We had a really interactive group that asked a lot of questions, and it was great to learn how each ranch operates a little differently!
After that, we stopped at Tomv& Bonnie Krysl’s place. The one pasture that we were looking at used to be part of an old dairy farm. Because of this reason, Tom has to be really careful about his cattle hoof health due to dairy heel wart that had been there in the past! It was so interesting to listen to how, even after 20 years, the soil can still carry things like that. Tom & Bonnie had an amazing set of calves that were pushing being as big as their mothers! They will take these Black Angus calves to Atkinson Livestock Market this fall.
Murphy Ranch Partnership really focuses on their maternal traits and the docility of their cows, which we got to see when we hand-fed them all cake! Their calves are very calm and tame as well, and they will head to Bassett Livestock after they are weaned.
Lastly, we went to Weichman Ranch. Mike markets his steers private treaty off the place every year and then takes feeder heifers to Atkinson Livestock Market. Another thing that he does to make his calf crop better is that he backgrounds his own steer calves for 60 days before they leave the place!
We then headed back to Stuart to enjoy lunch together at the city park! We had brisket sandwiches and all the sides, thanks to Dana Ramm with Elanco! Dana visited with us about Elanco and all of the products that have to offer ranchers, and then we went our separate ways. Thank you again to Al Atkins with the Nebraska Cattlemens Cow-Calf Council, TriCounty Bank, and Elanco for sponsoring this event and helping us make it possible!
This is one of our favorite events as we get to see new country, meet new people, and see how every ranch can operate differently but still produce a great outcome of Sandhills cattle.
If you are ever interested in being a part of this tour, please reach out to the Sandhills Cattle Office at any time! And as always, if you need help marketing your fall calves, please contact our Advertising Coordinator at info@sandhillscattle.com. A lot of advertising options are free for SCA Producer members, so don't miss out on a great opportunity to promote your cattle!
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