Meet the family behind Holden Herefords | The American Rancher

coming up we've had a lot of these customers for 40 to 50 years I mean they're not just customers they're friends they're it's one of the best one outfits in the United States Holden Herefords have definitely made a difference in our herd trends may change but there's always demand for good cat see white Holden white one Herefords genetics are in demand worldwide next on the American Rancher [Music] [Music] hello and welcome to the American Rancher I'm Pam Minich today we're headed to the Big Sky Country of Valier Montana they're the Holden family has produced top-quality line one her for genetics for over a half a century they're one of the first seed stock producers to performance test their cattle and with a solid track record of innovation and a commitment to quality cattle the Holden family gained a solid reputation with cow calf operators around the globe my grandparents bought this ranch in 1955 so we've been on this ranch for over 60 years now my wife and I took over 1987 for my grandparents and have managed it now then for almost 33 years we're now working on the fourth-generation on the place our son Brad works on the ranch he's been back ever since he graduated from Montana State with an animal science degree and then our son-in-law Eric works there full time he's been here for three years really nice part of the operation to the Holden family has taken me in and they treated me like one of their own from the beginning and now we're family and you wouldn't even know that I wasn't actually one of their kids the way they the way they treat me so it's been a blessing being out here Brook and I will be having a baby and we're very excited we don't know what it is yet so we'll find out when it comes but everyone around here is all they're all very excited and we're looking forward to adding a new member to the family and then we have a very important part of the equation that longtime herdsmen JD Evans has been here 24 years and he and I have worked together very closely over the years been real important part of the continued improvement we've made and managing to the cow herd developing the Bulls a lot of us in agriculture that's what you're doing a for you want the family operation you're trying to continue to prove for the next generation you know and having that next generation involved and taking an interest is just you know real critical to keeping things going we're blessed with this operation that we've been able to have you know the next generation come home and you know I've seen other good operations that didn't have children that were interested or wanted to be involved and you know eventually you know people get old and they get tired and they retire and you know you lose those operations working with my family as a really taught me a lot about the cattle business especially value how you treat people and not only when they're here when they come for the sale but even after making sure these cattle are working for them and they're doing the job that they that they paid for him to do decades ago les Holden introduced performance testing to Montana now with decades of data the Holden's breed Hereford cattle for traits that are proven to improve their customers bottom line I have some memory of getting to see my great-grandpa round until I was eight or nine he was a real pioneer of the Hereford breed especially with performance tests in all these cattle and big part of the getting these cattle to where they are today we started performance testing in 1956 my grandpa last was one of the charter members of the Montana beef performance Association and so we were one of the first to take birth weights weaning weights yearling weights and start testing cattle we continue to do that today you know we run a hundred and thirty day feed tests on these bulls we've been on the same feed program for the last 20 years these Bulls are averaging about three and a half pounds a day gained thirteen hundred pound average yearling weight we want to find out on these Bulls how they perform how they do how they convert it's important I think to us and to our customers and and let these Bulls show their genetic potential that's due to them in the performance our goals over the years have change yes - no I think it's always been about producing a quality product and covering all the bases for our customers but I think demand for phenotypes has changed somewhat over the years here - Holden Herefords we've always tried to stay middle-of-the-road with the right kind we never have chased a lot of the trends that have happened out there our focuses just continue to do it right and raise quality and we figure trends may change there's always demand for good cattle we've always tried to be at the front end of things that we think will help us and our customers we think carcass quality is important both to keep in our herd and for our customers and and for the whole beef industry and so that's why we scan all of our bulls and all of our efforts as yearlings we want to find out as much as we can and as much information about our sires and the individuals to see what's happening in our herd and and to be able to improve going forward we've been ultrasounding our all of our bulls on all of our heifers for 26 years now this was the 26th year every animal on the place is genomic EP deed we've been doing that for seven years now ever since the American Herefords Association came out with GE pd's we feel that's both important for us and for our customers with the genomic EPDs you know we feel like we can identify animals quicker that are going to do the things that we want and help our customers identify those same animals especially with our embryo transfer program you know when you've got multiple fo brothers that without the genomic EPDs they're EPDs are all the same just an average of the sire and Dam but if you normally can handsome it will then you know the Marko's will help tell you which which of those full brothers are going to breed more growth or more maternal or more carcass or less birth weight and and spread those Bulls out so that then you can also take their genotypes and compare them with their phenotypes to try and find the best individuals through the years I've seen this place changed quite a bit especially in our numbers we have added quite a few cattle and we've added a fall herd over the years but while we've added those numbers we've done it gradually so we could keep the quality in these cattle keeping data better and we're making the right trying to make the right selection decisions where we can have these cattle look and phenotypically correct also having great EPDs these are our TSU kits we pre order these pre numbered to match the tag and tattoo that's going to go in the calves when when we to the calves and tagamet at 12 you know to 24 hours of age at the same time we we punch a an ear sample out of them you can see in there there's the the the DNA sample so we have the DNA samples for parentage verification and genomics on everything coming up we just wouldn't have the quality or reputation without having his Bulls involved longtime Holden Hereford customers tell it like it is that's after the break here on the American Rancher reproductive success is critical in every profitable cow-calf operation that's why you need effective easy breeding with vitae firm concept a high concentrations of organic trace minerals and vitamin e found in concept aid will ensure more of your cows breed back faster plus you'll be giving your heard the am affirm advantage leading to healthier heavier more uniform calves at weaning bite a firm concept aid effective easy breeding superior livestock auction connects producers to buyers across the u.s. through the largest cattle merchandising network in North America they're seen by probably pretty much every person buying cattle in the u.s. they pretty much established the price our customers have a way to purchase bulls without having to physically be at the sale the cows are sales the second Saturday in February you never know what the weather might be in the Texas Panhandle in 2017 we sold nearly 1.5 million it for top dollar when you watch the spear yourself it seems like that they do bring both bring a premium we are several hundred thousand dollars ahead of where we would be if we didn't have superior they have done such an extraordinary job in helping us market our program throughout the United States your paycheck is superiors number one priority which is why more producers trust superior call us or go online to learn how to sell your cattle the superior way welcome back to the American Rancher Holden Herefords and Valier Montana is a family operation with decades of successful line one breeding experience Jack always says that a line breeding program can only succeed if you call hard you must keep moving ahead with the best genetics and that's what the Holden's do best Holden's was recommended to us by our cattle buyer Galen severs really great guy from Iowa since passed but he looked at our set of Hereford cows when we shipped the first time and he said this is probably the biggest heard of Herefords that I've seen there were over 600 of them and we asked him what he would do and would he keep the Herefords because so many people had gone to blacks and straight blacks and the complexion of the marketplace and all of the West's had changed from being the Hereford to the Angus and he said I get some good Hereford bulls and we asked him who we should go to and he said go to Jack Holden and ended up going and getting some Hereford bulls we like the fact that you can walk through his bowls I mean you can walk up to them they have a fantastic personality and that personality is transferred onto the ground and into the calves they're easy calves and when you cross the Hereford and the good qualities they have with the Angus you get the black Baldy which is very desirable today research says those f1 Baldy females you know can add as much as 50 dollars a year back to the operation and in value some fresh research out at Oklahoma State on f1 Baldy females compared to straight bred Angus females where those cows a Baldy female will eat almost 700 pounds less forage a year and still have a better body condition score than the straight bred cows so the benefits both in weaning weight you know which can be as much as with what calf prices are 50 to 60 I had extra for the scared calves the value that those f1 females add back to those operations really makes that f1 Baldy cross and as bringing a lot of people back to Hereford cattle and Hereford bulls to go on their Angus base cow herd the f1 ball II probably fits the Montana Wyoming the area that I've worked in the best of any cow I've been around you get the hybrid vigor heterosis is really the only free lunch we get in commercial cattle we can do that by using our Hereford angus cross and not give up any of our ease of wintering we don't give up anything to the Packers they grade and yield well the feedlot guys like them they feed real well I've had the chance to work around a lot of different cross bred cows and it seems like when you start talking maternal traits a disposition you just can't have all those things together any better than we do with our with our Hereford Angus cross they really fit our harsh winters they calves pretty easy labour is getting harder and harder to find and the better disposition the better mothers you have the the less labor we have to have to deal with these cows and that just puts money in the bank do you see a lot of docility in these cattle we're calving right now and I sure haven't had a Hereford scare me at all I you can be right in the pen with the calves when they're born also just when you're feeding they're right there ready to eat out of your hand and then on top of it it just is easier on on a guy and on equipment people are getting older you know we don't move as fast we're all so busy nobody can afford to get hurt and and so I think the disposition that her furs bring to the table is very important born and raised in the harsh extremes of Montana holden Herefords are developed to perform on ranches around the globe climbing around here is pretty harsh on these cattle it is still one of the best places in the world to raise cattle if the grass is great during the summer it's a tough winter but it makes tough cattle and that can go out and work in any environment adaptability is so important because you know blair montana is very harsh you know we can have minus 40 temperatures in the winter lots of snow lots of wind you know can be extremely windy in the spring and fall we are blessed with you know great summers tarses our climate is here we have to worry about you know our cattle going also to where it's hot temperatures humid fescues those kind of things you know we've sent cattle to Alaska even you know they have to go and work anywhere so we have to you know we have to have cattle that have really good hair and can handle the cold and the harsh temperatures just here but these cattle also have to go to places where they shed out in the summer then go out and work and they can handle 100 110 degree temperatures hold their conditions together you know go get the job done breed cows and you know not standing upon all summer there are so many things in the ranching business that you can't control but I can control the kind of bull I buy I can get quality consistency temperament and production and performance if I buy a Holden Hereford bull Holden Herefords have definitely made a difference in our herd we just wouldn't have the quality or reputation without having his bulls involved coming up when I talk to my customers in Australia one thing I hear is thank God for the line one genetics when we have to turn these cows up in the hills and we have no feed in a drought holding influence cows come out of the hills they've got big calf subside and they're all bred and that's not happening with our other genetics it's your opportunity to cash in on the power and versatility of Holden genetics details after the break right here on the American Rancher the superior country page is your 24/7 marketplace for buying and selling load locked calves feeders breeding stock and other cattle cattle ranchers like the country page because it's easy to use and they get the jump on current market conditions by putting cattle in front of buyers right now cattle are ready for sale in minutes so buyers can start bidding caller log on today to find out how the superior country page can work for you and 44 farms we believe work starts at sunup and doesn't stop until sundown we believe in order to live off the land you have to love and respect it we believe that cattle are just raised and nurtured and we believe when you do things right with honesty and integrity well things like quality and consistency happen naturally 44 farm stakes responsibly raise all natural beef superior livestock auction now offers a monthly hosting sphere and dairy video auction with the largest number registered and active buyers in the nation superior livestock auction is your source for lightweight dairy influenced calves sellers enjoyed proven price discovery that pays top dollar buyers get access to high volume and steady supply and everyone appreciates superiors trusted experience in national livestock marketing go online at superior livestock calm register and to find out more welcome back to the American Rancher the Holden family of Villere Montana is one of the top line 1 Hereford breeders in the industry their success is centred on producing genetics that deliver pounds predictability and efficiency for their customers every March customers traveled to Valier from around the u.s. and countries as far away as Australia to attend the Holden's annual production sale our program is all based on the line one cattle that were developed at the mile city research station at Fort Keogh in 1934 and is still in existence we only use the line 1 genetics and a lot of that reason is the consistency and predictability that comes from having those line bred cattle the uniformity it's what you see is what you get now you walk in to look at Jax bulls and you think why did I even have to come ahead of time and look at them because they're so uniform one is just like the other almost there absolutely picture-perfect our customers love our Bulls for their the easy fleshing the type and kind that they are with the overall volume the muscle we still want you know I appeal these cattle we want them to be well marked we've selected for eye pigment for a lot of years but you know then we want these cattle to be sound and and big and stout to go get the job done and be up to breed a lot of cows as yearling bulls these are some of the bulls that will be in the sale this mark these bulls are basically twelve months old right now I've just came off feed tests we weighed them off the first of January they had about a thirteen hundred pound average yearling weight gain three and a half pounds a day this is the 26th year in a row that we've ultrasounded all of our Bulls yearling bulls and heifers for make sure we keep on top of our carcass into things the bull right there this bull had that be the highest marbling bull we've ever scanned in 26 years of scannin had a 6.33 IMF ratio he'd be one of the top Bulls young bulls in the breed for for marbling APD just shows our focus on carcass quality we're trying to cover all the bases with these cattle you know moderate birth lots of performance we believe in performance and growth the pigment you know the eye appeal the the depth of rib and the flesh and ability in them just that natural look disposition is really important to us and to our customers we want these Bulls to be gentle easy to be around but go out and get their job done or travel the you know you can see the soundness in them want to be able to move developed right just a really solid set you know we're trying to produce every year Bulls that that cover all the bases as soon as we knee we run them all through do the genomics on him we want as much information for our customers as we can we put all that in the catalog birth weights weaning weights yearling weights all the genomic enhanced DVDs the ultrasound data we want our customers to be able to make the best decisions they can on on when they're making their purchases and and and use all the tools that we can to give them make to help them make good decisions you know we guarantee these cattle we want them to be right people spend good money to buy our product we want our product to work for them and and make them a profit that's that's what it's all about we've had a lot of these customers for 40 to 50 years I mean they're not just customers they're friends you know everybody's we we want the relationship we want people to call us and say hey you know this is what we need to do you know or what we're looking for so that we can help them better find you know the animals that are that are gonna reach their goals and and and move their program forward when you buy from Jack you you really do get a an entire package Jack's desire and ability to work with you before and after the sale we've never had any problems with with Jack's bulls and any anything we did have was addressed immediately you can't ask for a nicer guy he follows up after the sale well any any questions or problems you may have he's more than happy to work with you on he's came back and stopped in and looked at our program on numerous occasions you just don't find that kind of service after the sale all that often anymore the family is top-notch there it's one of the best to run outfits in the United States evidence by the fact that their Bulls go all over the country we've sold to almost all 50 states over the years but you know a lot of you know we send Bulls to the south and the southeast all through the Midwest of course Montana and you know in the US I mean just every year Bulls go to about 20 different states out of the bull sale and so that's these cattle have to be adaptable and ability to go anywhere and work in any conditions is something we really focus on we sell a lot of frozen genetics we export semen and embryos to Canada Mexico South America Australia Great Britain you know those those foreign customers rely on our genetics to help improve their herds over there and and make things better and that's a real valuable part of our operation and and you know we really enjoy those relationships some of the genetics that we've sent to Australia they've just been through a three or four year record drought over there and when I talk to my customers in Australia one thing I hear is thank God for the line one genetics and we have to turn these cows up in the hills and we have no feed in a drought holding influence cows come out of the hills they've got big casts at side and they're all bred and that's not happening with our other genetics we do a lot of embryo transfer here trying to you know get more more calves more daughters and sons out of our very best females on the place the cowherd is is super important we want to promote those cows that are fertile functional efficient raise a big calf great utter quality breed back every year on time those are the type cows that go into our into our donor program to produce embryos we feel a bull is only as good as the cow that's behind them and we're extremely proud of our cow herd in our sale we'll have about 25 Hereford heifers they'll be right out of the middle of our replacements there'll also be some et's out of that group that are be right off at the top there's some very nice-looking females on top of having great EPDs and great docility and they should have some real longevity to them and function ability about 11 Baldy females in the sale to me the f1 Baldy is the best female there is especially I mean for the commercial man you're gonna get some extra longevity docility in these cattle they're sound they're easy flesh and they're gonna raise off a bigger calf and I think these are some very very nice females that we're gonna have in the sale we'd like to invite you to come to our 54th annual bull sale on March 9th 2020 here at the ranch in Blair Montana see some great cattle have some great hospitality we'll have 140 Bulls and 40 females to sell and we will treat you right thresholds make sure you're fed well and we'll have cattle on display where you can get the chance to get through them and see them for the people have never been to holding sale I think you will really enjoy what you will see here here's an opportunity to reach into some of the best Hereford genetics in the world here backed by one of the best cow herds in the world here your live stocks been a great tool for us you know the videos the ability for people to you know preview those cattle beforehand see online what's going to be selling you know 20 to 25 percent of our sale offering sells to people on superior every year and it's it's been a great tool for us and for our customers I think you know the future for old and Herefords is bright you can just expect to see a lot of quality cattle we just continue to work harder to keep improving these cattle every year we're going to continue to expand a little bit we've got the next generation here so I'll sell a few more bulls and just continue to do things right produce cattle that are gonna work for the beef industry for our customers and for our own operation join the Holden family at the ranch on March 9th for their 54th annual production sale for more information on the sale and to download the catalog click holdin her fruits dot-com or go to superior live.com to view the offering and register for a buyers number that's all the time we have today to find out more about us visit our website the american rancher calm or connect with us on facebook i'm PM Minich on behalf of the entire American Rancher team thanks for joining us we'll see you next time that was superior

Channel: Superior Productions

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Length: 26min 2sec (1562 seconds)

Published: Tue Mar 03 2020