The last few months have been pretty exciting for Nordal Limousin & Angus and the Limousin breed. Their bull Greenwood Canadian Impact ET, raised by Greenwood Limousin, had quite a fall run. Grand Champion bull at Lloydminster Stockade Roundup, Farmfair International and Canadian Western Agribition, along with Supreme Champion at Farmfair. The final feather in the cap — being named 2017 RBC Supreme Challenge Champion bull at Canadian Western Agribition, walking away with a cheque for $10,000. This is the first time that a Limousin bull has won the Supreme bull title at Farmfair International and going on to win the Supreme title at Agribition.
Read Also
Body condition, nutrition and vaccination for brood cows
One of the remarkable events of the past century related to ranching has been the genetic evolution of brood cows….
Like most overnight sensations, the hard work started much earlier and rarely starts the day before. Canadian Impact was picked back in 2015 for $87,000 from the Greenwood pen for the power and performance Rob Garner initially saw. This Total Impact 54T son out of a Frontier 507R daughter, Greenwood Wisteria Lane proved to be everything and more. Canadian Impact ended up being a massive bull at 2,779 pounds with a real quiet disposition. With semen interests from Australia and across Canada, other breeders saw his genetic value last fall. His son Greenwood Electric Impact was Reserve Grand Champion at Canadian Western Agribition. The Toronto Royal Agricultural Winter Fair saw Impact siring the Reserve Grand Champion Limousin female EXE Luvly 1E, exhibited by Enright Farms. Brandon Ag Ex had an Impact son EMF Either Way 15E, exhibited by Eden Meadows Farm named Reserve Grand Champion Limousin Bull. Canadian Limousin genetics and Greenwood Canadian Impact in particular are making a huge impact around the world. Congratulations to Nordal Limousin and Greenwood Limousin for writing a little piece of Limousin history.
This March Ward’s Red Angus held their annual bull sale. This was the 10th sale hosted by Clarke and Denise Ward of Saskatoon, Sask., and their sons Cole and Josh. Bulls sold well with lots of buyers and people in attendance considering the winter storm in the area. The highlight was the donation heifer Ward’s C Eva 30E going towards Jerrett Seck’s treatment at the Neurological Relief Centre in Fayetteville, Arkansas. This heifer was donated by Cole Ward to help out Seck, his former Regina Thunder football teammate and friend diagnosed with the debilitating CRPS (Complex Regional Pain Syndrome). CRPS is a malfunction in the central nervous system that signals excruciating, debilitating pain to the brain. This condition can arise after an injury or procedure. Seck was initially injured during a game in September 2015 causing a pain in his left leg. He started off on crutches but within a year had no function in his left leg. In May 2017, the pain spread and paralyzed three of his limbs, leaving him completely bedridden. With no success in Canada from a neuro modulator being surgically implanted, the decision was made to head to the Neurological Relief Centre in Arkansas for a 10-week treatment program.
Tickets were sold Dutch auction style at the bull sale with $21,010 raised and the heifer being won by Rob Voice of Bohrson Marketing. Voice donated the heifer back with Dwein and Brenda Trask of Blind Creek Ranch purchasing the heifer for $5,000, which was donated to the cause. Seck thanked everybody who contributed as he was able to watch the sale on DLMS from his hospital bed. The final amount of $26,010 will help Seck get the treatment he needs but his battle is far from over. To learn more about Seck’s ongoing journey visit their gofundme page.
Save the date for the Canadian Charolais Association (CCA) annual general meeting being held in the picturesque Georgian Bay region in Ontario June 8-9, 2018. In addition to formal meetings of the CCA, the Ontario Charolais Association will be hosting breeders from across the country on a series of informative herd and farm tours highlighting some of the area’s most progressive farm operations, including Schaus Land and Cattle Ltd. For more information check out the Canadian Charolais Association website.
The Young Canadian Simmental Association (YCSA) held its second TEAM Leadership Conference February 22-24 in Calgary. A total of 22 youths participated from across the country. Participants took part in educational and fun tours, workshops and heard from leading industry speakers. Highlights included a visit to the Canada Beef Center of Excellence for a delicious lunch highlighting the taste of Canadian beef, a tour of the Davis Rairdan Embryo Transplant operation; fun activities including archery tag and bowling, and speakers Brenda Schoepp, Dr. Cody Creelman, Sue Giles from Canadian Cattle Identification Agency, Ben Campbell from the Young Cattlemen’s Council, Stacey Domolewki from Beef Cattle Research Council and Marty Seymour from Farm Credit Canada.
Sue Giles joined the team at the Canadian Simmental Association (CSA) as programs co-ordinator effective March 15. Sue grew up on a purebred Simmental farm and then headed off to Lakeland College where she studied livestock production. She currently lives at Brooks, Alta., where she and her husband and his family operate a 1,000-head cow-calf commercial herd. For the past 10 years Giles had been employed by the Canadian Cattle Inspection Agency and now looks forward to adding her skillset towards working for the CSA and its membership. She can be reached at [email protected].
Shayla Chappell is the new registry/member services assistant with the Canadian Limousin Association. She comes from a commercial cow-calf operation and is a graduate of Lakeland College’s animal science and agribusiness programs. Chappell will join Dallas Wise and Laura Ecklund in serving members of both the Canadian Limousin Association and Canadian Shorthorn Association.
While the Canadian Angus Association (CAA) celebrates 50 years of Red Angus registrations on April 3, 2018, Red Angus have been in Canada much longer than 50 years, and that is also worth celebrating. The first record of Red Angus in Canada is the importation of a red cow from Scotland in 1886. Rancher Matthew Cochrane imported Red Angus from Scotland in 1889 for his ranch west of Calgary.
Volume I of the Canadian Angus Herdbook was published in 1908. Red Angus females were included but red males were excluded. On March 15, 1921, the CAA bylaws were amended and all Red Angus cattle were excluded. This decision would stand until April 3, 1968, when the minister of agriculture officially announced Red Angus cattle eligible for registration.
Although Red Angus were not eligible for registration in the Canadian herdbook during the intervening years, several breeders accumulated herds of Red Angus cattle and registered them with the Red Angus Association of America after it was chartered in 1954. When Red cattle were once again permitted in the Canadian Angus herdbook, the supply of Canadian-born Red Angus was very limited and breeders turned to the U.S. to find breeding stock.
The Mackenzie Bros. of Alberta were the first to import Red Angus males and females from the U.S. They purchased one herd sire, Beckton Larkebelang 130, one cow-calf pair and two bred heifers from Beckton Stock Farm in Wyoming in 1962. This breeding stock came from Red Angus pioneers Waldo and Sally Forbes who were instrumental in the formation of the Red Angus Association of America. Two years later in 1964, Don Mackenzie sold the first Red Angus bull in Canada.
When the Canadian Angus herdbook was opened to Red Angus in 1968, the association offered to register all Red Angus cattle under the age of 24 months at the lowest price point, allowing Red Angus breeders an affordable opportunity to populate the herdbook and register their herds.
In 1969 Mark Mackenzie had the first Canadian-registered Red Angus bull to sell at auction in Canada. The first Canadian-raised purebred Red Angus bull, Red Mac 15Z, was sold at the Calgary Bull Sale in 1970 for $1,800. A year later, Red Stormalong 3A was a Calgary Bull Sale champion. He sold for $7,200.
In 1972 a group of 12 Red Angus cattle breeders from Alberta and Saskatchewan formed the Canadian Red Angus Promotion Society to specifically promote Red Angus cattle. And in 1978, Don Mackenzie became the first Red Angus breeder elected to the Canadian Angus Association board of directors. Thanks to the pioneering efforts of Angus breeders dedicated to red hide colour, 50 years later Red Angus account for more than 40 per cent of Canada’s national Angus herd. The Canadian Angus Association is proud to recognize and applaud those efforts.
