Kirksville heifer sale hits an average price of $1,716

Cattle in ring at sale
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At the Kirksville Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer sale, 133 heifers averaged $1,716. It wasn’t the strong sale expected, said Zac Erwin, sale coordinator. A lot of things worked against bidder enthusiasm.

“I was hoping for a stronger market,” Erwin said after the sale Friday night, Nov. 16. “But it wasn’t a bust by any means.”  The north-central Missouri heifer sale is rebuilding. The sale is the fourth year at the Kirksville Livestock Auction. “Great consignors bringing high-quality cattle build momentum with this sale,” he said.

The replacement heifers are entered by beef farmers taking part in the heifer development program of the University of Missouri Extension. MU protocols bring calving ease, better genetics and more to replacements. 

Increasingly, heifers are bred by artificial insemination. That allows even small producers to use the best sires in a breed. Timed AI, when all heifers are bred at the same time, brings uniform calf crops. Buyers like short, trouble-free calving seasons.  This time, 79 heifers were AI-bred compared to 54 bull-bred.

Top-selling lots in the sale averaged $1,900. David Clark, Edina, Mo., had a pen of four going for the top price. They were bought by David and Trent Vannoy, Shelbyville, Mo.  The other top lot, of two head, came from Jeff and Marge Lindquist, Greentop, Mo. Those went to Bobby Craig of Green Castle, Mo.

David Patterson, an MU beef reproduction specialist, said the sale benefitted from repeat buyers. “Those who come back to buy know what they are getting, the heifers were excellent,” 

Cold weather played a part in cool bidding, both specialists observed.  Early snow brought feed shortages back into focus, Erwin said. Also, snow slowed crop harvest. “That hurt us on buyer participation,” he said.  “Considering all, we had a strong sale,” Erwin added, “Kirksville Auction is an excellent place for this sale.”

Sales at Kirksville and Joplin opened the series of six fall Show-Me-Select heifer sales.

The Joplin sale had 300 head averaging $1,586.

The four remaining sales are:

Nov. 24, 11 a.m., Kingsville Livestock Auction.

Dec. 1, 11 a.m., SEMO Livestock Sales, Fruitland.

Dec. 7, 7 p.m., Farmington Livestock Sales.

Dec. 8, 12:30 p.m., F&T Livestock Market, Palmyra.

Show-Me-Select marketing is run by beef herd owners enrolled at MU Extension. Sale coordinators are regional livestock specialists.  Sales are broadcast online at www.LiveAuctions.TV. Anyone can view or bid.

Basic research for SMS heifers is from MU Thompson Farm, Spickard. It’s part of the MU College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources.


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