Lowline Register 2018

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Meet Your

Canadian Lowline Association 2018-2019 Directors Cathy Monteith, President - Edam, SK We first got our Lowlines in 2010 when we bought a small herd from Ken Lindahl in Wetaskiwin. I became a director of the Canadian Lowline Association in 2012 and am Vice 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 full blood 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.

Suzanne Dumaine, Director - Millarville, AB Hello, my name is Suzanne. My husband Marc and I bought our small herd in 2014 when we also became members of the Canadian Lowline Association. This is my first year as a director.

MSD Lowlines is located near Millarville, AB, in the heart of the Foothills. We raise mainly full blood Lowlines but also have a few percentage cattle as well.

President's Message

I am sure everyone out there is as happy as we are to finally be able to go outside without parkas or other winter gear on. Calving was a challenge around us with the cold weather and there are more than a few calves missing tail tips and ear tips.

This year has been a relatively quiet one for Association business, so I do not have much to report. I have been kept busy working on the genomics project. In working on this it has struck me even more that we need to get some numbers. Not necessarily EPD – we will never be big enough to get accuracies high enough on any one bull to mean anything, but just some good data. I think that the biggest thing we need to do as a breed is simply start collecting some data, so we know where we stand now and we can guide our future.

Select where we want to go and what traits we need to show case. At minimum, I would encourage all breeders to collect birth weight, weaning weight and yearling weight. Even more important for me is carcass data and dressing percentages along with cutting percentage.

Look for ultrasound technicians near you. Get together at a central location and share mileage costs. We all know that the Lowline breed produces more pounds of beef per acre because of stocking rates and higher dressing percentages, right? But how do we know that? Do we have the numbers to show it – NO. I think this breed has a great niche in grass fed beef programs but in order to better showcase it we need data. Someone in the breed who also feels this way could step forward at the AGM and start a committee to look at how to collect this. Show prospective buyers actual data – where 900 lb. Lowline 50% cows wean out 600 lb. calves in the fall! Show that the average dressing percentage is in the low to mid 60%. We have that data here at Honeybrook Farms but one farm (2-3 bulls) and low numbers is not representative for the breed as a whole.

We are looking forward to the fall and our annual string of shows.

I would encourage everyone with any news to share – be it 4-H projects, local fairs or shows you attend – to email it to Monika Herter who is our new Association GM and she will forward to our website manager to get it out to the rest of the Association.

I would like to welcome Monika as the new GM of the Association and I would also like to send a huge Thank You to Lee Monteith who has worked hard over the last seven years as the GM. Lee decided it was time to step down. I would also like to thank Perry Richard for his time as a director on the board. Our GM and all our directors are volunteers. We need to make sure we let the folks that step up to do this know how much we appreciate them and all they do in the background.

Here at Honeybrook Farms, we had our usual crazy spring. We were not even done calving when we had Shari Leachman from Ultrabeef out to do our carcass ultrasound on the Angus and the Lowline yearlings. Then came the decision on what to do with our nine Lowline bulls from last year. In the end we kept two as bulls. The seven steers are headed for freezers in the fall. Our beef sales off farm continue to increase each year and we are selling both yearling steers for acreage folks to finish themselves as well as a few we finish here and sell as cut beef.

I would encourage anyone interested in participating more in the Association to think about running for the board of directors.

Attendance at the AGM is encouraged but in this age of technology I am sure we could make a teleconference work also. So, if you live anywhere from the east coast to the west coast please consider putting your name forward for a director position. I would be happy to chat with anyone who has questions about it. Feel free to call or text me 1-306-317-2048 or email at cmonteith@littleloon.ca.

Cathy 3

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Table of Contents

Meet Your Directors ..................................................................................... 3 President’s Message ..................................................................................... 3 Genomics Article ........................................................................................... 6 Show Round Up ........................................................................................... 9 British Columbia’s Interior Lowline Breeders............................................ 11 Canadian Lowline Cattle Association Member Directory ........................ 12 News from Quebec ..................................................................................... 15 A Breeder’s Veterinary Perspective ..................................................... 14, 20 Breeder Profiles .......................................................................................... 16 Why A Lowline - From A Junior’s Perspective .......................................... 18

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Genomics - How it works

DNA is only part of the story

the study of an organism’s DNA sequence (i.e., the genome), GenomicsGenomics - Howis it works environment DNA is The only part of and and includes the analysis of the relationship between genetics and traits.

Genomics - How it Works

management of your

the story animals play large roles in

Genomics is the studyDNA of an DNA (i.e., animal the genome), Bovine is organism’s approximately 99%sequence identical from to animal. SmallThe environment and Genomics is the study of an organism’s DNA sequence (i.e. the performance and and includes the analysis of the relationship between differences, known as ‘variants’ (aka, SNPs),genetics make theand bull,traits. cow, or calf management of your genome) and includes the analysis of the relationship between production. unique. Variations in the DNA sequences of animals can affect how they animals play large roles in anddevelop traits. 99% Bovine DNA isgenetics approximately identical from to animal to animal. Small perform, diseases, respond their environment (e.g., performance and Environment pathogens), management vaccines).

Bovine DNA isand approximately 99%(e.g., identical to calf animal. differences, known as ‘variants’ (aka, SNPs), make thefrom bull,animal cow, or production. (heat, snow, etc) Small in differences, as ‘variants’ (aka SNPs), make the bull, cow unique. Variations the DNAknown sequences of animals can affect how they

is passed from parents to offspring, andofcan be linked to certain orDNA calfdiseases, unique.

Variations intothe DNA sequences animals can affect perform, develop respond their environment (e.g., Genetics heritable production and carcass traits, such as birth weight, lean meat Environment (breed, pedigree, DNA) howmanagement they perform, develop diseases, respond to their environment pathogens), and (e.g., vaccines). yield, and more. (heat, snow, etc) (e.g. pathogens), and management (e.g. vaccines).

Management DNA is passed from parents to offspring, and canand be linked to certain Genetics DNA is passed from to offspring can be linked to certain and Tissue, blood, andparents hair roots all contain DNA, which is extracted (feed, vaccines, etc) heritable production and carcass traits, such as meat heritable production and carcass suchweight, as birthlean weight, lean in the(breed, pedigree, DNA) processed on a genotyping chiptraits, thatbirth reads thousands of variants yield, and more. bovine genome.

Genotyping looks at specific regions in the DNA. The meat yield and more. locations are chosen based on well-established research that links

blood and all haircontain roots allDNA, contain DNA,iswhich is extracted Tissue, blood,Tissue, and hair which extracted and and regions toroots expressed traits. on a genotyping chip that reads thousands of variants processed onprocessed a genotyping chip that reads thousands of variants in thein the bovine genome.looks Genotyping looksregions at specific in the DNA. bovine genome.

Genotyping at specific inregions the DNA. The The locations are chosen based on well-established research that locations are chosen based on well-established research that links links regions totraits. expressed traits. regions to expressed

Management variant

(feed, vaccines, (aka, SNP)etc) variant Variant (aka SNP) (aka, SNP)

The results The Results With regular EPDs many offspring are needed before the accuracy of prediction is high enough to

The

make strong breeding decisions. genomics theaccuracy accuracy be higher much earlier life,strong and With regular EPDs many offspring areWith needed before the ofcan prediction is high enough to in make geneticdecisions. progressWith made more quickly. breeding genomics the accuracy can be higher much earlier in life and genetic progress made results more quickly.

Accuracies quickly tell you the status of an animal; and the higher the value, the more confidence you

Accuracies tell you status an animal; andwhere the higher the value, theper more confidence you can place can placequickly in getting thethe result. ‘% of Rank’ tells you the animal ranks trait as compared to the With regular in EPDs many offspring are needed before the accuracy of prediction is high enough to gettingaverage. the result. ‘% Rank’ tells you where the animal ranks per trait as compared to the breed average. breed make strong breeding decisions. With genomics the accuracy can be higher much earlier in life, and genetic progress made more quickly.

Accuracies quickly tell you the status of an animal; and the higher the value, the more confidence you gEPDs (genomically enhanced EPDs) areinterpreted interpreted in the exact same way The gEPDs (genomically EPDs) in the exactper same way as regular regularEPDs. EPDs. Theonly only can place in getting the result. ‘%enhanced Rank’ tells youare where the animal ranks trait as as compared to the difference is that gEPDs make use of known pedigree, performance and genomic information about an difference is that gEPDs make use of known pedigree, performance and genomic information about an animal, breed average. animal, its progeny and other relatives it is the best estimate of an animal’s genetic worth as a parent. its progeny and other relatives - it is the best estimate of an animal’s genetic worth as a parent.

Genomics cancan be be used by commercial producers in allinthe waysways as foras seedstock producers, including: Genomics used by commercial producers all same the same for seedstock producers, parentage testing, controlling inbreeding / optimizing hybrid vigour, testing for lethal recessives and more. including: parentage testing, controlling inbreeding / optimizing hybrid vigour, testing for lethal and more.

If recessives, you’re enhanced interested inEPDs) learning about using yourway operation, contact your bullonly producer or gEPDs (genomically aremore interpreted in thegEPDs exact on same as regular EPDs. The Livestock Gentec (det@ualberta.ca www.livestockgentec.com). difference is that gEPDs make use of known/ pedigree, performance and genomic information about an If you’re interested in learning more about using gEPDs on your operation, contact your bull producer,

animal, its6 progeny and other relatives - it is the best estimate of an (det@ualberta.ca animal’s genetic/worth as a parent. the Canadian Limousin Association, or Livestock Gentec www.livestockgentec.com).

Genomics can be used by commercial producers in all the same ways as for seedstock producers, 2018_Lowline_Register.indd 6 including: parentage testing, controlling inbreeding / optimizing hybrid vigour, testing for lethal recessives, and more.

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The Eight Things Your Customers Want to Know About Genomics

By Dawn Trautman; Director of Knowledge Translation, Livestock Gentec, University of Alberta Breeding season is right around the corner! And a successful breeding season doesn’t just happen, but is a result of finding the right fit for the herd. The Lowline breed has much to offer both the purebred and commercial producer in terms of capitalizing on easy calving, good feed conversion and the benefits of hybrid vigour in systematic crossbreeding programs.

vaccines, etc.) of your animals play large roles in performance and production.

Technology and data are everywhere – making it difficult to know which are useful to us and to our buyers. Genomics is another tool available for the beef industry. As for communicating directly to your buyers, what information about genomics do they need to make informed choices, now? We’ve distilled down a ‘genomics overview’ into one page, that is free to use and distribute (see the next page).

7. When a commercial producer buys a bull from you they are also buying the genetic information on that bull. Specifically, commercial producers can use EnVigour HXTM offered through Delta Genomics in Edmonton to assist in optimization of their crossbreeding strategies by looking at parentage, breed composition and the Vigour score (measurement of hybrid vigour/heterosis).

Overall, there are eight main messages for you and your customers to take home and hopefully take to the bank:

6. Genomics can be used by commercial producers in all the same ways as for seedstock producers, including: parentage testing, determining breed composition, controlling inbreeding / optimizing hybrid vigour, testing for lethal recessives and more.

8. Does it work? Yes – genomics increase the accuracies of EPDs and allows you to assess traditionally hardto-measure traits.

1. Variations in DNA can be linked to heritable Using genomic information is a powerful tool, but production and carcass traits. often difficult to format in an easy to use tool. There 2. Genotyping looks at specific regions in the DNA. are layers of information to consider and there are The locations are chosen based on research that link historic methods that might seem to compete with the regions to expressed traits that are important for new technologies of today. production and performance traits.

In reality, the old and new technologies combine 3. gEPDs (genomically enhanced EPDs) are interpreted in the exact same way as regular EPDs. The only difference is that gEPDs make use of known pedigree, performance and genomic information about an animal, its progeny and other relatives. It is the best estimate of an animal’s genetic worth as a parent.

beautifully to give us a more defined picture of what we need to see. It’s traditional breeding, in ‘HD’ – genomics adds ‘high definition’ with more information – a clear picture of what you are breeding. And as in any business, information and accuracy are what count towards your bottom line.

4. When interpreting EPDs and gEPDs consider accuracies in your decision. Accuracies quickly tell you the status of an animal; the higher the value, the more confidence you can place in getting the result.

5. DNA is only part of the story. The environment (e.g. heat or cold stress) and management (e.g. feed,

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Lowline Genomics Project

By Cathy Monteith; Honeybrook Farms I would like to take the time to update everyone on the genomics project that was undertaken a number of years ago. This is a joint project between the Canadian Beef Breeds Council, the University of Alberta (Dr. John Crowley) and the Canadian Lowline Cattle Association. There was money available to the niche breeds for two projects. The first of which was completed in 2017.

The other project involves genomic EPDs. Genomic EPDs are another tool that can be added to the box for the selection of breeding animals. It does not mean the Lowline breed should not collect physical data in order to promote bulls. From the American Angus Association website: “Genomic testing is one more tool for breeders to use to more accurately predict the future performance of animals as parents in the population, but this is not a replacement to performance data recording. Phenotypic measures will always continue to be an important part in further development of improved genomic panels and the refinement of technology over time.” Genomics add the ability to increase the prediction accuracies for younger animals that do not have as many progeny. The advantage to genomic EPDs is that they are available at birth. So right from birth there is information available, for example for carcass traits. The advantage of incorporating genomic data into EPDs is that it can increase the estimates accuracy. Just how much this increase is depends on the correlation between the trait of interest and the DNA result. The American Angus Association has calculated correlations for each of the DNA enhanced traits and has them available on the website.

The Australian Angus Association thought they could simply adopt the American panels for their Angus animals but found in fact that the Australian Angus was not similar enough to the American Angus to simply just use the Igenity Gold Angus panel.

The result was that the Australians developed their own panel.

With the help of funding from the Alberta government, I have been working with John Crowley and Delta Genomics to look at what, if any, parts of the Angus Igenity Gold panel could be used to add to the tool box for Lowlines. The Lowline breed is years away from having EPDs on bulls because we do not have enough breeders collecting information. To do this study I even had trouble finding enough Canadian breeders to participate. I want to give a shout out to: Honeybrook Farms, Highpoint Aberdeen Angus and Muddy Creek Ranch which were the only breeders willing to invest in this project.

The study requires (there is still room for this year if anyone has the required information, all are welcome to participate):

1. Cohort of five animals in the same birth year of the same sex raised together.

2. Collection of data on each animal to include: calving ease, birth weight, weaning weight, yearling weight, carcass ultrasound (age 10-15 months).

3. DNA submitted for the Igenity Gold Angus panel (at a 50% reduction in price).

We have room for about 20 more animals this year and then all of the information will be submitted to John Crowley for assessment. The goal is to see what, The Angus in North America have available multiple if any, of the genomic markers used by the Angus panels that can be used to enhance EPDs on animals Association could be used for us. He may also find in their herd book. The Igenity Angus Gold is just something new that the Lowlines can use. The latter one of those panels. I know from speaking with is unlikely though. Most genomic EPD markers are Lowline breeders in the USA there are a few breeders established using data from 1000’s of animals and we that use these on their Lowlines “because Lowlines will be lucky to get data on 60. This will hopefully be come from old Angus genetics”. However, this is a enough though to validate at least some of the markers dangerous assumption when dealing with genetics. in the Angus panel for use in our breed.

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Far

mfa

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Grand Champion Female ILC Mustang Sally Idaho Livestock

Grand Champion bull ILC Locomotive Idaho Livestock

reserve Grand Champion bull

High Point Perseverance High Point Lowlines

reserve Grand Champion Female ICU GET IT POPPIN Muddy Creek Ranch

Grand Champion Moderator bull

Grand Champion moderator Female

reserve Grand Champion Moderator bull

reserve Grand Champion moderator Female

Alta Roland PAG 15D Big Island Lowlines

High Point Aviator High Point Lowlines

MCR BECAUSE I SAID SO Muddy Creek Ranch

ILC Sassy Girl Idaho Livestock

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In 1999 at Armstrong B.C.’s annual Interior Provincial Exhibition, one Lowline heifer made her debut. She was something new and different in the cattle industry. Since then Lowlines have been on display or in competition at this annual show. As the breed grows in popularity and in numbers, this fair offers an opportunity to compete and showcase a wonderful up and coming new breed of cattle.

This fair is well attended, over 151,000 people last year. There are many events to attend at this fair including a stop by the Pro Rodeo, cattle, horses, poultry, sheep, goats, swine, midway, hawkers, home crafts, a diverse food court and entertainment.

In 2016 we celebrated the 20th Anniversary and in 2018 the breed is showing well in competition and enjoys the spotlight in the Parade of Champions at the I.P.E. To date there has been almost 1300 animals registered.

We show annually at this fair and welcome any new exhibitors to join us this fall fair during the week of August 29- Sept 2, 2018. For more information on the I.P.E. visit the website at www.armstrongipe.com or phone the office at 250-546-9406 to get additional information regarding rules, regulations, show times, fees and facilities available or contact Laurie (Lowline breed rep) at 250-547-6465. See you at the fair.

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British ColumBia’s

Interior Lowline Breeders Pinnacle Lowlines Andy & Melanie Guttner Dunster, B.C. butterkupfarms@yahoo.ca Tel: 250-793-4742 est. 2008

Eagle Ridge Lowlines Sonja Guttner Fort St. John, B.C. Tel: 250-793-9761 est. 2015

Fre-Da-Ro Lowlines Willem Roell Enderby, B.C. est. 2017

Fort St. John Dawson Creek 4J Lowlines Colby & Megan Jackson Falkland, B.C. Prince Rupert 4jlowlines@gmail.com est. 2016

Outlaw Acres

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Deb & Chip Wood Enderby, B.C. Cell: 250-305-6162 est. 2016

Prince George 97

Dunster

Interior Provincial Exhibition

B.C.’s Premier Agricultural Show

Falkland Enderby Armstrong Kamloops Lumby Vernon Kelowna Penticton

Armstrong, B.C. Tel: 250-546-9406 www.armstrongipe.com 119th – Dates: Aug 29 – Sept 2, 2018

legend: Breeding Stock

Meat Sales

Victoria Ellison Lowlines Kelowna, B.C. hermanhuyskamp@shaw.ca Cell: 250-718-9643 est. 2009

Silverhills Lowlines Laurie Brunsdon & Kevin Tiede Lumby, B.C. littlecow@telus.net Tel: 250-547-6465 est. 1999

IPE Banner Sponsor

Lloyd Thompson Lowlines IPE Participant

Kelowna, B.C. Tel: 250-807-2607 est. 2016 11

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Canadian Lowline Cattle Association Member Directory CANADA�USA•Europe British Columbia Andy & Melanie Guttner Pink Mountain, BC butterkupfarms@yahoo.ca

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

Kevin Tiede Lumby, BC littlecow@telus.net

Herman Huijskamp Kelowna, BC 250-765-2126 hermanhuyskamp@shaw.ca

Nevin Creek Lowlines Agassiz, BC 604-703-9992

Debbie & Chip Wood Enderby, BC 250-305-6162 ducati_35@hotmail.com

Colby & Megan Jackson Falkland, BC 250-379-2527 4jlowlines@gmail.com Charlie & Bryan Jacques 604-756-0946 Abbotsford, BC cjacques@shaw.ca

Silver Hills Lowline Cattle Lumby, BC 250-547-6465 littlecow@telus.net Lloyd Thompson Kelowna, BC

250-807-2607

250-547-6465

Junior Members Jax Jackson Falkland, BC

250-379-2527

Nash Jackson Falkland, BC

250-379-2527

Alberta Pat Andrusiak & Gordon Young Star, AB 780-895-2715 pandrusiak@mcsnet.ca Lyle & Gwen Black Westlock, AB 780-307-3607 lblack@mcsnet.ca Marc & Suzanne Dumaine Millarville, AB 403-931-9121 suzid@shaw.ca www.msdlowlines.com

Paul B Gotaas Edmonton, AB drgotaas@telus.net www.lowline.net

780-434-8059

Pete Gummo & Joan Berry Lindale, AB 780-515-1284 diamondacres55@gmail.com Quentin & Karin Jespersen Duffield, AB 7780-915-4257 j6cattleranch@gmail.com

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

Mary Peevey Drumheller, AB 403-823-9560 mary2602@telus.net

Darrell & Barbara Gotaas Edmonton, AB 780-486-7553 gotaasfamily@rogers.com

Karen & Ronald Sobey Sturgeon County, AB 780-939-5812 rksobey@aol.com

Junior Members

Colt Calvert Drayton Valley, AB mtbarz@gmail.com

780-514-4026

Scarlett Jespersen Duffield, AB 7780-915-4257 Logan Jespersen Duffield, AB

7780-915-4257

Logan McInroy Ardrossan, AB 780-922-4698 mctamara1@hotmail.com Cameron Mosher 780-721-2338 Evansburg, AB camosher98@gmail.com Emilie Skippen Sherwood Park, AB 780-922-3704

Saskatchewan Brian & Brenda Chicoine Storthoaks, SK 306-449-2290 bchicoine@sasktel.net www.bmlowlines.com

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

Junior Members

Cathy & Lee Monteith Edam, SK 306-397-2584 cmonteith@littleloon.ca www.honeybrook.ca

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

James Monteith Edam, SK

306-397-2584

Melissa Monteith Edam, SK

306-397-2584

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

Abbey Webber Estevan, SK 306-461-8250 abbeywebber@hotmail.com

Dane Hogg Estevan, SK 306-461-8250 abbeywebber@hotmail.com

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Manitoba

Quebec

Karen Wheelans Pierson, MB 204-634-2375 karene7@mynetset.ca

Martin Beaulieu L’islet, QC 418-247-7839 martin.beaulieu@ouellet.com Camille Talbot Mirabel, QC 450-434-6245 camtalbot@hotmail.com

Ontario Jeffrey & Karen Beitz Hanover, ON 519-364-3648 clydebeitz@gmail.com Susan Jenkins Garafraxa, ON 519-928-5305 susantjenkins@xplornet.com Jean-François Morin Alton, ON 514-758-5651 jeanfrancoismorin255@gmail.com

Prince Edward Island Judy Burgoyne & Michael Landry Crapaud, PE 902-658-2570 ridinintherein@gmail.com Margaret Younker Brackley, PE 902-368-1501 huntervalleyfarm@hotmail.com

U.S.A. Bryce Barker Berthoud, CO svfsales@mail.com

970-691-0623

Idaho Livestock Hayden, ID 208-215-4460 ilccdi@yahoo.com www.Idaholowlinecattlecompany.com

United Kingdom

Ike’s Ranch LLC McCall, ID 208-315-1353 scottikier@gmail.com www.ikesranch.com

V Huggins Hippley 0-239-236-2060 Hambleton val@widewallsfarm.co.uk

Steve Jones & Richard Pilkington Flintshire sjones0904@btinternet.com

Robert Lewin Melbourne 017-5931-8203 East Yorkshire boblewin@fastmail.fm

John Whalley Saffron Walden 44-1799-540066 Essex johnwhalley01@gmail.com

Muddy Creek Ranch Wilsall, MT 406-578-2363 info@muddycreekranchlowlines.com muddycreekranchlowlines.com

Germany Antonia Hornischer Pegnitz

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Understanding And Using EPDS

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xpected Progeny Difference (EPD) numbers are a valuable tool when selecting breeding stock. Where do these EPD numbers come from? How do I use them? To the uninitiated, the number of EPD values available can seem overwhelming. Counting carcass and ultrasound traits which have subcategories such as marbling, ribeye area, etc. there are over a dozen different traits that you can select for using EPDs and that number is likely to grow. They can be as daunting as looking at a financial statement if you don’t know what the numbers mean or how they were generated.

Some may believe that EPDs are yesterday’s news; genes/genetic markers are the way to go! EPDs have been around since the 1980’s and are made possible only because of incredible advances in computer technology. The identification of genes and EPDs both have a place in animal selection, but represent different branches of the science of genetics. EPDs fall into what is known as quantitative genetics; whereby, through complex calculations the genetic component of measurable traits like body weight is determined. Identifying and studying the influence of individual genes is molecular genetics which is a much newer and rapidly expanding field that looks at the function and interactions of genes. In many cases the molecular side is helping to explain differences in EPDs, but we still have only hit the tip of the iceberg in molecular genetics. EPDs are more of a big picture tool for genetic selection and will remain so until we figure out how all of these genes interact and how they interact in various environmental situations.

A common misunderstanding is that EPDs predict actual performance of the animal. Two key words are average and progeny! They actually predict the average performance of the animal’s progeny. They are not designed to predict the animals own performance and they will not predict uniformity in the calf crop. In other words, you can still have great calves and not-so great calves, but on average the calves from a bull with a higher EPD for a growth trait than his same-breed contemporary should perform better. You also can’t compare EPDs between breeds; only within a breed.

How animals perform is determined not only by genetics, but also by how they are raised.

Pasture, creep feeding, how the dam milks, weather, disease, parasites and so on can all play a role in how fast the calf grows. Calves

from a single AI sire in one herd may weigh more at weaning than calves from the same bull in another herd, so it is important that groups of calves are compared as fairly as possible, accounting for these differences in management. Within your own herd this is usually pretty straight-forward if all calves go to the same pasture, just don’t forget to compare bulls, heifers, steers and twins separately. However, to calculate EPDs, this information must be entered into a computer program designed to account for these differences and to keep track of all of this animal’s relatives. Heritability of trait is also considered when calculating EPDs and is a scientifically determined estimate of, for example, how much the difference between the yearling weights of two calves is due to genetics. So for yearling weight the heritability is approximately 40%; therefore, 60% of the difference is due to feeding, etc. If a yearling bull has an adjusted 365 day weight that is 100 lbs heavier than the average of the others in the evaluation then only 40 lbs of that difference is consider to be due to genetics.

Now that young bull will only account for ½ of the genetic makeup of his calf crop so his EPD for yearling weight is only +20 lbs based on his performance information alone. However, this is only part of the story. Calculating EPDs requires performance information from not only the animal in question, but also as many relatives as possible. As the animal matures and has progeny of its own that information is included and really enhances the accuracy of the EPDs. EPDs are recalculated with every calf crop and the more information that is received from successive generations the more accurate or reliable the EPDs become.

Traits like birth weight, weaning weight and yearling weight are correlated so that must be accounted for too. Accuracy values are often listed below the respective EPD. The higher the number the less chance there is that the EPD will change very much with subsequent calf crops which means that the average performance of that animal’s calves is not going to vary much from what was seen previously. Young bulls will have EPDs with low accuracies so it is not uncommon to see their EPDs change over time. Sometimes for the better; sometimes not. Sires with large numbers of progeny as is often the case with AI sires will have the most accurate EPDs. If you maintain a herd of purebred cattle composed of relatively obscure cow families and never submit any performance information then EPDs for your animals are not going to be very useful to anyone. There is simply not a lot there to substantiate those numbers.

For most commercial cattlemen, there are really only four EPDs they need to look at: birth weight (BW); weaning weight (WW); yearling weight (YW); and milk. The others, with perhaps the exception of the carcass traits, are more useful for purebred breeders. Birth weight is the best predictor of calving ease and the birth weight EPD is more reliable then looking at the bull’s own birth weight. A bull with a 65 lb, birth weight may have been born early, may be a twin or could have been born to a heifer. These sorts of things are accounted for in the EPD calculation. Weaning weight and yearling weight are easily measured performance traits. A bull with a 10 lb. higher weaning EPD then another bull of the same breed will sire calves that weigh an average of 10 lbs. more at weaning. The milk EPD is a maternal EPD. What this means is that it is predicting the performance of the animal’s daughters, not the sons. The daughters of a bull with a +20 milk EPD would be expected to wean calves that weighed 10 lbs. more than a bull with a +10 milk EPD. Obviously, the sons don’t produce milk, but they can pass on superior traits to the next generation. If you want more milk in your herd choose sires with higher milk EPDs. Comparing animal to animal when looking through the sale catalogue is one way to use EPDs; another is to compare to the breed average usually also posted in the sale catalogue. It is important to realize that the breed average does not mean that the average animal possesses that particular set of numbers rather that is the average for each individual trait. If you are looking for a heifer bull then compare the birth weight EPDs to the average birth weight EPDs for the breed.

One of the most common mistakes I see is the tendency to focus on only one trait when selecting bulls versus balanced trait selection. Cattlemen in the market for a heifer bull will focus on a calving ease breed and then look for a bull with a low birth weight EPD. Likewise, I have seen bulls selected for use on heifers with breed leading WW and YW EPDs. With the exception of what we call curve benders these traits are related. Bulls with really high WW EPDs generally have BW EPDs well above average. Determine which traits are important to you, then choose acceptable EPD ranges for those traits and realize that tradeoffs may have to be made.

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.

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News from Quebec As my herd had grown to the size I had originally planned, 2017 was going to be my first year to start promoting and selling breeding stock.

Ayant atteint la grosseur de troupeau que j’avais planifiée en démarrant mon élevage, 2017 était ma première année de commercialisation de bêtes d’élevage.

I was invited to present a cow and her bull calf at the SaintHyacinthe Expo. The organizers made them an attraction of their show, using the bull in their advertising. This generated some interest but not as much as ads placed in Kijiji and LesPAC (a French craigslist).

Les organisateurs de l’Expo de Saint-Hyacinthe m’ont demandé de participer au Salon des races. Ils ont utilisé mon petit taureau pour faire la promotion de l’événement. L’Expo de SaintHyacinthe a généré de l’intérêt pour la race bovine Lowline mais pas autant que les annonces parues dans Les PACS et Kijiji.

I got inquiries from all over Quebec. Some were looking for petting animals but most were hobby farmers that were looking for a few cows to start their herds. Overall Lowlines generated a lot of calls and visits. This is very promising.

J’ai reçu des appels de partout au Québec. Plusieurs étaient des propriétaires de fermette qui cherchaient quelques bêtes pour démarrer un élevage. Certains recherchaient un animal de compagnie. En général, les Lowline ont attiré plusieurs visiteurs ce qui est très encourageant.

One inquiry stood out. A Quebec City part time farmer came to visit with the goal of finding a bull to breed his full-size Angus with the objective of reducing his cattle size. Although I knew of moderator cattle, it surprised me that a Quebec breeder would see the potential in Lowline crosses.

I had heard a number of times that Quebec breeders were always looking for the biggest possible animals, a trend that may be about to change. So, if all goes well we should be able to see Lowlines x Angus crossbreeds in 2019 in Quebec.

J’ai reçu une visite surprenante d’un producteur de Lévis qui élève des Angus de grandeur normale. Il était à la recherche d’un taureau pour son troupeau qui lui permettrait de réduire leur grosseur. J’ai été surpris qu’il voit le potentiel des Lowline.

Au Québec, les producteurs cherchent généralement les plus gros animaux possibles, mais peut-être que cela va changer.

Donc, si tout va bien, nous verrons bientôt des bêtes croisées Lowline et Angus dans la belle province.

Martin Beaulieu • L’islet, QC

P: 418-247-7839 • martin.beaulieu@ouellet.com

Full Blood Lowline Cattle

Breeding Stock for Sale

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Lowline Breeder ProfileS

Cedarview Farms

We are Jeff and Karen Beitz, we have two boys, Ashton and Owen.

Cedarview Farms is 100 acres outside Hanover, Ontario where we have hay crops and pasture to raise our Lowline Angus cattle and registered Clydesdales. There are a few registered breeders within Ontario. It helps to invest in a breed that was uncommon in Ontario. This decision was challenging due to the lack of availability of the registered stock, but we’re up to the challenge and like the smaller framed cattle.

We had begun with miniature Herefords but there were issues with the undesirable calving and temperament. Then we looked into other smaller framed animals and Lowlines came into the picture. Besides, no one has heard of a Hereford burger but everyone has heard of an Angus burger.

We began to research their breeding, calving and temperament. We were amazed with the breed in itself, their easy calving and all around gentle nature and vigorous growth. Our first registered Lowline was purchased four years ago. We started with a Lowline bull hoping that would relieve some of the calving issues in the Herefords and it did somewhat. Then we got some percentage cows within Ontario and that seemed to work out much better. We could not believe how easy calving they were and how aggressive and persistent the calves were to get up and drink. This is when we decided the Herefords have to go. We contacted Lee and Cathy Monteith and they were very helpful and have set us up with some nice registered cows and a replacement bull. Today we own six registered cows, two heifers and a bull. Our two boys also started with percentage cows and now have registered cows as well. We have sold most of our percentage stock but have three remaining. We will use their offspring for butchering purposes. We have no problems selling our beef, buyers are extremely satisfied and are return buyers. We like to have both registered and unregistered stock here.

We get calls inquiring about the Lowlines often. We are hoping to get our herd built up to about 20 registered cows.

Jeff, Karen, Ashton and Owen Beitz • Cedarview Farms

Ellison Lowlines

Ellison Lowlines, nestled in the heart of the picturesque Okanagan Valley, has been a member of the Canadian Lowline Cattle Association since 2009. We have registered Lowline breeding stock and are active IPE Banner Sponsors and participants.

I, Herman Huijskamp, owner and proprietor of Ellison Lowlines, became involved with cattle after I retired. Over the years, I’ve had both Dexter and Hereford cattle, but Lowlines are my favourite cattle breed.

Compared to their larger cousins, Lowlines do less damage to pasture and do not need extra strong fencing. As a hobby farmer, moreover, what really attracted me to Lowlines is their smarts and how easy they are to handle. They are fast learners and halter training with Lowlines, for example, is a lot of fun.

We breed full-blood Black Angus Lowlines and currently have about 20 head on a 10-acre property. This means our herd is complete and that we have cows for sale from time to time. While I enhance their diet with hay and mineral supplements, their kind temperament makes Lowlines a perfect choice for a modestly sized property like ours.

I am very passionate about the Lowline pedigree and over the past decade or so I have tried to breed Lowlines to adhere as closely as I can to their standard of perfection. One of my proudest achievements in this came in 2014 when I was honoured with “Champion Heifer Calf ” at the 115th National Interior Provincial Exhibition in Armstrong, B.C. 16

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- Strong, Independent and Fiercely Maternal -

Marc & Suzanne Dumaine Box 51 Site 2 RR 1 Millarville, Alberta T0L 1K0

403-931-9121 | 403-819-1197

www.msdlowlines.com

NEW

Introducing our new herd sire

Honeybrook True Grit

Come For Coffee And Cattle. Our Gate Is Always Open!

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Ashton Beitz I like my Lowline because they are quiet tempered, easy to calve and they are polled, therefore no horns to deal with.

Hello, my name is Ashton Beitz; I am 11 years old. I live in Hanover, Ontario with my parents and brother. I go to Holy Family School and I am in Grade 5.

I got my first percentage cow when I was six years old and I sold her. Now I have a cow, Guilty that I bought from Cathy and Lee Monteith. I thank Cathy and Lee for offering me Guilty at a discounted price. We went to see them two years ago and they are really nice people. Guilty was shown as a calf so she is really friendly. Guilty was the first one to calve here, on March 11. Guilty had a bull calf and his name is Charge. He weighed 53 pounds and was 23 inches tall. She calved in the barn where it was nice and dry. Guilty is 100% Lowline Angus.

My other interests are dirt biking, I have an 80 Honda bike. I play soccer during the summer.

Ashton Beitz

Owen Beitz Hi, why I fell in love with the Lowline breed, mainly because of their size and their docile disposition.

My name is Owen Beitz and I am nine years old. I live in Hanover, Ontario with my parents and brother. I got my first heifer when I was four years old. We still have her but I sold her to my parents. I now have a cow and heifer calf.

The cow’s name is Bilyara and the heifer’s name is Milly. Her weight at birth was 61 pounds and height was 24.5 inches. Bilyara is very friendly and she is halter broke. We bought Bilyara in calf from Cathy and Lee Monteith, which I would like to thank them for offering her to me. I go in the pen every night to go pet her and Milly if they are there. Bilyara loves apples, carrots and grain.

My other interests are dirt biking and I play soccer during the summer. I go to Holy Family School in Hanover. I would like to get more registered Lowlines.

Owen Beitz

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Scarlett Jespersen Hi, my name is Scarlett Jespersen. Our family owns J6 Cattle Ranch. Last year was my first year in 4-H and I used a 50% Lowline Hereford cross as my steer, that we raised on the farm. I did really well in the conformation classes with him. The reason I like the Lowline breed is because they are easy to handle and work with.

This 4-H year I have a fullblood heifer that I will be showing, along with a 50% Lowline/Angus steer.

Logan Jespersen Hi, my name is Logan Jespersen, I am 12 years old. This is my second year in 4-H. This year for 4-H I have a fullblood Lowline steer that I am using, that we have also raised on the farm. I like the Lowline breed because they are small and easy going.

I am hoping that with showing Lowlines more people will also know about the breed and realize how great of a breed that they are.

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ed A Bre

er ’s...

e v i t c e Persp

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By Dr. Co

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very spring I think of an old line passed down from my father to me – “A wet May and dry June are what you need for a good hay crop”. This year record low levels of precipitation were set for many areas of the prairies for both May and June with a couple of frosts in June doing their best to clobber already suffering plants. One of our hay fields yielded a third of the production of last year; however, others are much less fortunate experiencing complete hay crop failure. My pessimistic side figures the perfect hay growing year has not been seen in a while - too wet, too cold, too dry and too hot seems to be the best way to describe what has occurred over the last several seasons.

Hey! Making of the best of a less than perfect situation is what we are good at, right?

Two of the many great things about our industry is the ability of our animals to utilize feedstuffs that are useless for most other beasts and that most of the cattle are neighbored with an even larger crop sector. Many crops have been hit hard by the drought conditions leading to poor emergence and delayed maturity. A late August or early September frost is a not all that infrequent in most jurisdictions so a crop demise may be the salvation for the cattleman. Even without frost damage some crops look so bad that harvesting for forage should be considered saving the cost of combining and grain handling. Given the feed value of the crop, the available tonnage and the dollars in the cattle sector these days a poor growing season could be turned into a win-win for the beef producer and the grain farmer.

Information regarding time to harvest, crop values and ration balancing are

Winter Feed Alternatives

available from ag industry specialists and websites; however, there is almost no limit to what can be fed including field peas and canola. Field peas offer an excellent source of protein and even if the crop has been harvested the pea vines or straw can be baled and used as cattle feed. Peas are best harvested (highest feed value) when the pods first start to wrinkle. Canola is ideally harvested late flower to mid-pod, but has a tendency to take several days to dry down and because of the high sulfur content it must be used with other feeds. Sulfur can be directly poisonous to cattle, but this usually occurs with accidental exposure to elemental sulfur. Naturally increased sulfur concentrations in feed are most likely to interfere with copper and selenium availability. If cut at the right stage canola can be comparable to alfalfa hay, but its value declines substantially with plant maturity. Too much canola forage and cattle do not perform very well so limiting it to no more than 50% of the ration is a good idea.

Cereal crops intended for green feed should be harvested at the late milk to soft dough stages, but if they have been hit by a hard frost then about 10 days should elapse to allow the nitrate levels to decline in the plant. Nitrate may also accumulate in any heavily fertilized crop unrelated to a frost situation, for example - corn and canola. If you are concerned about nitrate levels submit a representative sample of harvested material for analysis. Concentrations greater than 1% definitely require feed management; however, animals should not be exposed to large quantities of feeds containing more than 0.5% nitrate if they have not been consuming nitrate containing feed already. Feeding smaller amounts frequently is better

than feeding a large amount in 1 or 2 feedings. Mixing higher nitrate forages with low nitrate forages through grinding and mixing is the best way to handle nitrate intake. Offering a high nitrate bale and a low nitrate bale at the same time is a recipe for disaster.

Animals should be carefully exposed to nitrate containing feeds over 1 or 2 weeks. Damp or wet nitrate containing feeds are particularly dangerous as the nitrate has already been converted to the more toxic nitrite. Nitrates by themselves irritate the gut lining causing gastroenteritis; however, it is nitrite produced from nitrate before ingestion, or within the rumen that is more lethal.

Nitrite is more toxic to cattle than sheep because sheep are better at converting nitrite to ammonia in the rumen. Nitrite competes with oxygen for attachment to hemoglobin in the blood, thereby preventing the movement of oxygen to the tissues effectively suffocating the animal. The most common signs are trouble breathing – gasping and rapid shallow respiration; muscle tremors; staggering and blue/purple mucus membranes. Animals eventually go down and exhibit convulsions before death. Signs of toxicity occur within 6 hours of ingestion with death occurring within 12 to 24 hours.

Cattle producers may also consider including cereal straw in the ration.

Straw is usually readily available and with a proper feed analysis can be incorporated into most cattle rations with the addition of supplementary protein, mineral and vitamins.

When considering the typical yield of straw, the fertilizer value, baling costs and so on straw will pencil out as a much cheaper alternative to hay this year.

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.

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Kitewood Lowline Angus

Small herd of Lowline Angus bred from proven imported females and using AI Sires.

Stock occasionally for sale.

J6 Cattle RancH Quality Lowline Cattle

Kitewood Lowlines are elite members of the Premium Health Scheme and accredited free of BVD, IBR and Leptospirosis.

Neospora and Johnes disease tests were also negative.

Vall Huggins

J6 Cattle Ranch Quentin & Karin Jespersen Wabamun, Alberta 780-915-4257 j6cattleranch@gmail.com

Barn Farm, Hipley, Hambledon Hampshire Ph: 0-239-263-2060 • netherhallfarm@hotmail.com

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Advertiser’s Index Aspen Lane Lowline Cattle............... 21

J6 Cattle Ranch................................. 21

Big Island Lowlines ..................... OBC

Jackson Family Farm........................ 17

Black River Farm................................ 4

Kitewood Lowline Angus ............... 21

B.M. Lowlines ................................ IFC

MSD Lowlines .................................. 17

Hellbilly Ranch ................................ 21

Stumbles Creek Ranch .................. IBC

Idaho Lowlines .................................. 5

Sunset Ranch ................................... 15

Coming Events 119th Interior Provincial Exhibition & Stampede Armstrong, B.C. August 29 to September 2, 2018

Farmfair International Edmonton, AB November 7 to 11, 2018

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r e C e s k e l Ran b m u c t S Angus

h

Lowline

Lowline

S C

Chapman Rito Legacy 4531B

Aberdeen Plus Alta Roscoe Bil 114T

MCR Paparazzi

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

Full Angus, 3/4 Angus and Aberdeen Plus. All from quality registered stock.

Striving to perfect Aberdeen Plus

Working to breed better

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

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As Big Island Lowlines approaches our 20 Year Anniversary we continue to showcase a herd of Quality, Performance and Increasing Diversity!

Our program continues to use AI, Embryo Transplanting and careful Herd Bull selection to achieve these results.

Red and Black Fullbloods are for sale and Red, Black, Solid and Speckle Colored Percentage Lowline are for sale as well!

We wish to thank all those who have in the past and continue to encourage and support Big Island through their purchases.

ALTA Red Rocket BIL 332C

ALTA Red Bull BIL 42D

Reserve Champion Fullblood Senior Bull - 2018 Houston International American Aberdeen Show Reserve Senior Champion Fullblood Bull - 2017 Canadian National Lowline Show

Champion Fullblood Yearling Bull - 2018 Houston International American Aberdeen Show Reserve Junior Champion Fullblood - 2017 Canadian National Lowline Show Champion Fullblood Bull Calf - 2017 IPE Lowline Show

ALTA Aries BIL 86E

Grand Champion Fullblood Aberdeen Bull - 2018 Houston International American Aberdeen Show

ALTA Roland PAG 15D

Champion PercentageYearling Bull - 2018 Houston International American Aberdeen Show Grand Champion Moderator Bull -2017 Canadian National Lowline Show Champion Percentage Bull Calf -2016 Canadian National Lowline Show

Please contact us for information on opportunities and purchases related to the breed.

ALL Jammed Up 00B

Reserve Champion Yearling Bull - 2017 National Western Stock Show

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