Lowline 2017

MCR Tycoon

LOOK here...there is no trouble seeing the natural power and depth in this young bull! MCR Tycoon is one power packed yearling, with the big hindquarter everyone’s been looking for. Keep watching to see what’s next in his bright future.

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Pictured at 9 months of age

29852 D038 03/03/2016 BW: 86 lbs WW: 435 lbs YW: 815 lbs

BRACKENGRAE BEAU LAD MCR STANDING BEAR BRAMBLETYE TRANGI GIRL MCR MAKING MONEY EZ MAGNUM 72J EZ CLARISSA 29N BRONWYN LRL 80H

BROKEN ARROW NERO ARDROSSAN TIGERTIM KIMBOLTON MIRACLE BRAMBLETYE JAMES BOND L007 MCR UNLIMITED ARDROSSAN CARLA GLEN INNES J330

Meet Your

CANADIAN LOWLINE ASSOCIATION 2017-2018 DIRECTORS

Cathy Monteith, President - Edam, SK We first got our Lowlines in 2010 when we bought a small herd from Ken Lindahl in Wetaskawin. I became a director of the Canadian Lowline Association in 2012 and am President this year. With my husband Lee and children Melissa and James we have Honeybrook Lowlines and raise both Fullblood and Percentage animals.

Laurie Brunsdon, Vice President - Vernon, BC Silverhills Lowlines is located on the edge of the Monashee Mountains east of Vernon B.C. We raise Fullblood and Percentage Lowlines.

We promote a grass raised animal without hormones and only use antibiotics if necessary.

We now have a location in Lumby that sells our meat at a retail facility, the Lumby Community Market. We are pleased to see the breed growing in popularity as they are a great animal for this area.

Brian Chicoine, Director - Storthoaks, SK I am currently a board member, along with my wife, Brenda, we have been involved with Lowlines since their inception in Canada, 20 years ago. BM Lowlines is located in southeast Saskatchewan and we run about 120 head of Fullblood and Percentage Lowlines.

Darrell Gotaas, Director - Edmonton, AB Darrell Gotaas resides in Edmonton, Alberta and has been involved with Lowline cattle since 1999. Darrell, along with his wife Barbara, his father Paul, and herdsman Murray Skippen, operate Big Island Lowlines. It began with the purchase of 20 Australian embryos and 3 heifers and a flush cow from the original Australian import that started the Canadian herd.

Darrell has been a member of the Board since 2006, and served as President from 2006 through 2014.

Monika Herter, Director - Leduc, AB Hello, my name is Monika Herter. I have been a Board member since November 2014. My responsibilities are Promotion and Membership. I will do my best to promote the Lowlines and explain why it is important to become a member. I try to make it exiting to be a member. My Husband and I are the owners of Big Mountain Lowline. We are proud to own a little herd and be happy to help the people in our neighborhood to learn more about the Lowline.

Perry Richard, Director - Hepburn, SK Shari and I live near Hepburn, Saskatchewan, where we raise a small herd of Fullblood, Moderator, and Aberdeen + cattle.

From a young age I could be found near cattle, working the feedlot, showing 4H calves, trucking livestock across North America and even a career with Agriculture Canada.

Painted Post Lowlines have been in the Lowline business since 2014, supplying seedstock bred for the harshest climate.

President's Message

As I walk out amongst the cows checking for who is close to calving, I reflect on how far this breed has come in just the few years we have had them. Every year we get more calls looking for bulls to use in commercial herds on their heifers. More calls from people who have seen us at a show or read about these small framed, docile Angus based cattle. There are fewer commercial cattlemen who disregard them based just on the name. I never get tired of hearing comments like: “well those certainly are not miniature cattle” or “look it is my Aberdeen cattle that I knew in Scotland as a boy.” “I love the temperaments of these cattle - it is a treat not to have heads up and gone cattle.” We are slowly also building a meat market. In the last year we have sold 6 head as cut and wrapped beef with orders coming in for the next year after they have tasted the product. The carcass size of roughly 250-280 lbs. per side seems to be very attractive to our customers. The dressing percentage has averaged 62% which is even better than we hoped for. We have not ventured into the grass fed market only because it does not seem to be something our local customers have showed an interest in, but I know many in this Association have a growing grass fed beef market.

The board of directors has finally come up with an official name for our Hybrid cattle- they will now be known as Moderator cattle. We are hoping to have a bylaw amendment out for a vote to add a 50% x 50% to our herdbook, so that we more closely capture the majority of the ALR’s Moderator and Moderator Plus Program. I love our Moderator cattle in our commercial herd: we have weaned 600 pound heifer calves off 900 pound 50% Lowline Moderator cows. Who could ask for better than that for efficiency.

At Farmfair this year we honored a founding member of the Canadian Lowline Cattle Association with the presentation of the first annual Ted Jansen Supreme exhibit award. The deserving winners were: Fullblood- ILC Loaded With Pearls owned by Idaho Lowline Cattle Company and the Moderator: MCR Because I Said So with MCR So What (bull calf at side) owned by Muddy Creek Ranch. The show at Farmfair is the largest Lowline show in Canada and we have an international group of cattle shown there each year. Come out and meet fellow Lowline enthusiasts this November 8th to12th 2017 in Edmonton, Alberta.

Truly, this breed has something for just about every sector in the cattle industry today and I look forward to seeing how much more this breed will grow and prosper in the near future.

Good luck to all with their endeavors and adventures in the Lowline Cattle business.

Cathy 3

 Fullblood Registered Lowline  Registered Black or Red Angus Registration will be done through both the Canadian Angus dentification and Performance Program CAPP and Canadian Aberdeen Plus Breeders

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Calving ease mproved weaning weights mproved carcass uality Hybrid vigor

Taking Advantage Of The best Of The Lowline  Angus Breeds Combined Russ Crawford 250.883.328

rockypointmetalshaw.ca

Perry Richard 306.861.25

perrypaintedpostlowlines.ca

Lee Monteith 306.85.89

cmonteithlittleloon.ca

Mike Wright 250.38.996 mlwright1telus.net

Table of Contents

Meet Your Directors........................................... ...........................................3

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President’s Message.............................................. ...........................................3 Canadian Lowline Cattle Association Member Directory................10 Get To Know Lowline Days.............................. ..........................................16 Why A Lowline - From A Junior’s Perspective...................................17 Buyer’s Plan.............................................................. ..........................................18 Maritime News....................................................... ..........................................19 News from Quebec.............................................. .........................................20 A Breeder’s…Veterinary Perspective............. ..........................................21 Show Round Up..................................................... ..........................................22 Breeder Profile........................................................ ..........................................24

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Creek Ra s e l b m n u c t S Angus

h

Lowline

Lowline

S C

Chapman Rito Legacy 4531B

Moderator Alta Roscoe Bil 114T

MCR Paparazzi

MCR Northern Exposure Providing a full line of percentage heifers and bulls for your breeding program.

Full Angus, 3/4 Angus,Angus Aberdeen +, Moderator and 3/4 Lowline, All from quality registered stock.

Working to breed better

Striving to perfect %

Mike & Lynne Wright Box 2051, Merrit, BC V1K 1B8 250.378.4996 mlwright1@telus.net 8

Wildrose Lowlines

LOWLINE MOD ERATOR HEIFERS AND BULLS FOR SALE

LL BLOOD U F E N I L W LO ND BULLS A S R E F I E H FOR SALE STEERS FOR SALE

Lyle Black 780-307-3607 cell:780-287-8989 lblack@mcsnet.ca Located 4 miles east of Westlock then 2 miles south 9

Canadian Lowline Cattle Association Member Directory Alberta

Pat Andrusiak & Gordon Young Star, AB 780-895-2715 Email: pandrusiak@mcsnet.ca Lyle & Gwen Black Westlock, AB Email: lblack@mcsnet.ca

780-307-3607

Marc & Suzanne Dumaine Millarville, AB Email: suzid@shaw.ca

403-931-9121

Clinton & Joanne Erickson Elk Point, AB 780-724-2245 Email: cj_rvrview@hotmail.com Darrell & Barbara Gotaas Edmonton, AB Email: drgotaas@telus.net Paul B Gotaas Edmonton, AB

Cathy & Lee Monteith Edam, SK 306-845-7897 Email: cmonteith@littleloon.ca

Debbie & Chip Wood Coldstream, BC 250-305-6162 Email: ducati_35@hotmail.com

Perry & Shari Richard Hepburn, SK 306-861-4725 Email: perry@paintedpostlowlines.ca

Mike & Lynne Wright Merritt, BC Email: mlwright1@telus.net

Carissa Richard Hepburn, SK 306-891-9574 Email: carissa@paintedpostlowlines.ca

250-378-4996

Stewart Zaleschuk & Tony Spina Lumby, BC Chuck & Carol Court Abbotsford, BC Email: courtfarms@telus.net

Brenda & Gordon Pomedli Wadena, SK 306-328-4883 Email: gbpomedli@yourlink.ca

250-546-7233

Russell & Cathy Scott Glen Ewen, SK 306-925-2034 Email: rcvalleyfarms@gmail.com

John & Lee Anne Laponder Armstrong, BC

780-434-8059

Bill Maher Aldergrove, BC 604-427-1111 Email: triplemfarms@shaw.ca

Quentin & Karin Jespersen Duffield, AB 780-915-4257 Email: j6cattleranch@gmail.com Mary Peevey Drumheller, AB Email: mary2602@telus.net

403-823-9560

Karen & Ronald Sobey Sturgeon County, AB Email: rksobey@aol.com

780-939-5812

Mike Good Millet, AB 780-887-2352 Email: hellbillyranch@gmail.com

Luke & Jessica Petersen Rolla, BC

250-759-4330

Lloyd Thompson Family Farms Kelowna, BC 250-807-2607

Junior Members Sonja Guttner Jax Jackson Nash Jackson

204-246-2383

Ontario

Tyler & Cassandra Preston Chauvin, AB Email: tylerpreston@live.ca

780-871-4172

Tim & Enid Lyttle Bowmanville, ON 905-263-4358 Email: tim.lyttle47@gmail.com

Mike & Rae Ann Rallison Rimbey, AB Email: mrrall@xplornet.com

403-843-3043

Jeffrey & Karen Beitz Hanover, ON 519-364-3648 Email: clydebeitz@gmail.com

Prince Edward Island

Junior Members Cameron Mosher Emilie Skippen

British Columbia

Russell Crawford Victoria, BC 250-478-5035 Email: info@highpointlowlines.com Andy & Melanie Guttner Pink Mountain, BC 250-772-5711 Email: butterkupfarms@yahoo.ca Caroline Hickman Salt Spring Island, BC

250-537-5761

Herman Huijskamp Kelowna, BC 250-765-2126 Email: hermanhuyskamp@shaw.ca Colby & Meagan Jackson Falkland, BC Charlie & Bryan Jacques Abbotsford, BC Email: cjacques@shaw.ca

604-756-0946

Lyndon & Jacquie Tomblin Mozart, SK 306-554-2498 Email: tomblin.farms@gmail.com

Junior Members Melissa Monteith James Monteith

INTERNATIONAL Ireland

David & Tara Haslett Crossgar, Downpatrick +44-7710-378 Email: david.haslett@btinternet.com

Manitoba

John & Nadiene Frank Darlingford, MB Email: jnfrank@mymts.net

Rob Negraeff & Denise Candlish Langham, SK 306-270-8008 Email: robn123@icloud.com

604-856-4542

780-486-7553

Thomas & Monika Herter Leduc, AB 780-387-7473 Email: tmherter@hotmail.com

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Laurie Brunsdon & Kevin Tiede Lumby, BC 250-547-6465 Email: littlecow@telus.net

Australia

Desire Red Lowlines Alton Downs Email: kulacey@gmail.com

United Kingdom

A M & S E Humphreys Shepton Beauchamp +44 1460-2493 Email: farm@jhmaritime.com Wessex Lowlines Blandford, Dorset Email: mail@wessexlowines.com

Judy Burgoyne & Michael Landry Crapaud, PE 902-566-5269 Email: ridintherein@gmail.com

John Whalley Saffron Walden Essex 44-1799-5400 Email: johnwhalley01@gmail.com

Margaret Younker Brackley, PE 902-368-1501 Email: huntervalleyfarm@hotmail.com

Robert Lewin Melbourne, East Yorkshire Email: boblewin@fastmail.fm

Quebec

Martin Beaulieu L’islet, QC 418-247-7839 Email: martin.beaulieu@ouellet.com

D & S Rogers Antonia Hornischer Email: sue.oxford@yahoo.co.uk

U.S.A

Camille Talbot Mirabel, QC 450-434-6245 Email: camtalbot@hotmail.com

Idaho Lowline Cattle Co. Diana Lillefloren Hayden, ID Email: ILCCDI@yahoo.com

Brian & Brenda Chicoine Storthoaks, SK Email: bchicoine@sasktel.net

Muddy Creek Ranch Wilsall, MT 406-600-7179 Email: info@muddycreekranchlowlines.com

Saskatchewan

306-449-2290

Ed Machart Saskatoon, SK 306-291-3111 Email: Livingskylowlines@gmail.com

Germany

Antonia Hornischer Pegnitz

208-215-4460

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03/03/216 BW: 86 lbs WW: 435 lbs

YW: 815 lbs

LOOK here...there is no trouble seeing the natural power and depth in this young bull!

MCR Tycoon is one power packed yearling, with the big hindquarter everyone’s been looking for. Keep watching to see what’s next in his bright future.

Pictured at 9 months of age

Sire: MCR

MAKING MONEY Dam: MCR UNLIMITED

09/02/1995

03/10/1999

BW: 45 lbs WW: 467 lbs YW: 684 lbs Quartermaster is one of the longest sided, heaviest muscled beef bulls of any breed. His astounding rib-eye per cwt has been unheard of in the beef industry. His calves are extremely stylish, long bodied, and heavy muscled with tremendous eye appeal.

BW: 47 lbs WW: 382 lbs YW: 622 lbs Sherman is one of the heaviest muscled bulls in the Lowline business. Sherman has an out-cross pedigree and can be widely used on almost any bloodline in the US. He is stout topped and heavy quartered with excellent feet and legs.

Sire: TRA

Sire: BRAMBLETYE

Dam:

Dam:

M206 MIDSHIPMAN TRANGIE J167 BRAMBLETYE FELICITY

ARUNTA MUGGA FIDELITY F338

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Saskatchewan Get to Know Lowline Days:

We had a great day, beautiful weather and a great speaker. Ashley Mugnier of Mugnier Photography gave a presentation on photography of livestock. There were about 40 visitors that came out to see the cattle, speak to the members and learn about the breed.

The lunch of “Lowline beef on a bun” – sponsored by the Canadian Lowline Cattle Association- was well received.

Check out the pictures of our first Get to Know Lowlines Day.

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-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Hello, My name is James Monteith and last year I took a 50% Lowline steer as my 4H project. The steer was sired by MCR The Judge and was off of a commercial Angus X cow. His finished weight was 1350 pounds.

I was very impressed with how well he finished. I fed him forage and soaked field peas. Thank you to the Lowline Cattle Association for their generous support of the 4H Canada program. I included a picture of me and my steer at our Achievement day in May 2016.

James Monteith

Hi I’m Émilie Chouinard Skippen. My dad and I show cattle for Big Island Lowlines. The Lowlines are very easy to get along with. I have been feeding them since I was big enough to walk. I have been helping to halter break them since I was six. The Lowlines are a really neat breed of cattle. Because of Lowlines I have got to meet lots of people. We travel to IPE every August and Farmfair in November. I went with Dad last September to England to a Lowline show over there. Émilie Chouinard Skippen My name is Melissa Monteith, I grew up on a farm outside of Edam, Saskatchewan.

Growing up we always had cattle. Most of our commercial cattle were crosses between Angus, Belgian Blue, and Galloway breeds. When I was younger I disliked working with the larger cows or more importantly the larger bulls. I didn’t get interested in or involved with the cattle until my mother and father bought our first Lowlines in about 2010. About two years after we got the Lowlines, I stared in our local 4H club, not with any Lowline influenced animals but with an Angus steer. The Lowline cattle helped me get over the irrational fear of working with the larger cows. Now am I the owner of Prairie North Lowlines. I own a red 62.5% Lowline cow whose name is MCR Pipi Longstocking. I have also bought two percentage heifers and a percentage bred cow from my parents. That puts my herd up to four Moderator females. I plan to stay with the Lowline breed and grow my herd but more on the commercial side. I love the cows that we got off of the Angus Belgian Blue cows, which is what my 4H heifers have been for the past two years. Hopefully I can get a few more of these now that my mom has some Belgian Blue heifers she is breeding to the Lowlines.

Melissa Monteith

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MUDDY CREEK RANCH SEEDSTOCK BUYER BUYER'SS PLAN “A G Goal Without a Plan is Only a Wish” Before making a purchase we always start by asking the question, “What do we want our end result to be?” should be able Here are some qualities/considerations we at MCR look for when making a purchase. The seller s to provide some, if not quite a bit bit, of this information on the cattle they are trying to sell. sell We hope this will benefit you as you create a plan to reach your goal.

1. Performance Data

Performance data will include Birth Weight (BW), Weaning Weight (WW) and Yearling Weight (YW), at a minimum. The individual animal should be better than average to even be considered. Next we consider how this individual compare ompares against their contemporary’s group in the same environment.

2. Carcass Data

Usually, the data is generated from ultrasound evaluations. These traits are highly heritable and will be passed ed on to their offspring: Rib Ribeye area/hundred weight (R/CWT), Intramuscular Fat (IMF), Shape Score (Ratio), Tenderness Score (TS) (TS). What is the sire’s and dam’s carcass data?

3. Historical Genetic Performance

What is the sire’s and dam’ss performance? And we are not talking about Blue Ribbons here.

Sire’s - scrotal circumference ircumference, BW, WW and YW. How did progeny perform compared compare to sire and other contemporaries? dder quality, milk, as well as BW, WW and YW. Did she calve by her second birth Dam’s - calving intervals, udd date and every year since? How d did progeny perform compared to dam am and other contemporaries? contemporaries

4. Breeding Soundness Evaluation

When purchasing a bull, we must consider fertility through semen evaluation which hich includes morphology, motility,, scrotal circumference circumference--industry standards are no less than 30 cm at 12 months for both full bloods and moderators. Scrotal circumference is highly correlated to determining fertility in the sire’s daughters.

5. Conformation

If the previous criteria have been met, then great conformation should follow: A. Long, flat, broad top B. Nice level hip C. Smooth shoulders D. Masculine head, but not big E. Broad Chest F. Standing on a good large foot G. Travels within own tracks H. Spring of rib (back ack foot follows where front foot lleft off)

6. Pedigree

MCR looks at the pedigree last. If the animal does not meet these requirements requirements, then there is no need to consider the genetics. If they meet the requirements, then these genetics will work within your herd.

THERE ERE IS MORE TO CHOOSING THE RIGHT ANIMAL TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOAL THAN SIMPLY PURCHASING A “SON/DAUGHTER OF LAST YEAR'S NATIONAL CHAMPION” CHAMPION MCR ALWAYS WELCOMES ANY AND ALL CALLS AND/OR VISIT US WITH ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS _________________________________________________________________________________________

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DAVID SHOCKEY 406-600-7179 | KAREN SHOCKEY 406-600-0488 0488 www.MuddyCreekRanchL www.MuddyCreekRanchLowlines.com

Black River Farm

LOWLINE/ANGUS Black River Honeybee 100% Lowline - 6 Months

50% Lowline - 8 Months FOR SALE

BREEDING STOCK FOR SALE Thanks to the buyers of our bulls this year: a Galloway breeder in Nova Scotia and a breeder in Quebec for taking Black River Justajackaroo to be his new herdsire. Best wishes for a successful calf crop.

www.tivitohorses.com

Westmoreland, PEI Canada

P: 902-658-2570

Our third year in Lowlines found us moving to a new location with more land for cattle and other animals. Constructing fences and doing other barn repairs kept us very busy last summer. We found that the interest in the Lowline breed increased in this Atlantic region as we received quite a few calls inquiring about Lowlines. Several were interested in starting in the breed but most all were the small hobby farm type. We had eight calves which included two 50% Lowline/Angus bull calves. One 50% bull went to be a breeding bull for a commercial Galloway herd in Nova Scotia.

This breeder required a smaller steak to supply consumers at the farmer’s market who want a tasty and smaller cut of meat. He had specific requirements for height and size of a breeding bull and the 50% Lowline/Angus seemed to be the size he was looking for.

Also new for us our Black River Honeybee, 100% heifer from the year before, was shown at a mixed breed, small local fair in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, so I believe it was the first time they had seen a Lowline in that area. She remained at the show for a week and pamphlets and copies of the Lowline Register magazine were made available for the public.

Our Justa Jackaroo bull was sold to a Lowline breeder in Quebec to be his new herdsire. He is active in promoting the Lowline breed in that province. Thanks and best wishes for success to both these breeders in the coming year.

Since we live so far from the mainstream of Lowline breeders in Canada, we welcome calls from other breeders to chat Lowline anytime.

BLACK RIVER FARM - Mike Landry & Judy Burgoyne, Westmoreland, Prince Edward Island

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News from Quebec

President of Group Ouellet Inc., Canada’s leading manufacturer of heating appliances, Martin Beaulieu is pursuing his lifelong dream of being a cattleman.

Président du groupe Ouellet Inc. Le plus important manufacturier d’appareil de chauffage au canada réalise son rêve de devenir un éleveur de bovin.

A Quebec City native, he spent all his summers in the country side on the island of Orleans and fell in love with the farmer’s way of life. ‘’I always appreciated a balance between physical and intellectual work’.’

Native de ville de Québec, il a passé tous ces étés à la campagne sur l’ile d’Orléans ou il tombe en amour la vie d’agriculteur. ‘’ J’ai toujours apprécié un équilibre entre le travail physique et intellectuel.’’

For his job he moved to L’islet, a rural community on the south shore of the St. Laurence River. Living full time in farm country inspired him, “I started dreaming of owning a piece of land, havingsome cattle and riding my horse to check them out in their pasture.’’

Il s’établie à l’islet a proximité de son travail, une communauté rurale sur la cote du sud du st-Laurent. Vivre à temps plein a la campagne le fait rêver, “je voulais avoir une terre, des vaches et un cheval pour aller voir les vaches dans les champs’.’

Buying a horse and learning to ride was easy, but finding farmland was much harder, “Most farmland in the region gets sold without ever being listed so I spent years asking around.’’

Acheter un cheval et apprendre a monté a été assez facile mais trouver une terre agricole à vendre a été beaucoup plus difficile. ‘’Les terres et les ferme son rarement mise en vente donc j’ai passé des années à m’informer dans la région.’’

In spring 2011 Martin bought a 350 acre farm close to his home. “It was a lot bigger than what I was looking for but I wasn’t going to miss this opportunity.’’

Au printemps 2011, Martin a acheté une ferme de 350 acres à proximité de ca résidence. “C’est beaucoup plus grand que ce que je cherchais, mais je ne pouvais passer à côté de cette opportunité.’’

A year earlier, he had read an article in Hobby Farm magazine on tiny cows where he first learned of Lowlines. But it is during a trip to Vermont where he saw small herds of Lowlines, Dexters and Belted Galloways that he fell in love with the black cattle from Austrailia. “I became a strong believer in the future of smaller portions combined with the marketability of Angus meat’.’

Un an plus tôt, C’est dans un article de la revue Hobby Farm qu’il apprit l’existence de la race lowline, mais au cours d’un voyage au Vermont ou il a visité des élevages de Dexter, Galloway et de Lowline qu’il a tombé en amour avec les petite vaches noir d’Australie. “J’ai vu le potentiel des plus petites portions combiné à l’engouement du Angus.’’

Lowlines also suited Martin’s management objectives: “I wanted to keep my cattle on pasture with as little intervention as possible.’’ He appreciates the fact Lowlines are polled, calve easily and do well on grass. ‘’I wanted to buy 3-4 cows at first, but the only breeder in Quebec wanted to sell all his herd so I started with 10 head.’’

“Je voulais débuter avec 3-4 têtes, mais le seule éleveur du Québec souhaitait se retiré de l’élevage, j’ai donc acheté son troupeau de 10 têtes.’’

His first complete year with Lowlines went very well. These encouraged him togrow his herd so he purchased an additional 12 females from Nadiene and John Frank from Manitoba. ‘’Initially I was learning about herd management but now that the herd has grown to 60 head, I need to start selling breeding stock and meat’’.

La première année c’est si bien passé, qu’il a grossie son troupeau en achetant 12 femelles de Nadiene et John Frank au Manitoba. “Au début j’apprenais la gestion de troupeau mais aujourd’hui, je suis rendu à 60 têtes, je dois commencer à commercialiser des bêtes d’élevage et du bœuf.’’

Lowlines are not well known in Quebec but Martin sees this as an opportunity. “I wanted to have something different, something unique to market. I knew I couldn’t compete with established breeders of traditional breeds.’’

After an article in a French agriculture magazine, he is getting inquiries who want to learn about Lowlines. ‘’I know I made the right choice with Lowliness and I’m confident that in 10 years we will see little black cows all over Quebec.’’

Pierre Desranleau is responsible for the beef program at CIAQ, the breeder owned Quebec AI Coop. ‘’I know Lowlines as well as the advantages the breed can offer.

Personnally I believe the Quebec beef cows are too large for our cattle industry to be efficient. Dr. Kris Ringwall of the University of North Dakota, has proven that Lowlines can contribute to increase meat production per acre by allowing, on a given area of farmland, more 1000 pounds. cows that will wean a 550 pound calf, than traditional 1300 pound Angus cows that wean 590 pound calves. In my mind, the economic advantages of smaller cows is clear. Unfortunately most breeders are still fond of their large tall cows. They falsely believe big cow = good cow.’

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Les Lowlines convenaient parfaitement à la régie que Martin souhaitait adopté. “Je veux des vaches au pâturage avec le moins d’intervention possible. Il apprécie que les lowlines n’ont pas de corne, vêlent facilement et s’accommode bien d’une diète de foin.

Les lowlines ne sont connue au Québec, mais Martin vois ca comme une opportunité,”Je voulais quelque chose de différent, voir même unique. Je savais que je ne pouvais pas concurrencer des éleveurs de longue date de races traditionnelles.”

Suite à quelque article dans des revues agricole, il a commencé à avoir des demandes. “je suis convaincue que j’ai fait le bon choix et que dans 10 ans on verra des petite vache noir partout au Québec.”

Pierre Desranleau est responsible du volet Boeuf au CIAQ. Je connais bien la race Lowline et les avantages qu’elle peut offrir.

Je crois personnellement que nos vaches de boucherie sont trop grosses pour nous permettre d’être efficaces. L’Université du Dakota du Nord - par le biais du Dr Kris Ringwall- a d’ailleurs prouvé que les bovins Lowline pouvaient contribuer à augmenter la production de bœuf à l’âcre en permettant un plus fort chargement sur une superficie donnée de vaches pesant en moyenne 1 000 lb et sevrant des veaux de 550 lb. versus des Angus traditionnelles de 1 300 lb sevrant des veaux de 590 lb. Dans ma tête, l’avantage économique des petites vaches est très clair. Le problème, c’est que les éleveurs (pas seulement au Québec) sont encore très attachés aux vaches lourdes et de forte stature. Dans leur esprit, grosse vache = bonne vache.

Biography: Dr. Colin Palmer is an Associate Professor of Theriogenology (Animal Reproduction) at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine. Originally from Nova Scotia, Dr. Palmer worked in mixed practices in Ontario and British Columbia and has owned/operated a practice in Saskatchewan. Dr. Palmer along with his wife Kim and children Lauren, Emily and Carter run a herd of purebred Red Angus cattle under the KC Cattle Co. name.

Considerations When Buying Your Next Bull Borrowing from Harlan Hughes, beef industry economist, the single most important factor influencing the cow-calf producer’s bottom line is the unit cost of production (UCOP). This is determined by dividing the total costs of maintaining the herd by the total pounds of weaned calf produced by that herd.

The UCOP is often reported as dollars per 100 weight of calf which then makes it very easy to determine profitability when comparing it with market price. Simply put, producers with the greatest difference between market price and UCOP are the most profitable. Neither the lowest cost nor the highest weaning weight producer are necessarily the most profitable.

Since costs are largely determined by the number of cows, and gross income is determined by the pounds of calf sold it is logical that the most important variable influencing the UCOP is pounds of weaned calf per cow exposed to bulls. With market prices the way they are today extra pounds of weaned calf translate into huge profits real quick.

More available dollars in the beef cow-calf sector present some exciting opportunities for investment in herd genetics.

Improvements in herd productivity through purchased females is very slow - bulls are by far the most effective way to introduce desirable traits into a beef herd. Selecting bulls based only on the need to get the cows pregnant is arguably a survival tactic that wasn’t even defensible when our industry was on its knees. Good bulls were justifiable then and even more so today. You cannot expect your herd to perform any better than the bulls you select.

Moving forward and improving on what you already have should be the goal of any business. Don’t miss out on opportunity!

The compounding effect of sire selection decisions is amazing.

The bulls you turned out last year will contribute half of the genetic material to the calves born this spring. Quite simple really - half from the sire and half from the dam. However, the sire, maternal grandsire and maternal great grandsire together account for nearly 90% (87.5% to be exact) of a calf’s DNA. If the great grand sire was first used in 2010 and produced a crop of heifers that calved as two-year olds in 2013 there will likely be a next generation of heifers calving this spring (heifers giving birth to heifers). Therefore, in most herds a four-generation photo can be possible in as little as 5 years.

I don’t think you can run any business on gut feel, intuition, or eyeballing. My mantra is you can’t manage what you don’t measure! Take a look at how your herd has been performing.

Are your pregnancy rates, disease rates, length of calving season, proportion of weaned calves and weaning weights what you expect? Are your heifer replacements performing as good as or better than previous generations of heifers? Although many management decisions can influence these parameters your choice of herd sires can have a tremendous affect.

Bulls with larger scrotal circumferences produce more sperm, are able to breed more cows and have daughters who reach puberty sooner and have greater lifetime fertility. Science has shown that herds with the highest reproductive performance routinely purchase herd sires with above average scrotal circumferences.

More calves born during the first cycle or two of the calving season means more pounds of calf at weaning time.

Expected progeny differences (EPDs), genetic (DNA) markers, carcass evaluation data and indexes are other tools that should be used to help select bulls. Weaning weight (WW) is my favourite EPD as it is the most tangible for the cow-calf producer.

Two visually identical bulls of the same breed with a 20 pound difference in their WW EPD are expected to produce calves that differ in weaning weight by an average of 20 lbs. The birth weight (BW) EPD should also be considered. Birth weight, WW and yearling weight (YW) are highly positively, correlated. Birth weight is the biggest single predictor of dystocia and more calves are lost at or around birth than at any other time. Remember, a big calf won’t be worth much if it is dead. Bulls with near the top of the breed WW EPDs, but with average or below average birth weight EPDs are becoming more prevalent. The calving easing (CE) EPD should also be examined and remember that EPDs become more accurate as performance data from progeny and other relatives is included in the calculation. Look at breed averages to see how your potential purchase stacks up. Indexes are also useful as they lend credence to the EPD’s – animals with the highest weaning weight and yearling weight EPDs within the herd should have the highest indexes for that trait.

A useful exercise for any herd that purchases registered bulls is to look up the current EPDS through the breed association website for bulls that you have used in the past. Check out how they rank in comparison with the breed average for various traits you may be interested in. Because our cattle are improving each year a bull that was superior for a trait 10 years ago may be just average today, but more importantly the EPD information and your herd performance records may help you decide what traits you may want to strengthen. I recently looked up a very influential herd sire that was born 25 years ago and was pleased to see that he still ranked well above breed average for weaning weight, yearling weight and milk.

So ... if reducing your Unit Cost of Production and maximizing your profitability interest you then using a few tools to help you select superior herd sires can pay off handsomely. Improving the genetics of your herd through bull purchases is kind of like picking low hanging fruit – lots in the basket for relatively little effort.

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Grand Champion Bull Reserve Grand Champion Bull

Ted Jansen supreme exhibit Award

Grand Champion Female Reserve Champion Female

Farmfair

Cattle Company arls Idaho Lowline Pe ith W ed ad Lo ILC

h

Ranc ad Muddy Creek MCR Lock and Lo

Grand Champion Moderator Female

Ted Jansen supreme exhibit Award

eek Ranch The Bass Muddy Cr MCR Im All About

h

dy Creek Ranc MCR Tycoon Mud

Grand Champion Moderator Bull

Highpoint Lowlines Stumbles Yukon

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mpany o Lowline Cattle Co ILC Sassy Girl Idah

Reserve Champion Moderator Bull

Reserve Champion Moderator Female

k Ranch id So Muddy Cree MCR Because I Sa

h

dy Creek Ranc MCR So What Mud

Grand Champion Bull

and Lowlines

Big Island Lowlines Alta Piper Bil 3A

BIL 22B Big Isl Alta Grand Slam

Reserve Grand Champion Bull

Grand Champion Female Reserve Grand Champion Female

IPE

ver Hills Lowlines Silver Hills Razi Sil

wlines L 15C Big Island Lo Alta Gangster BI

B.M. Lowlines Brenda & Brian Chicoine Storthoaks, SK 306.449.2290 bchicoine@sasktel.net www.bmlowlines.com

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Breeder Profile

J6 Cattle Ranch J6 Cattle Ranch started as a dream soon after Quentin and I got married in 2004. We knew that this was something we both wanted to do as we both had come from farming backgrounds, loved cattle and the country living. We decided that we would start our family first and save up.

Quentin grew up in the Spruce Grove / Stony Plain area. His family had a dairy farm for many years and then they got out of dairy when Quentin was about 12. I (Karin) grew up in Winchester, Ontario. My parents had a small dairy farm and I loved milking cows at a young age. By the age of 16, my parents sold the cows and went into grain farming. I moved out to Alberta when I was 21. Later meeting my husband in 2009, through church and that’s when our lives became interesting.

Every year we would go to Farm Fair in Edmonton and we would walk around looking at cattle, thinking, dreaming, if we get to buy our own land, what type of cattle would we want to have? Both of us grew up on the dairy side of the cattle industry, so we knew Holsteins well, but what kind of beef would we get? We knew that getting into dairy farming would be impossible. Our families were no longer in that industry anymore, so we couldn’t just take over.

We then came upon the Lowline Breed and we were both amazed at the breed itself, the functionality of it and the ease of the breed. All of this really appealed to us and over the next few years we looked more into the breed and knew that when the time came, Lowlines is what we were going to invest in.

By 2010 we had lived on two different acreages and had four kids. In 2012 we bought our first two bred Lowline Cows and housed them on our acreage. By spring we had four Lowlines and we were starting to dream bigger.

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In September 2012 we found 180 acres north of Wabamun and we felt this is where God was leading us to, the start this dream of ours. It was a piece of land that was about 90% treed, with just some pasture land, it was kind of like pioneering. We started to build a house in March of 2013 and by September 2013 we were living on our land, starting to build on this dream. We built a lot of fence that year and the year that followed and we know that this will never end!

Over the next years we invested in buying some more cattle and growing our herd. Over the past years, we have come to appreciate this breed so much more. Their calmness, ease to handle, ease to calve and easy on the land. We are so happy and grateful for these amazing animals.

We now have mostly percentage cattle that we breed to our fullblood Lowline bulls. Our herd size is about 64 this year. We market our own steers through private sales. We have done well doing this as our customers are liking the smaller, very lean cuts of beef. Last year we also sold our first three bred heifers. It feels amazing to be at this place in our business.

We hope to grow our herd some more over the next years and get more into fullbloods and possibly into showing in the next few years.

From all of us at J6 Cattle Ranch, we look forward to growing and promoting this great breed and having our children grow up in the farming community.

Quentin, Karin, Logan, Scarlett, Skylar & Ariellia Jespersen J6 Cattle Ranch

ELLISON LOWLINES Because our herd has reached her desired size from time to time, we will have some QUALITY - HALTER-BROKE -FULL-BLOOD CALVES and/or YEARLINGS

FOR SALE

J6 Cattle RancH Quality Lowline Cattle

For more information contact: Herman Huijskamp (250) 718-9643 hermanhuyskamp@shaw.ca Located in Kelowna, BC.

J 6 Cattle Ranch Quentin & Karin Jespersen Wabamun, Alberta 780-915-4257 j6cattleranch@gmail.com

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Advertisers Index Aspen Lane Lowline Cattle..................25

Painted Post Lowlines...........................2, 15

B.M. Lowlines........................................23

Pinnacle Lowlines..................................6, 7

Big Island Lowlines...............................5

Silverhills Lowline Cattle......................11

Black River Farm...................................19

Stumbles Creek Ranch..........................8

Butterkup Farms....................................6, 7

Sunset Ranch..........................................26

Ellison Lowlines.....................................25

Wildrose Lowlines.................................9

Hell Billy Ranch.....................................25 Highpoint Lowlines...............................12

Full Blood Lowline Cattle

Honeybrook Lowlines...........................27 Idaho Lowline Cattle Company...........13 J6 Cattle Ranch......................................25 Muddy Creek Ranch.............................2, 14

Breeding Stock for Sale

Martin Beaulieu L’islet, QC P: 418-247-7839 martin.beaulieu@ouellet.com

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New Genetics: Australian embryos one of a kind in North Amarica Ardrossan Oo La LA by Ardrossan Overcast: HNB The Answer HNB Calling Baton Rouge Co Owned With MCR in Montana: HNB The Thunder Rolls

Watch for them in the show ring!

HNB Calling Baton Rouge

HNB The Answer Reserve Bull Calf Champion Farmfair National Lowline Show

Fullblood Heifers, Bulls & Select Bred Cows For Sale

Honeybrook Uluru Semen Available Approved for international export Average Birthweight on Fullblood calves 55 lbs.

Select Fullblood Bulls Available

HNB Dust on the Bottle

Melissa at 4H with her Lowline 50% steer, cow calf pair: Dam is a Honeybrook Uluru daughter Calf is off of HNB Titan a 50% lowline bull Blue Hiefer is also an Uluru Daughter: HNB Dust on the Bottle

James with his 50% Lowline steer at 4H finished weight 1300 lbs.

Moderator heifers available: Lowline sires on Galloway. Belgian Blue or commercial Angus cows. Our 50% Lowline cows average 1100-1300 pound mature weight and routinely wean calves well over 50% of their weights, We had a first calf heifer who weighed 900 lbs. in the fall wean a heifer calf just over 600 lbs.

Breeders of Aberdeen Plus cattle - first calves expected 2018. .

Give us a call and come visit we love to show off our cattle!

Thank you for celebrating our 20th anniversary with us!