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Reprinted in part from The Cattleman Magazine Trying to get ahead of the game is not easy in today's cattle market. A group of cow/calf producers, agribusinesses and a progressive auction barn in Northeast Texas are working together to jump-start the area's reputation for guaranteed health and improved genetics, and therefore establish a better market for their cattle. Producers who follow a health management routine established by the North East Texas Beef Improvement Organization's (NETBIO) producer advisory board (a modified version of VAC-45) and have it certified by a participating veterinarian, can then sell their cattle in an ongoing series of special sales at Sulphur Springs Livestock Commission.
Instead of running the cattle through the ring in individual lots, the participating ranchers commingle their cattle into groups that are the same type, weight and color. What makes this sale different from other commingled sales is the number of people NETBIO has convinced to work together. They include producers of all sizes, creditors, veterinarians, feed dealers, the Extension service, and even the local chamber of commerce. Each group takes responsibility for the factors they can control and work to make something happen that is good for everyone. "It's a proven fact that if you've got a group of anything you can get more for it, sometimes a lot more, on any given day," explains David Fowler, co-owner of the Sulphur Springs auction market. "Then you add in the vaccination program and you've really added more value to your calves." When the subject of preconditioning is brought up, the question inevitably raised by the producer is "Am I going to get paid for it?" The first two commingled sales put on by NETBIO have answered this question. "Some of the best cattle in their first special sale brought in premiums in the neighborhood of 12 cents a pound," says Dr. Todd Thrift, an Extension livestock specialist who has worked with NETBIO. "Those cattle were getting a premium both for health and genetics-plus being commingled into groups. Most of the cattle sold probably five to eight cents above the market and common calves even brought in a health premium of at least three cents above." "We started out as a marketing niche to present healthier cattle," explains Phil Sadler, a commercial producer from Golden, Texas. "But our area has a very diverse make up in terms of genetic types, and it has also historically had a long calving season-basically year-round."
Sadler says most of the time buyers have to assume the worst in terms of lack of vaccinations and what their costs for doctoring the animals is going to cost once they become sick. All of these anticipated costs take away what the buyer can afford to pay for the calves. "If, through some activity that we can do on the farm, we can eliminate some of those costs and we can guarantee him that the calf probably won't get sick, that money can be added to the amount of money that we producers can get for that calf," he explains. "That's what this is all about." Improving Genetics Another program NETBIO is working on with the Sulphur Springs market is a genetic improvement plan. This program started with a now annual all-breed bull sale and focuses on helping producers better match sire selection with varied, and sometimes an unknown, genetic base in their cow herds. NETBIO is considering a bull-leasing program to address the genetic needs of their customers. "Too many of us are just interested in something that will impregnate the cow for next year's calf instead of what the calf will be like-just as long as we get one," explains Sadler. "...By taking the lease approach, we think we can interest more people in a better bull at a lower per year initial cost." More Buyers "We got a lot of cattle here at these last two sales that we would normally not have gotten to sell," explains Joe Don Pogue, co-owner of Sulphur Springs market. "As a customer base, these special sales are actually different than our normal weekly sales. It has brought several buyers to our sale that don't normally come on a regular basis. Certified Healthy The health requirements established by NETBIO to qualify calves for special commingled sales at Sulphur Springs Livestock Commission are certified by participating veterinarians. The auction market oversees and documents the allocation of sequentially numbered NETBIO ear tags that are distributed to the veterinarians. When the veterinarian certifies a producer's calf, he will issue a tag, record the producer number, known breeding information and estimate weight. A copy of this information is then sent to the auction barn, all of which must match the calves upon delivery to the sale. In addition to the required vaccines, records need to be maintained and the brand name of the vaccines used, the lot or serial number, date of administration and location on the animal. The second administration of vaccines must be given at least 30 days before the sale date. Preconditioned calves must be weaned at least 45 days, have received required vaccinations, be feed and water trough broke, castrated and dehorned or tipped, certified by a licensed veterinarian, and must have a NETBIO ID tag. Fresh-weaned calves must have received the required vaccinations, be castrated, dehorned or tipped, be certified by a licensed veterinarian, and have a NETBIO ID tag. Weanling calves are not commingled with preconditioned calves. |
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