Wehner Homestead 2018 Calving: Done

[Wehner Homestead]

I’ll have to stop over at my grandparents and take a pic of my dad’s show stopper from the 70s! Lol I find it very interesting how the trends change. Leggy and leathery and lean to hairy and square and NO leather.

 

[greybeard]

I’ll have to stop over at my grandparents and take a pic of my dad’s show stopper from the 70s! Lol I find it very interesting how the trends change. Leggy and leathery and lean to hairy and square and NO leather.

You don't have an opinion on the Angus I posted?
I'm curious what you think of him.


Your dad's...
Back then, the judges (and the industry as a whole) looked for a true representation of what was desirable in the real cattle world. Conformation, straight lines, muscling, good legs and feet, (for bulls..) ability to travel, scrotal eveness and good circumference etc..the closest to perfect animal as one could envision.
Half a century later, many of us view what the new show stars have turned in to, to be an aberration of the real world cattle herd. I went to Houston's big show year before last and was shocked at what I saw with the steers but pleased with the bull and heifer winners..some judges at least don't care one hoot about leather and length of carcass still counts for something

https://emmonsbeefmasters.com/champions/

 

[Wehner Homestead]

You don't have an opinion on the Angus I posted?
I'm curious what you think of him.
View attachment 43245

Your dad's...
Back then, the judges (and the industry as a whole) looked for a true representation of what was desirable in the real cattle world. Conformation, straight lines, muscling, good legs and feet, (for bulls..) ability to travel, scrotal eveness and good circumference etc..the closest to perfect animal as one could envision.
Half a century later, many of us view what the new show stars have turned in to, to be an aberration of the real world cattle herd. I went to Houston's big show year before last and was shocked at what I saw with the steers but pleased with the bull and heifer winners..some judges at least don't care one hoot about leather and length of carcass still counts for something

https://emmonsbeefmasters.com/champions/

It’s hard to judge based on just a profile shot. You need more angles. I will say that he’s square on his legs and could stand to be a little deeper bodied (as you know, I’m not big on lots of daylight under them.) He appears small for an Angus but it could be that he’s young. He could stand to be a little cleaner fronted and the angle does allow you to see if he’s rough shouldered or not. I’d like to see if he had a square rump, wise top, and how he moves on his feet.

I’m going to assume that since you posted him, you like him. I think there’s questions to be answered but appears a nice animal.

 

[greybeard]

It’s hard to judge based on just a profile shot. You need more angles. I will say that he’s square on his legs and could stand to be a little deeper bodied (as you know, I’m not big on lots of daylight under them.) He appears small for an Angus but it could be that he’s young. He could stand to be a little cleaner fronted and the angle does allow you to see if he’s rough shouldered or not. I’d like to see if he had a square rump, wise top, and how he moves on his feet.

I’m going to assume that since you posted him, you like him. I think there’s questions to be answered but appears a nice animal.

I should have said it was junior show.
I'm very big on lots of daylight under them. Remember..he's a steer..born a bull and as you are well aware, bulls need to be able to easily mount even the biggest cow. They could have put about a foot of straw down I guess to make him look shorter, but the show he won at was quite prestigious. Someone liked him well enough to pay $50k for him, which was a record for that show at the time.

Here's a 'chromed up' steer for you to critique and he too won junior grand champion at a very prestigious event. He isn't all gussied up and show ready but I like him as well..good legs, plenty of length, great girth and well muscled and tho you can't see the back end in this pic, plenty of rump. Good bottom and top line. I'll expound further on why I like both of them after I see your thoughts on this one.

What's your thoughts on him?

 

[Wehner Homestead]

So...first off, I like the finish in his brisket. IF he was a steer, that’d be a good sign he’s ready for market. You already know that I’m going to say there’s too much daylight under him. The high flank gives it away even more that he’s not level. He’s swayback unless he’s stretched out too far. It’d have to be a true profile pic to tell for sure. I like his foot size but his front feet turn out so that worries me about structure and passing that on to his progeny. I like his rib shape. Despite not having straight lines, he appears to have enough barrel to him to process feed capably and cut out well.

 

[greybeard]

He IS a steer...that's not in question. He won the National Western Junior steer blue ribbon 1972. Cattle then, even steers, were judged on their ability to best represent cattle of a specific breed and in the case of grand champion, all cattle breeds.

I guess it's time to tell 'the rest of the story on these '2' steers.
Maybe you aren't old enough to remember it.
(First--I was mistaken about the price paid for the black steer. It was $14,250)

Here's how screwed up these show circuits were, and probably still are. The black Angus steer won National Western Junior Steer competition hands down in 1972*. Nothing else came close. Wowed every judge and everyone that saw him. Many wish they had his phenotype..as a bull.
His name, was BigMac, entered by a breeder in Iowa, and McDonalds Corporation paid the big money for him right up front and made it known they wouldn't be outbid as that was also the year MacDonalds came out with the BigMac burger. . The Angus Assoc was ecstatic. One of theirs had just won at the biggest show West of Chicago, and done so in unparalleled fashion.
"The Angus judge, picked the animal over 86 other
entries as the (Angus) division champion. Two
days later, a second judge chose him over
Hereford and Shorthorn winners to
become the Junior Show’s grand
champion steer, one of the highest
honors at the Stock Show"

The chromed up steer was named Jeep-- originally from Skylark
Ranch at Kremmling, Colorado. He won the National Western Junior Steer blue ribbon...............*in 1972.

Yep both steers won top prize at the same prestigious show the same year.
How?
Jeep, was a Charolais, (totally white) that had been completely (and secretly) dyed with black shoe polish tail switch to nose.
'BigMac went all the way thru the competition as well as the public viewing with no one noticing until minutes after McDonalds bought him. A boy that had helped raise him recognized him while working the pens and went and told his father.."Jeep's up there on the hill and he's black!". Of course, the show's officials were notified and an investigation proceeded.
It eventually all fell apart, with the Angus (and to a lesser degree) the Hereford folks dragging out their crying towels that some upstart Charolais had so easily beaten their breed entries.
http://www.steerplanet.com/bb/the-big-show/denver-steer-show-winner-1972/

Here's a video about it, produced/sponsored by the Angus Association.

 

[Wehner Homestead]

I heard something about this at one time. I apologize on misreading or overlooking “steer.” For some reason, I thought we were looking at bulls. Probably trying to do too many things at once...People still dye animals on occasion and there are ongoing jokes about finding the proper red touch up paint for the different shades of red calves. Never a dull moment!

 

[greybeard]

might interest you to know, since you use Dakota Gold, that the reserve steer that ended up eventually being awarded the prize $ and the junior steer championship (posthumously) was named Old Dakota. An Angus.
The black hide fever folks threw away their tear soaked towels and again danced.

 

[Wehner Homestead]

I grew up loving red cows and my elders discouraged me because judges aren’t “color blind.” Two things have changed since then, I like cattle no matter the color and judges are no longer insisting a calf be black to win!

 

[Wehner Homestead]

Scarlett and Maizy are penned in a paddock off the barn for ease of monitoring. Maizy because she’s a heifer and we always watch them closer. Scarlett because she can be a pain. She usually needs milked because her calves take forever to find her back two quarters. Scarlett hates to be milked and will stop coming with the herd when called. We outsmarted her this year. Someone had to be kept in to be a companion to Maizy anyway. I didn’t go out this morning because it’s in the 20s and with my back injury, I am in horrible pain when I start shivering. My dad came and helped DH sort them out and to be my eyes as DH always wants my opinion too. Dad feels like Scarlett could go any minute and Maizy has a couple days. Only time will tell.

Maddie and Dolly stayed out with the herd. Both have had more than five calves and are good Mamas. We will watch them closely but there was no reason to put them in a paddock. Both of these girls are showing that they could go at any time.

I still haven’t gotten a good look at Melody. Darn injury! Dad checked her out for me and said she will probably calve on the date for our bull as I originally predicted.