(Click for full articles)

Co-Sponsors

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

IPT Bull Sale Source of Total Performance Genetics at
IL Beef Expo

Commercial cow-calf producers and seedstock breeders interested in purchasing a total performance Tested bull will want to attend the 2012 Illinois Performance Tested Bull Sale. The sale will be the leadoff event and headline the 25th Annual Illinois Beef Expo. There are 94 bulls cataloged with 18 being longer aged 2010 mature bulls and 76 yearlings. A breakdown of the breeds includes 63 Angus, 28 Simmental, 4 Polled Hereford and 2 Red Angus.

The sale is scheduled for Thursday, February 23, at 11:00 a.m. and will be held in the Livestock Center on the Illinois State Fairgrounds in Springfield. The 2012 edition will be the 44th annual sale with 4,381 bulls valued at over 7.3 million dollars sold at previous sales, according to Dave Seibert, IPT Bull Sale Manager.

Bulls selling in the sale meet some of the most stringent requirements found in the United States. This is verified by only 412 or 61.4 percent of the 671 bulls nominated during the past five years making it into the sale. Bulls are screened during nomination, prior to cataloging, and during processing for the sale.

The sale order will be based on a six trait Power Score system that utilizes the EPD traits of birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weight, maternal milk, marbling and ribeye area. The Power Score will be calculated on the "Percentile Rank" for the six trait EPDs. The scoring system is similar to golf with the "Lower Scores" being a more genetically desirable bull.

The 2012 IPT Bull Sale offers some of the most elite bulls found anywhere in the United States as verified by their six trait Power Scores. Highlighting the 2012 sale will be several genetic powerhouse bulls that have light birth weight, high performance EPD bulls that excel in carcass desirability. Leading the 63 Angus bulls at cataloging is a May 2010 senior bull from Murphy's Angus, Illiopolis with an exceptional power score of 11.7. Following close behind is a March yearling from Can Am Cattle Company, Shelbyville with a 13.5 power score. Rounding out the top three power score bulls with a 13.7 is the early February yearling from Callan Farms of Stonington. All three of these bulls have very low birth weight, excellent growth and milk, and great marbling and ribeye area EPDs.

Other exceptional power score Angus bulls include a pair of January yearling with 14.3 Power Scores. One of these is owned by Neubauer Farms of Shirley and the other by Murphy's Angus. Following close behind is a January Yearling with a 15.2 Power Score from Can Am Cattle Company and a December yearling with a 15.3 Power Score from Rock Creek Farms of Plano. Excellent genetic packages are also offered by the breeding firms of: Hobbs Angus of Good Hope, Eagle River Angus of Princeville, Walnut Grove Angus, Union, Deal Farms, Danvers, and Kramer Farms, Farina. As bulls are scanned and yearling weights collected several more breeders will have bulls move up in the Power Score Ranking.

The superior performance of the bulls is verified by the superb weaning and yearling weights that include many adjusted weaning weights over 800 pounds, a few in the 900 pound range. Those weights are backed up by a number of weaning weight EPDs that fall in the top one percentile of the breed. There are similar adjusted yearling weights that are in the 1,300 and 1,400 pound range with one in the 1,500 pound area for yearling weight. A pair of higher yearling weight Fall Senior division bulls of 1,564 and 1,469 pounds is from 4E Angus Farm, Tuscola. Aaron and Sue Schafer Family from Owaneco have a September Senior bull with a 1,429 yearling weight. The Schafer breeding firm also averaged over 800 lbs on five bulls for adjusted weaning weight.

Even with this excellent growth 34 or 53.9% of the bulls meet calving ease direct (CED) qualifications as established for the Illinois Heifer Development Program. Another genetic measure to back up this set of bulls is the high valued economic indexes. There are several bulls over $40 for their Weaning Index and several over $70 and even one over $80 for their Beef Index.

The twenty-five Simmental bulls are cataloged consisting of 16 purebreds, 1 three-quarter bloods and 8 half-bloods. All but one of the bulls is black, almost all are polled, and will provide a shot of hybrid vigor.

The Fitzpatrick purebred consignment dominates the purebred division with the top six power score bulls. The power scores range from a high of 21.0 to 26.0. All but one of these bulls is January yearling with one October Senior. Other firms with purebreds that rank close behind includes: Rincker Simmentals of Shelbyville; Huizenga Farms of Morrison; Fox Creek Cattle of Newton; and Loschen Farms of Ludlow.

Buyers will want to pay special attention to the powerful set of half and three quarters-blood Simmentals bulls being offered. These bulls will provide a shot of hybrid vigor to many herds that have been lining up Angus bulls for several generations. In addition, they will offer increased muscle and growth as more cattle move to a value based marketing program.

The best Power Score of 15.8 in the Simmental sale is consigned by Fox Creek Cattle of Newton. This balanced trait composite bull has exceptional carcass trait EPDs of Marbling and Ribeye Area. Following close behind is a half-blood February yearling from the Rincker Simmentals of Shelbyville with a power score of 22.3. This calving ease bull qualifies for the Illinois Heifer Development Program and has excellent growth EPDs for weaning and yearling weight. The University of Illinois has the third high Power Scores with a February yearlings. Other composite bulls with high Power Scores include two from Rincker Simmentals and one each from Sunny View Farms of Alexander and Loschen Farms of Ludlow.

The Simmental breed has some exceptional adjusted weaning and yearling weights. Some of the top bulls in these categories include Sunny View Farms of Alexander with an 848 adjusted weaning weight and Huizenga Farms of Morrison with an 808 adjusted weight. High adjusted yearling weight is from Bob Fitzpatrick of Milan with a 1,452 pound. Even with the high growth found in the Simmental breed there are eleven bulls that are classified as calving ease and qualify for the Illinois Heifer Development Program.

Rounding out the sale are four Polled Hereford bulls with all of these being 2010 senior bulls. The breeding firm of Biggs Polled Herefords of Dixon has the top Power Score in with a 29.50 Power Score. This September fall bull has excellent growth and carcass EPDs. Another fall consignment of Biggs is a calving ease bull and will follow the top Power Scoring bull in the ring. A breeder that has success in the IPT Bull Sale is Rabideau Polled Herefords of Clifton with pair of twin March 2010 bulls that will be ready for heavy service. Even though there are only four Polled Hereford bulls, they are high growth, excellent carcass bulls with excellent dollar value indexes. Completing the sale are two Red Angus bulls from Steiger Cattle Company of Delavan. One is a March 2010 senior division entry while the other is a December yearling. A Steiger entry in the 2009 sale was one of the most sought after bulls in the sale. The Red Angus breed is a total performance registry that has become very popular in the plain states and throughout the west.

In order to obtain the six trait power scores, bulls must be processed through their breed's performance testing program that allows comparisons with other animals of the same breed throughout the United States. These weights and measurements would include the performance traits of birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weights, and maternal milk along with the carcass traits of marbling and composition. This comparison allows for the development of EPDs (Expected Progeny Differences) that allows for a direct comparison between herds. There are also minimum WDAs established for the various ages of bulls that guarantee adequate development but not excess condition to retard their breeding ability.

A genetic consideration that bull buyers need to be aware of is the identification of Recessive Genetic Traits in beef cattle. In order to assist bull buyers, Sale Management has worked with the four breed associations (American Angus, American Simmental, American Hereford, and Red Angus) to verify all bulls are free of Genetic Recessive Traits for which there are commercial tests available.

Unique to only one sale in the United States is the requirement for all bulls to fit a frame window of between 5.0 and 7.9. This criterion was established so offspring of these bulls can be marketed at an acceptable market weight and result in the production of a desirable end product for the consumer. Because of their optimum size, offspring replacement heifers sired by these bulls will be more acceptable to the commercial cow-calf producer.

Another very important minimum requirement for the sale is scrotal circumference that is highly correlated with the breeding ability of the bull and fertility of offspring daughters. All of the bulls must meet a minimum scrotal circumference for their age that is one of the most stringent found for any sale.

The sale offers some of the most stringent health requirements in Illinois. For the eighth year is the requirement to test for Johne's Disease. For this test the dam of the bull must be tested or come from a Level 1 or higher of the Voluntary Johne's Certification Program. Bulls also must be tested for Bovine Viral Diarrhea (BVD) using the Persistently Infected (PI) ear notch screening system. In addition, all Senior and January yearlings must be fertility tested.

The IPT Bull Sale catalog along with supporting information can be found on the Web. This site contains all the pedigree information, adjusted weights, Power Scores and EPDs on seven different traits and two dollar value indexes. In addition, there is a list of registration numbers for all the bulls that allow prospective buyers to print a "Performance Pedigree" from the four breed associations. The web site also provides more complete information on how the "Power Score" is calculated, summary of the past 43 IPT Bull Sales, and a summary of the 2011 sale. The web site can be found at www.IPTBullSale.com.

The University of Illinois Extension and Animal Sciences Department along with the consigning purebred breeders sponsor the sale. Vita Ferm, Illinois Angus Association and the Illinois Simmental Association also provide sale support. For a sale catalog on the IPT Bull Sale and for additional information about the sale or bulls consigned contact Dave Seibert who serves as Sale Manager and can be contacted at 309-339-3694. Email requests can be sent to seibertd@comcast.net

-30-

Source: Dave Seibert, Manager IPT Bull Sale - 309-339-3694

Contact Dave Seibert with any IPT Bull Sale Questions.

Please send comments and questions about this page to:
seibertd@comcast.net