Page 6 - Southern Reds Spring Red Angus Bull Sale – April 22, 2022

Philosophy of our Program Southern Reds

Philosophy of our Program

1. Maternal Efficiency
Our first priority as cow-calf producers is maternal efficiency. We believe that
profit starts with a cow that can raise an acceptable calf in very tough environ-
ments with very little inputs. Our cowherds are run year-round with very little
supplemental hay and zero feed. In better grass years, we can run without any hay
for our cows. For this reason, our cattle seem to stay moderate framed, weigh-
ing 1100-1250 lbs. Cattle are rotated on stockpiled grass weekly and only first calf
heifers are ever wormed or vaccinated. We believe that for our bulls to add value
to your commercial program, our cows have to be run in tougher conditions than
the commercial programs that we work with. Fertility is the largest component to
efficiency – we demand our cows breed up in a 60-day window despite weather
conditions or they turn into beef. It has been very rewarding to see our fertility in-
crease each year as we cull out the cattle that aren’t superior in our environment.
2. Balance
We breed for balanced traits in our environment – We do not chase EPDs, and we
do not utilize extremes in our environment. We want to breed type-on-type to add
consistency and uniformity – what we believe is the largest issue in the beef indus-
try today. For these reasons, you will see that certain EPDs on our animals are of-
ten not impressive as we have found them to not be accurate to our environment
and the way we raise cattle. There are trade-offs to everything in cattle traits and
the only way to have balanced consistent cattle is to stay away from extremes. It
is also the only way to make cattle more adaptable to other environments.
3. Volume & Capacity
Cattle simply will not survive in our program without true volume and rib shape.
The guts, or grass factory, of the cow are what truly turn grass into beef. With-
out ample volume, cattle in our environment cannot digest enough low-quality
dormant forage or enough high moisture spring grass to be able to maintain and
prosper consistently. This is also a priority for adaption to other environments.
4. Feet & Legs
Foot structure and soundness should be a priority to every program. By rotating
cattle weekly and running cattle in steep canyon country, cattle with poor sound-
ness fall behind quickly in our program. Our cattle often walk a mile or more to
water daily and have to endure muddy spring rainy seasons. One reason we never
feed our bulls is because it makes them more prone to growing long hooves and
never trim feet. We also believe that breeding for moderate frame doesn’t mean
the cattle have to be refined. We think it is vital to keep bone substance when
breeding moderate frame and you will see this in our bulls.

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