Breeding show-calves can yield cash returns

Although the many suckled calves bred by Andrew Davies make high prices before going on to take top primestock championships, he insists that cashing in show potential is just a bonus.
“We aim to turn out high-quality calves and it is inevitable that some will be good enough to attract people interested in showing commercial beef cattle,” Mr Davies says.
“We clip and wash calves before sale, but they just get normal creep feed and with 90 suckler cows, followers and 600 ewes to look after we do not have time to halter-train them.” Even so, this doesn’t deter buyers, as last year saw a heifer bred by Andrew and his wife Lara at Pant Maenog, Llangadog in Carmarthenshire take the unled champion at the first Brecon sale of show potential cattle and topped the auction at £7100.
In July 2007 another heifer sold privately took the overall and heifer commercial beef championships at the Royal Welsh Show, while another home-bred beast collected the steer championship.
Showring success
Cattle from the 130ha (320 acre) less favoured area farm have enjoyed other notable showring successes, including two Birmingham Primestock Show championships. “Of course we are pleased when cattle we have bred sell well and later win prizes, but our main aim is to market suckled calves that commercial finishers feel they can make a profit on.”
The couple took over their farm seven years ago when Mr Davies’ family’s business was divided up. They already ran 20 suckler cows on the unit where Mrs Davies worked and they took on 40 cows from his family set up. “From the start we wanted to produce top quality suckled calves and stores – after all it costs as much to turn out a bad animal as a good one.
“We knew we had to be willing to change breeds and the system to react to what the market wants.” One of the first big decisions was to sacrifice suckler cow milkiness by not using dairy cross females to avoid Holstein influence.
Replacements
Now most of the cows have Limousin and Belgian Blue genes and, because quality replacements now cost about £1500 with calves at foot, the couple have bulled 21 of their own heifers. One such heifer weighing 435kg sold at a November 2007 suckled calf sale for £900. She went for breeding, indicating another exploitable outlet.
Two months ago they paid 4000gns at Carlisle for the 10 month old Blue sire Bettws Cole to breed replacements. He is yet to make his mark on the herd, but the influence of the now dead Kype Interrogate, the Ron Cruikshank bred Limousin they bought for 5500gns, is still being felt.
Mr Davies’s own bull buying decisions are based mostly on visual assessment, though available growth rate and ease of calving data are equally as important. He also tries to talk to as many breeders as possible to get first hand information about the performance of sires related to bulls he is interested in. “I look for conformation, a good top line, small head and belly and style – the traits finishers look for when buying suckled calves.”
The last Limousin he bought cost 11,500gns at Carlisle, but he was able to claim £2500 back through the EU funded Welsh beef improvement scheme.
Breeding possibility
“It is difficult to buy a decent bull for less than 10,000gns. The demand for quality sires is encouraging me to start pedigree breeding a few Limousins and Blues, but no decision has been taken.”
While Mr Davies believes the best cattle he produces will continue to sell well, he is aware returns from finished cattle must improve to persuade arable farmers to fill their sheds. “We cannot finish cattle on this farm, but I can understand why farmers with grain are being tempted to sell it rather than feeding it to cattle.”
Show stock at brecon market
Next month see’s the second special show and sale of show potential cattle at Brecon Livestock Market – 16 February will see about 100 calves go under the watchful eye of Huw Jones and Robin Roberts who exhibited last year’s Welsh Winter Fair champion.
The show is due to start at 10am with the sale at 12 noon. Sponsored by Farmers Weekly, Genus, W M Nicholls and Agri Lloyd International, some £1000 worth of prize money is also up for grabs.
Entries close 28 January. For more details contact Brecon Livestock Market (01874 622 386 www.mccartneys.co.uk).