Hinnomunjie Station manager Patrick Bloomer is busy preparing more than 300 weaners for this year’s annual Mountain Calf Sales and is pleased with the quality of the offering, despite the continuing dry.
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Owned by Anne Strang, Mr Bloomer said the Omeo-based property was very fortunate to have irrigated pastures which the calves had been able to go onto after weaning.
“We had some good showers in September and a late spring down in the valley, but a grasshopper plague in late December and early January took the rest of the feed we had for summer,” he said.
“You could almost see the grass disappear by the day which added to the stress of the dry season.”
Trading as Colin W Scott & Co, they will sell about 150 April-drop Hereford steers and heifers at the Omeo Hereford sale on Wednesday, March 13. They will also offer 150 Angus and black baldy mixed sex weaners at the Omeo Angus sale on the Tuesday prior.
This year, the calves were yard-weaned in early January and supplementary fed silage. They were also handled extensively to ensure they were quiet and had settled down well.
“We decided to wean several weeks earlier than usual to ensure the cows didn’t slip in condition, and it meant we could focus our efforts on looking after the calves,” he said.
After weaning, the calves were moved onto irrigated lucerne and ryegrass pastures, and supplemented with hay for roughage.
A regime of 7-in-1 and regular trace element supplements along with B12, selenium and copper applications have also ensured the calves are up-to-date with current animal health requirements.
“They have basically had everything thrown at them.”
A regular participant in the Mountain Calf Sales, Mr Bloomer is hoping the calves will sell well.
He estimated calf weights would vary, with the tops averaging 320 kilograms, while the lighter weaners will be about 250kg.
As the tough seasonal conditions continue, Mr Bloomer has gone through the breeding herd carefully during the past few weeks, retaining only the best cows and heifers. They are currently running about 200 Hereford cows and 150 Angus breeders.
“We are basically trying to keep our core female herd at the moment," he said.
“Normally we wouldn’t sell any heifers at the weaner sales but this year we will offer 180 heifers, across the two breeds, which would normally be retained for breeding.
“My philosophy is to take a proactive, planned approach so we don’t get into a situation where we panic and sell everything.
“We will face our challenges in winter with the lack of feed we have, so it is a matter of feed banking and trying to get away with not feeding animals too early so we can get through this winter.”
He said Hinnomunjie Station would continue to run both Angus and Hereford cattle which allowed them to meet a range of markets.
Hereford bulls are sourced from Sugarloaf Creek at Corryong and the Sykes family’s Mawarra stud, while the Angus and Angus-cross portion of the draft are sired by Alpine Angus bulls.
“The bloodlines we use suit the extremes of our environment here, it can be really good and then the season cuts off quickly and it also gets very cold in winter.
"The stock are bred to those conditions and the genetics we use have held up very well."
