Courtesy of Catherine Miller, The Stock Journal, 18 Feb 2019
Buyers were selective on a top quality draft of Poll Hereford bulls at Allendale-Days Whiteface studs’ combined 21st annual on-property sale on Monday at Bordertown.
Thirteen bulls made $10,000 or more to buyers from Gippsland, Vic, to the South East and western Vic but in a reflection of the dry season in many areas and absence of pastoral orders the clearance was only 74 per cent.
In the breakdown Lachy and Lou Day, Days Whiteface stud, sold 33 of 43 bulls to $20,000, averaging $8393 while Alastair and Jayne Day, Allendale stud, sold 26 of 37 bulls to $17,000, averaging $7134.
Five full flush brothers (from an Allendale Tipperary D13 and Days Fancy H31 mating) were among the highlights for Days Whiteface stud.
They averaged $15,600 and included the $20,000 sale topper, Lot 25, Days Godfather N009.
It sold to long-time client Shiloh Park, Compton.
Shiloh Park, which targets the Mount Gambier store sale with its weaners, also bought another flush brother for $10,000.
One of Allendale stud’s top matrons Allendale Blue Mist E13- the dam of Allendale’s 2018 top priced on-property sale bull did it again this year.
Mist had previously had eight sons sell to $20,000 at Dubbo and on-property sales averaging $11,500.
This year her $17,000 bull, Lot 16, Allendale Collingwood N003, was an AI-bred son of Kerlson Pines Jester J99.
Pinkerton Palm Hamlyn & Steen’s Richard Harvie and clients the Browns, DCDL Pty Ltd, Padthaway, were the successful bidders.
DCDL willl use the bull over Hereford females they bought from the Pitlochry dispersal sale last year.
Among the multiple buyers at Allendale- Days Whiteface sale was TRT Pastoral, Mansfield, with three bulls including Lot 1 at $16,000.
Locally, GA Young & Sons, Kalangadoo, secured three bulls for a $4667 average.
Landmark auctioneer Gordon Wood said it was a sale of “ups and downs”.
“The high performance cattle sold well and were chased by both repeat and new buyers but there was a complete lack of buying support from the northern areas which we knew would be the case,” he said.
He praised the offering as easy-doing, soft fleshing cattle.
“The Hereford breed has identified that they need some intramuscular fat in their cattle, this catalogue is stacked with IMF coming through from the cows and the bulls they are using so it augers well for them (the Days families) to take the Herefords into the next decade,” he said.
Elders auctioneer Ross Milne said buyers chased the bulls they wanted but bidding was restricted on the bottom end.
“The average was pretty pleasing at more than $7000 but a lot of people would be walking away pretty happy about what they got,” he said.
“They didn’t have to go over the top especially on those $4000 to $6000 bulls.”