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Blog Archive January 2009

Motley, Baldy, and Blaze Faces

I have decided to make it one of my life's goals to determine how the motley, baldy, and blaze faced genetics work in cattle. 

One would think this is pretty simple stuff.  We've got a gazillion genes mapped with tests for feed efficiency, marbling, tenderness, and the oldie extension gene.  The genetics of the white on the face has to be something simple, doesn't it?

If anybody should know the answer, Simmental breeders should.  Unfortunately I came up blank when I asked two different members of the board of directors.  I asked no fewer than a dozen breeders in Denver (including anybody with a blaze faced bull) and nobody had a clue.

The closest thing I've gotten was from the owner of a Simmental bull on display that said he heard an old man say that if there's white on the hind feet, the bull will throw baldies.  It makes sense because I honestly can't remember the last time I saw a Hereford with red hind feet.

Am I missing something simple here?  It's not like this is a non-economic trait.  That blaze face is pretty darn valuable when it comes time to classify steers.

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Forum Activity Index

Most Active Cattle Forums
(12/12/08-1/28/09)

  1. Cattle-Today - 54.3%
  2. Steerplanet - 28.5%
  3. Advantage Cattle Services - 7.2%
  4. Breedersworld - 4.9%
  5. 5BarX - 3.1%
  6. Clubcalves - 1.7%
  7. Showsteers - 0.3%

The ranking remained the same from the Nov-3 to Dec-12 period with posts per day up on all of the forums except 5BarX.  The total posts per day were up 23% to 783 per day during the period.

For those that are visiting us for the first time, this is the kind of useless stuff we post regularly.


Showsteers.com

Yes, I tend to bash Showsteers.com.  I think their web designs are outdated and lack any sort of technology that woud provide useful features for their visitors or customers. 

But dang it, they just plain old work...

One of our neighbors recently got a site done by Showsteers.com.  I look at that site and think to myself, "huh?  seriously? they charged for that?".  But Ms. Grothuese is virtually sold out of show steers this year after selling steers all over the South.  And it's all because of the exposure from Showsteers.com.

Well, almost, they raise pretty darn good American steers too.  I know most of you yankees that read this blog don't think anything with a hump belongs in the show ring but the Grothues Ranch had a nice little group of breed champions last year.

update:bold and underline emphasis added for those that don't understand I'm saying their sites do what they are supposed to do, and do it quite well


Denver Sale Prices

First, I only have three sales to compare to each other so this is in no way detailed research.  However, the prices in general for the three Denver sales I make sure to attend were down accross the board...

Embryos on Snow Embryos
Down 7% from $1,376 to $1,274

Cattleman's Choice Bulls
Down 24% from $4,539 to $3,428

Chi Bulls
Down 15% from $3,548 to $3,002

Chi Females
Down 32% from $3,359 to $2,297


Video Updates

We removed the sound from the videos for Real Time, Merger, N-Charge, ATM, and Sturgis.  They were the last batch uploaded and it was an oversight it was left in.

The video for Patron has been updated with profile shots from Saturday rather than Thursday.  I personally thought the previous video looked good but I'm used to looking at cattle that don't have full bellies after a 1-1/2 year drought.  The updated video had lighting problems due to the time of day and orientation of the display.

The video of Mercedes Benz has been removed due to issues with lighting and the contrast of a black bull against a black background.

The lighting in Denver this year was terrible for most of the weekend.  For black bulls that were displayed in a certain direction, there was nothing we could do short of moving them out of their display to get a decent video.  That was simply impossible for a majority of the time the bulls were on display due to the crowds.  We did shoot some bulls in the back and plan to offer the opportunity for all bulls to be shot in that manner next year.  However, we simply didn't have the time to do that with all bulls this year.


Videos "Done"

I spent the last 6-8 hours of my 20s finishing off what I would call the first draft of the videos.  I wouldn't have remember that it was my birthday today or that it was midnight if it weren't for the fact that I got 13 e-mails from virtually every site I've every signed up for with my real birth date.  I also don't know what program it is churches I visited are using but they're evidently all using the same service because they all wished me a happy birthday with the same e-mail template.

But on the subject people care about...

Most videos should be just fine but if you see an error or a bull that isn't fairly portrayed, follow the instructions from below to let us know.  I have no problem whatsoever trying to see if we can improve the videos.

We're going to attempt to improve the Detour video on Sunday or Monday and we're waiting on word on one other bull before posting him.  I'm also missing the name of the second Russell Dietz bull and will post that bull once we get the information.  That would make 44 bulls and 61 total videos, a record for us.

Next year I hope to setup in the back by the railroad tracks one day and invite bull owners to stop by and let us video their bulls moving if they want. 


Two Videos Removed

We've removed two videos, Detour and Patron.  Neither of the removals were requested by the owners, the videos just aren't fair representations of the bulls.

Detour's video has extreme shadow issues and we hope to find some better footage elsewhere on the tapes.  There's a chance we might not get his video back up but you can find an interview with his owner in the interview section.

I thought Patron's video looked good but I'm looking at an entire herd of cattle that are sucked up from a year long drought right now and I've gotten used to looking past the condition.  The video we had posted was done Thursday and I've been told by numerous people (and the footage from Saturday) that he looked better later.

Again, if you do see a video that isn't a fair representation of the bull, please call me at 210-380-7459.  We'll be clipping calves all day but I can remove videos and attempt to redo them very easily.  I keep repeating that because the last thing we want to do is unfairly make a bull look bad.


Denver Chianina Sale Report

Full Report Here

While watching the heifers go into the ring for the "finals" of the sale evaluation I was treated to quite the show.  Two gentleman started a verbal spat because one evidently called the other a "Freddy" within ear shot of him.  They started talking smack like they were 3rd graders, make that college students, playing Playstation telling each other they would burry the other one.

Don't bother trying to figure out who it was, I have no clue and neither one of them was in the top two.


Eight Bull Videos

We've got 8 more bull videos up tonight.  I'm not going to list them all here but you can find them by clicking the "Video" link at the top of the site.  We'll give each bull the attention it deserves over the next week and I don't want to short change anybody.

One bull that did catch the eye of the editor tonight was Womanizer.  In fact, that's the reason I'm posting this at 10:20PM instead of 10PM, he was looking up info on the bull.

Again, if you see any issues with a bull you own or know about that you think we need to change, my direct line is 210-380-7459.  Just call and we'll work with you on making the appropriate changes.


Babe Ruth Video



Babe Ruth
Full Video


Chopper Video

There were bulls that made you think of other things when you saw them.  When I saw Chopper, the first thing that popped into my head was black baldy heifers pictured in a Christy Collins catalog.

Chopper
Full Video


Video Format

I just received a comment about the quality of the video.  For the record, no, it's not a cheap camera causing the grainy image, our backpack contains just over $4,000 in equipment.  Plug it into a TV and it's amazing image quality.

The videos we are uploading right now are being uploaded in a 400kbps format.  We've found that to be a good compromise between file size for our largely rural use base and image quality.  If we get enough requests, we'll upload them in a higher quality 700kbps format at a later date.

I've also thought of putting them all on a DVD for a very cheap price ($10 or so) with the proceeds going to something worthwhile but we're not of the feasibility (or even legality) of that right now.


Update - Friday's Not Happening

Right now we're organizing all of the raw footage to make sure we have all of the footage we took of each bull available when we put together the clip for them.  I had made a commitment to get all videos up by Friday but that simply isn't going to happen.

We have about 40 bulls right now that have not been done.  There's just now way I'll have them all done by Friday, perhaps Monday.

While these aren't promotional videos, we do trying to make the bulls look as good as possible.  If you own or know of a bull that you don't think the video is an accurate representation of, please just call met at 210-380-7459 and we'll see what we can do. 

For my lame excuse of why we're not going to have them done by my original date, here are the videos we have in the pipline...

  • ATM
  • Babe Ruth
  • Bartender
  • Boilermaker
  • Burnout
  • Calv A Bull
  • Chopper
  • Chore Boy
  • Crowd Pleaser
  • Cyrus
  • Detour
  • Ealge Eye
  • Ego Trip
  • Font Street
  • Gucci
  • Gun Powder & Lead
  • Highliner
  • Lock Down
  • Lucky Boy
  • Malibu
  • Mercedes Benz
  • Merger
  • Mo Magic
  • N-Charge
  • Patron Reshoot
  • Precision
  • Predator
  • Prestige
  • Prodigy
  • Real Time
  • Rendition
  • Sturgis
  • TK
  • Top Hat
  • Troubador
  • Wave Goodbye
  • Wide Angle
  • Womanizer


Batch of Interviews

I've heard the phrase "Hi, I'm Rachel Williams..." repeated just under 100 times in the past four hours...


Wave Goodbye

I realize that there will be some videos that get overlooked in the flood of videos to be posted but this is one that I highly suggest taking 3-minutes to watch...

Wave Goodbye Interview


Two Interviews

The first is an interview with Jim O'Neill of O'Neill Angus Farm.

Lucky Boy Interview

The second is an interview with the owner of Wide Angle, a seedstock oriented Hereford bull

Wide Angle Interview


Majors Front Street 3305

Is it strange that I get hungry when I see the "16 Stars" on the banner?  That's really the part of the video that matters for this more traditional Angus bull...

Front Street
Full Video


Full Moon

We also have some video of this bull in his holding pen that I won't put up unless the owners ask me to.  In my opinion, he looked wider in that footage.

Click for Full Video


Time for a quiz...

Who is this?

We took his video while they were heading to the display.  The first thing I got on the video was myself saying "I know, I'm just saying it for the camera so I remember who it is.".

If you can help us out, my e-mail is jeff@cattle.com

Update: It's Predator.  Thank you Mrs. Holtkamp


Purple Currency 24U ET

Full Video

Sired by BR Moleer ET


Cheap HD Video Camera

If you are interested in taking video of your own cattle, Woot.com has a good deal on an HD video camera today...

http://www.woot.com


Two More Interviews

Yes, more interviews, more bulls are coming next.

The first is Prodigy and the second is a combination interview for Mo Magic and Real Time.


Nevermore Video

Full Video

A bit more stylish bull than your typical Angus bull that is on display.


Nevermore Interview

I really intended to get videos up starting at 7AM this morning.  Finally, after what seemed like a never ending string of distractions this morning from my ISP blocking ports, getting heat reports on cows, tying up loose ends from this weekend, and even the amazing coincidence of both Mormons and Jehovah's Witnesses knocking on my door in the same morning (that would have been fun if I could have gotten them in here at the same time), we're starting on the videos...

I'm doing them in the order they come up on the tape from Saturday morning.  The first is an interview with Allan Miller of Prairie View Farms, owners of Nevermore.

Nevermore Interview


Next Video Batch

The next batch of videos will start going up tomorrow (Tuesday) morning.


Update

After a long day of what I call vacation compared to Friday and Saturday, I doubt I'm going to get videos up.

I bought a heavy bred heifer at the Charolais sale this afternoon.  If I hadn't gone to the Camp Cooley sale a few months ago, I doubt I would have done it.  B/T Smart Choice had virtually all of the heifers I liked at that sale and they were struggling to get $2,100 on this daughter that is due in March.

I stopped by the Maine sale preview but decided to come take advantage of the Embassy Suites happy hour (seriously, free alcohol for two-hours every night, why stay anywhere else?).  It was being done at the same time as the champion drive for the junior Shorthorn show and I got to run into Rachel Williams again.  V8 had their hands in both of the top two, having bred the cow that was the dam of the champion and bred the heifer that came in reserve.  For you Shorthorn people, the heifer that won a few of the big shows out East was the Reserve.


Ivy League

About darn time...

Ivy League Video

The bull has more thickness than I've seen in a Shorthorn in Denver.


Cattleman's Choice Sale Report

Cattleman's Choice Sale Report

The Maine bulls averaged just over $3,400/head.  There were bulls at both ends of the spectrum with quality selling well but plenty of bulls that went in the $1,500 range.

I was quite smitten with lot 49, the short tailed Lifeline son.  In fact, I had worked out a deal with a neighbor to go to $8k on him for split possession but he ended up flying by that on his way to $10,500.


Captain Morgan

The owners of Captain Morgan were able to get a hold of us when Mark Snead was shooting "the" picture of him.

Captain Morgan video

He seems like the kind of bull that would work on fancy fronted cows that need some more bulk.


And now the actual work begins...

We got about four hours of footage which doesn't sound like a ton until you break it out into individual clips.  In general, virtually all of the bull owners were extremely courteous and helpful and we got footage on all of the bulls except one rather obvious group. 

At the risk of leaving somebody out, two owners that were particularly helpful were Joshua Ramsey and Russell Dietz.  I'm absolutely kicking myself for not getting more footage and an interview with Russell.  Joshua is one of the kindest people you'll meet at any stock show. 

Rachel Williams did a great job of interviews and did more than ask the owners "tell me about your bull" like I would have done. 

In general the bulls weren't as chunky as the group from last year.  There seemed to be a bit more style to the overall group.  I don't have a favorite and really don't have much of an informed opinion on individuals.  I don't even have time to look at the bulls in Denver and quite frankly, I'm not smart enough to know which bull is going to work until I see the calves.

We're going to set all comments on the blog to approval required after one of you people got my butt chewed this afternoon. 

Thank you everyone that stopped and talked to us about the site.  I check the server logs every day but don't really put two and two together to realize people actually use the site.


Ivy League Video

I took the video down because it just isn't of a quality worth putting up.

The bull is good, the video is bad.  He'll be the first thing I do tonight when I get back to the hotel room.

 


Brad Hook

The man, the myth, the legend talks a bit about Denver, The Today Show, and his new bull...

Brad Hook Interview


Embryos on Snow Sale Report

After looking through the Embryos on Snow catalog last week, I commented to my dad that even I could justify dropping $3k/embryo on lot 2 (full sibs to Houston grand champion and bull on display in Denver right now).  Of course, I also realized that if I could justify $3k, they'd go for $5-6k, and I was right about that.

Here's the full sale report from the Embryos on Snow sale that was held at 8:20 last night...

Embryos on Snow 2009 Sale Report

Overall, the embryos averaged just over $1,275.  While I'm starting to get a bit tired of the Ali look, lot 55 which was a set of embryos by Ali out of Irish Whiskey's dam seemed like a bargain at $550.


RFD

You know what's best about RFD sales? They frikin start on time. (posted @8:20pm Denver time)


Update

We got the formatting issue figured out.  The video is now formatted for the web instead of your 1080p 57" flat screen.

However, we're going to reshoot that bull and Ivy League due to exposure issues.  Denver is about two miles from the Sun and shooting video of the bulls directly into that sunlight doesn't work very well.


Around The Yards

I'm taking a break watching the Maine bull evaluation after getting about 40 minutes of footage.

I've only seen two clubby bulls but if they aren't some of the best here, it will be one heck of a year.

Patron is the first bull in three years that made me ask about a wait list for semen. Ivy League is extremely thick and too good for a non-syndicated PB Shorthorn.

There are one or two bulls selling in the Friday Maine sale that are better than the majority of bulls that were on display two-years ago.

After the sexual innuendo from two years ago and the complete lack of creativity in bull names there was one bull with a name that really struck a chord with me.  Wave Goodbye is a Heat Wave son being promoted by Habeger Show Cattle and if you don't get just a tiny bit choked up when you see the display you need a heart.


Add Video to Your Site

In anticipation of the bull videos and interviews that are coming this week, we're going over the video section of the site and making little tweaks.  One addition is the ability to easily copy and paste code to your site to add the Cattle.com videos to your site.  We pick up all the bandwidth costs.

  1. Go to any video, such as this one of KASS Kojack...http://www.cattle.com/video/watch.aspx?id=68
  2. Go to the bottom of the page and copy the text from the box.
  3. Go to the HTML view of your website and past that text directly into the spot you want the video to be.

It's pretty darn simple.

PLEASE have enough common sense to not take every single one of our videos, paste them on your site, and call them your own in a new video section.  Especially don't do it when you don't have any videos of your own in your new video section like somebody did when we offered something similar to this last year.


January Cattle Site Traffic Report

Full Report

  1. CattleNetwork.com 26.74%
  2. Cattle Today Sites 24.21%
  3. Cattlerange.com 9.09% (5)
  4. Cattle.com 8.80% (6)
  5. Beefmagazine.com 8.76% (4)
  6. Showsteers.com 5.52% (3)
  7. Primetimeagrimarketing.com 3.70% (NR)
  8. Cattlepages.com 2.78% (7)
  9. Steerplanet.com 2.59% (10)
  10. Cattleconnections.com 2.55% (8) 

I'm still a bit surprised EDJECattle.com has remained outside the top ten for this long. 

The past few months the 1-2 spots has remained the same, the 3-6 spots have been sort of random in between that range and the 7 and above have been hit and miss with one new site each month.


January 7th + 283 = October 17th.

That, in combination with the upcoming Denver trip are why there won't be any updates to the blog over the next week.  We're Fall calves and highly prefer October calves.  August is just too darn early and we're not really competing with the big boys that breed for that age of calf.

I know, I know, it will be hard to find something to do instead of reading highly educational information on why you should keep mouth wash near the squeeze chute, but you'll live.  However, as each day goes by, we find more stuff we'll be able to get to put up after the National Western.

What we have planned for Denver so far...

  • Sale reports for Embryos on Snow, the Maine sale, the Chi sale, and maybe the Angus sale.
  • We sent Joshua Ramsey a camcorder to catch some footage of what it takes to put a bull on display in The Yards as they take Ivy League and Big Jake to Denver.
  • Rachel Williams will help with some of the interviews this year.  Her people and interview skills vs mine are comparable to her web design skills and mine, as in there is no comparison.
  • API (Angus Productions) has said they might be able to provide us with some video of a few of the champion drives.
  • I'm going to try to crash the Steerplanet get together again but this time take a video camera.
  • And oh yeah....videos of every bull on display we can get footage on.


Livestockjudging.com

In the spirit of always taking on more than I can reasonably handle, we're in the process of launching Livestockjudging.com.  The purpose of the site is pretty self-explanatory, it's a livestock judging site.  While practice classes will be the meat of the site we do plan on adding various resources including a forum, schedule, etc.

The site is in no way, shape, or form dial-up friendly.  It's virtually a requirement that you have high speed Internet to view the classes because they are all video.  You can view the first sample class of market steers HERE.

We've got the past two-years of the local judging contest on tape and the collegiate practice judging from V8 Ranch that will be put up some time over the next few weeks.  We've also lined up half a dozen other contests to be taped this Spring for addition to the site.

My current plan is to have at least ten actual contests of free content and then add another layer of premium contests on top of that.  However, for the foreseeable future, the site will be free to use.


Past Posts