ON THE TRAIL

Summer ranch and farm visits continued throughout July and into early August. I pointed the pickup east and we visited producers throughout Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri.   My first reflection on this trip: I have never seen crops look better. With abundant rainfall, and in some cases, over-abundance, everyone I stopped and visited agrees wholeheartedly that we have an outstanding corn and bean crop to harvest. Unfortunately, it has been a real challenge to make hay promptly, and many a mowing got rained on. But like my Dad always said, “It’s a good idea to accept any rain we can get without a lot of grumbling.”  However, there is growing concern as we approach Fall that this may be a more challenging harvest season due to soggy fields.  

We saw an outstanding group of seedstock producers since the last time we talked;  Denny & Landon Cason of Cason’s Pride & Joy Simmentals,  Mason Harlan with Harlan Cattle Co., Tom Draper with Draper Family Cattle, Bill & Nancy Rudow of Rudow Family Cattle, Charles Henke with Henke Farms Angus, Riley Brandshaw with Bradshaw Cattle Co.,  Jeff Jochimsen with Jochimsen Land & Cattle Co., Jason Batterson with Batterson Red Angus, Kate Root with De-Su Angus,  Valerie & Scott Gaffney with Gaffney Family Cattle, Kevin & Keri Retallick with 2K Cattle Enterprises, Josh  Scheckel with J.J. Scheckel Performance Angus Genetics, Kevin Bennett with Sandrock Ranch Herefords, Cody Jensen with Jensen Angus Farms, Kent Musfeldt with KM Cattle Co., Fletcher Nichols,  Bryan Thill, with Thill Cattle Co., Bill Goehring with Goehring Family Herefords,  Clint Deardorff with Deardorff Cattle, and Bret & Nevada Richards with Richards Cattle Company It was a true pleasure, and thank you all for your hospitality!

Podcast

A reminder! Please check out the American Cattlemen Podcast! Whether it’s timely tips and guidance from Dr Shaynia Peterman of Cattlemen & Vets, or learning more about an upcoming Producer Sale or information from some of the top minds in the cattle industry, no one brings you more news, purchasing guidance, and entertainment than the American Cattlemen Podcast. Two great episodes, one on pink eye and the other on lameness, with Dr. Meredyth Jones Cook, Professor of Practice in Livestock Production at the School of Veterinary Medicine, Texas Tech University, have recently been released. 

Whether you’re in the tractor, pickup, combine, barn, or your chair, don’t miss an episode on your favorite podcast platform.

Fall is here, enjoy it, stay safe, and God Bless you, the American Cattlemen!

TAKE CARE!

Gale

IN THIS ISSUE:

 Summer 2025 has been busy so far! On June 20th and 21st, we had the honor of attending Beef & Greet in Bentonville, Arkansas—Moly Manufacturing and Jorgensen Land & Cattle brought this exclusive event hosted by The 808 Ranch. I interviewed folks like Larry Grand, V.P. of Gentics with Jorgensen Land & Cattle, as well as Lamar and Shari Stieger, the Founders of The 808 Ranch! Much of the discussion centered on the management of the beef supply chain and the ability of our industry to fill consumer demand. The Steigers are great people. Make sure and check out the article in this issue entitled “The 808 Ranch, Lamar and Shari Steiger: Dreams Come True”. 

Another great month visiting with Ranchers. We stopped by and saw Stuart Gilbert of Graystone Cattle Co., Ton Heidt with K7 Herefords, Landi McFarland with Hoover Angus, Garrett Wood of Crooked Creek Angus, and Nick Dwyer of Dwyer Cattle Services. The most enjoyable part of my job is visiting with producers at their farms or ranches. Great conversations with these outstanding seedstock producers. And as a reminder, the Fall Sale Season is fast approaching. Nick Dwyer was hard at work getting ready for his Next Generation Foundation Female Sale coming up on August 24th! 

We are announcing a new podcast, “Cattlemen & Veterinarians, A Partnership in Bovine Health! This podcast features Dr. Shynia Peterman with the Lyons Vet Clinic in Lyons, Kansas, as my co-host. Dr. Shynia and I bring you episodes providing information, ideas, and tips on a variety of bovine health issues, featuring some of the industry’s brightest animal health professionals. Our first episode was on external parasites in cattle operations. Lice, mites, ticks, flies, mosquitoes, and other pests can make a cow’s life miserable and cost you money! Our guest was Dr. Mark Alley. Dr. Alley is a managing veterinarian with the US cattle and equine Technical Services team at Zoetis. Make sure to find us on your favorite podcast platform! 

Final thoughts. As part of the announcement, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is releasing several farm security and national security policies strongly supported by America’s cattle farmers and ranchers in the Farm Security and National Security Action Plan. America is blessed to have hundreds of thousands of family farms and ranches producing beef right here at home,” said NCBA President and Nebraska cattleman Buck Wehrbein. “NCBA strongly agrees with Secretary Rollins that farm security is national security. We are pleased that USDA is protecting our family farms and ranches, scrutinizing foreign acquisitions to ensure they don’t threaten American agriculture, protecting U.S. agricultural research from foreign adversaries, and bolstering animal health programs to prevent a foreign animal disease outbreak.” The American Cattlemen strongly supports this action plan and looks forward to its implementation. 

We hope the remainder of your Summer is productive and safe! I hope to see you on the trail! 

TAKE CARE! 

Gale 

IN THIS ISSUE: