Briggs Ranches: A Texas Gem
Article and photos courtesy of Briggs Ranches
With four locations across southern Texas, Briggs Ranches has made a name for itself within the cattle industry – thanks in part to the ranch’s long-standing history within the industry, as well as their exceptional purebred Santa Gertrudis and Brangus cattle.
As Joe Jones, general manager of Briggs Ranches explains, Briggs Ranches prides itself on being one of the oldest Santa Gertrudis cattle operations in the U.S. Founded in 1942 by R.W. Briggs, Sr., the ranch’s first herd of Santa Gertrudis bulls was acquired that year, followed by a herd of females in 1943. Throughout the following generations, the Briggs Ranches’ team strategically upgraded its breeding program, cross breeding back to Santa Gertrudis bulls in order to reach purebred status in 1955.
“When R.W Briggs started out in the early 1940s, he began with two ranches in Texas,” Jones says. “He started out basically with commercial cattle and then a group of purebred Hereford cattle. About that time, King Ranch had begun to develop its Santa Gertrudis breed. R.W. Briggs purchased the Santa Gertrudis bulls and started crossing them with Hereford cows. In the early 1950s, when Briggs had reached purebred status, we had just the two ranches.”
Over the years, the Briggs ranch in San Antonio was sold and the ranch acquired more properties in south Texas and Oklahoma. By that time, the ranches were run by R.W. Briggs, Jr., who continued the ranching operation by adding a purebred Angus herd of about 250 cows and about 1,000 head of commercial cows to the operations in Oklahoma. Simultaneously, Briggs Ranches continued to increase its numbers in south Texas.
“In 2008, the properties in Oklahoma were sold and we acquired more properties in south Texas to expand operations,” Jones says. “At that time, the Angus herd was dispersed and we continued with about 600 to 700 Santa Gertrudis cows and a large number of commercial cows, as well as stocker operations to retain steers and replace heifers.”
Moving forward, in 2015 the ranch started a small herd of purebred Brangus cows with the target of increasing that herd to about 250 cows. At that time, Briggs Ranches also brought their Santa Gertrudis herd back into balance. Today, the ranches have a large number of Santa Gertrudis cows, as well as a large number of commercial cows. With ranches in Bloomington, Catarina, Victoria, and Rio Grande City, Texas, Briggs Ranches is currently owned by Robert Briggs and Louise Briggs Thurmond, the children of R.W. Briggs, Jr.
“Now, we have close to 40,000 acres, with a cow-calf operation, as well as some farming involved on a tenant basis utilizing the grains that are produced here to keep our operations running,” Jones says. “We are probably one of the oldest breeders to ever do performance on all of our herds.”
Specifically, Briggs Ranches have kept detailed records for decades on all the purebred Santa Gertrudis and Brangus cattle that pass through their operations. Calves are processed in the spring or fall, whichever calving season they come out of. The bulls that have the potential, remain as bulls and the rest of them are steered into the ranches’ stocker operations.
“At weaning time, we make another selection and those calves that are worthy of the potential to make a producing bull, they are retained,” Jones says. “After weaning, we feed these bulls for 112 days at a yard. We had been feeding them on our own ranches, but due to the severe drought we’ve faced in the last several years, it hasn’t been feasible.”
During this entire process, the Briggs Ranches team captures copious amounts of data and information on each animal, including ultrasound data, Genomic EPDs, etc. to record the average daily gain performance, and the calves are appropriately sorted.
“Some calves will be kept as replacement bulls for our own use or they are put into our production series and marketed that way,” Jones says. “We try to grow the heifers at our ranches on the Gulf Coast or the deep south Texas ranches. For our commercial heifer, we try to breed them at 13 to 14 months. We have implemented a weight program in which those commercial heifers have to beat 750 pounds prior to going into our breeding program. Once they reach that milestone, they are usually bred for 60 days. This creates a marketable calf, allowing us to create a marketable product.”
Indeed, for more than 80 years, Briggs Ranches has produced the highest-quality bulls and females for seedstock producers based on performance data, phenotype and structural soundness. Briggs Ranches have also earned a reputation for keeping profitability top of mind for commercial cattlemen.
“One thing we are also striving to do is to capture the DNA and EPD on all commercial cattle to help determine faster which females are more maternal, rather than waiting two years to see if they exhibit the maternal traits,” Jones says.
“Looking ahead, we will keep plugging along, striving to create the most elite program possible.”For those interested in learning more about Briggs Ranches, while having the opportunity to obtain their award-winning bulls or females, the next annual Briggs Ranches Tri Star sale will be on October 25-26, 2024 in Victoria, TX, with registered Santa Gertrudis females being up for sale at 5 p.m. on October 25, followed by Brangus and Santa Gertrudis bulls, as well as commercial females available for sale on October 26 at 11 a.m. Briggs Ranches will also be participating in the Texas Alliance Bull and Commercial Female Sale in Bloomington, TX on March 18, 2025.
For more information, visit www.briggsranches.com.
