I Had a Dexter Wish List...

On Saturday we got up early and took the stock trailer up to Fort Dodge, IA for the American Dexter Cattle Association Annual General Membership auction. The AGM had been going on for a few days prior, but there was too much going on here at the farm so I could only get away for one day and I wanted it to be for the sale. I had been looking over the 38 Dexter cows, heifers, and bulls for the past couple of weeks and I had sort of put together a wish list.

Not that I was planning on buying anything for sure, but there were four or five that I was interested in bidding on if I felt the itch while I was at the sale. Really, what I'm looking for right now is that "great" herd bull. I didn't see the "great" one on the sale bill, but there was a potentially nice one that I wanted to check out and there were also a few cows and heifers that caught my eye.

After sitting through all of the auction (about two hours) we could drive away with nothing in the trailer because I didn't buy anything (which also helps the checkbook balance). What I did learn though is that I really like the most expensive ones. In fact the heifer pictured above is Wieringa's Belle NQ and she brought the most money at the auction. I had picked her out from the pictures as one that I may be interested in and once I saw her in person I knew that I wanted her on the farm.

I told my wife that I would be willing to cull out a couple cows in order to get her and that I was going to try and bid ... try being the key word on this one, because she went from a starting bid to $3,500 or so in no time! In the end the winning bid was $4,050 ... way out of my league for one bred heifer (although she was really nice). The yearling bull calf I was semi-interested in sold for $850 (I decided I'd rather spend more money and see what they look like when they were older). Another dun heifer that I liked a lot sold for $2,250 and a black cow that I hadn't really paid much attention to until I saw her in person sold for $2,525.

Even though I didn't bring anything home it was a very profitable day because I was able to see some good examples of what I would like our herd to look like in the future, and I realized how much we need a new bull! On top of all that you can't beat a day with the family ... so I would say it was a win, win, win!

Dexter Cattle Show

Just thought I would do a little advertising here and let every one know about the upcoming American Dexter Cattle Association Annual General Meeting that is set to take place June 25th through June 28th in Fort Dodge, IA. Of course the event will include the normal membership meeting and keynote, but is should also include something for the everyone ... especially those interested in learning more about the Dexter breed and seeing some good examples of what a good Dexter cow or bull looks like.

If everything comes together for me I would like to make a run up there for at least the show and the sale on Friday and Saturday just to see as many Dexters as possible. I think it would help me continue to develop my "perfect cow/bull" image and also will give me a chance to talk with some experienced Dexter cattlemen/women.

But, that is not the only reason to go. As you can see from the schedule there will be plenty of times for learning. There is going to be a session on beef marketing for small producers (ought to be worth while), a session training for show (something that would be fun to do sometime), and possibly even a session on grazing management.

The good thing for me is that all of this is in my home state, but if you are in the area or could be in the area I would encourage you to come on out and see some Dexters!