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Enter the JJB Bracket Challenge and if you win you will receive a JJB Hat and maybe more importantly bragging rights! If I win all I get is bragging rights and the first loser will get the hat. Click the link below to join, the password is Rolo.

http://games.espn.go.com/tournament-challenge-bracket/2016/en/group?groupID=1343964

The 2016 edition of the Iowa Beef Expo was one of our best yet. When the final gavel hit we ended up with the high selling female and the bull headed to a good home. Throughout the week Rolo had many friends and we are very appreciative of the compliments. We feel she is the best we’ve had to date and can’t wait to watch her grow. She will be headed to Mississippi soon and will be shown by Austin Herring and then become part of the Punkin Ridge Polled Herefords operation in Beaumont.  Sgt. Pepper shined in his time at the expo as well and is at his new home in Ames at Longnecker Cattle Company.

We have a few calves on the ground and are very excited to consign to the Iowa Beef Expo Hereford Select Sale again next year.

A throwback to when Rolo was just a little baby. Our girl sells next week at the Iowa Beef Expo in the Hereford Select Sale and we can’t wait to see where she ends up!

JJB ROLO 16C

Birth: April, 13th 2015 – Reg: P43610949 – Lot 69

S: PR 144U Bailout 0001 – D: STAR JJB Lucinda 5U ET

Our 2016 Iowa Beef Expo heifer, Rolo, is without a doubt one of our favorites we’ve raised. Her momma Lucinda is a big reason why. We owned her with Star Lake and when we were just starting out she was one of the first females I bought. In the picture above Lucinda was six years old and was about to wean Rolo’s full sister who we will calve out this spring. She is an easy doing cow that has never had to have a calf pulled and a problem free udder.  Lucinda’s mom is the Lucky cow that we owned with Star Lake and was one of the top donors at the ranch. Her sire is Bright Future who was a many time National Champion. You always need to be sure that an animal has a good momma before you buy them and Rolo has that in spades. If you have any questions about our Expo consignment please feel free to Contact Us.

JJB ROLO 16C

Birth: April, 13th 2015 – Reg: P43610949

S: PR 144U Bailout 0001 – D: STAR JJB Lucinda 5U ET

  We like Bill at our place. It says above that Bill doesn’t complain about politics, which is a very admirable trait. I think we would all agree that less politics in the showring would be great. Maybe not a realistic hope but a good thought. It is best to remember that if someone doesn’t want to use your genetics because you didn’t win a ribbon then that person may not be someone you want as a customer anyway. I’ll wrap this up with a quote from the great Conan O’Brien-  

A couple of weeks ago we introduced you to Rolo our 2016 Iowa Beef Expo sale heifer. Now we have a video to share. We feel Rolo is the complete package and the best heifer we have ever raised. If you have any questions feel free to give us a call or send an e-mail, all of our info can be found on our Contact Us page.

Rolo is a flashy, up-headed, deep bodied and well muscled heifer that has what it takes to compete on any level. She is also haired good enough to make you drool, if you’re in to that sort of thing. This is the type of heifer that you just want to bring in the house with you, makes you want to hang out with her and be best friends. Her momma, Lucinda, is our best Lucky daughter and her sire is Bright Future. Some of Lucinda’s full and 3/4 sisters have went on to do great things with her cow family being heavily featured in Coylers Bull Sale this year.  Rolo is sired by a full brother to the Ramona cow that we bought a flush on and has been a top producer for her owners Perks Ranch in Illinois and Langford Herefords in Oklahoma. For Perks alone Ramona has generated over $140,000 in sales on just one flush. When we bought Rolo’s sire this is the exact heifer we had in mind.

We are going to be keeping two flushes at our expense and the buyers convenience with guarantee of 6 embryos each flush. No matter the selling price we simply cannot afford to let this heifer go without the opportunity to retain some of her genetics. This is the kind you build a herd around, I could go on for days. Simply put Rolo is the most complete heifer we have ever raised.

We will be getting a video of Rolo done after we get home from Denver and will post it ASAP. Click Here to view her pedigree. For more info you can also head to our For Sale page. If you have any questions do not hesitate to Contact Us!

Happy New Year to all! 2015 was a great year for us. Our farm improvements have continued with more work done in the barn as well as a ton of work outside. We are getting close to where we want the farm to be and have a plan of where we need to go. We bought a half of a heifer with our young friend Loyd Perks in this years Fall Celebration Sale. The heifers that we sold went to great homes and we can’t wait to see how they progress. We were able to purchase 60 acres of crop ground that we have been renting and will be turning some of it into pasture next year so we can continue to grow. This Summer Blin Farms hired Gary Maurer’s grandson, Travis Kelly, which in turn got us a new chore man while we are gone. Travis has been a huge help and we are excited to have him around. Things really have progressed as we have hoped.

2016 is poised to be our best year yet. The cattle that we are selling at the Iowa Beef Expo are some of the best we have offered. This years calf crop will include calves by our exciting Hometown son from Perks- Tribute. We will be calving out 6 heifers bred to Tribute with the first on it’s way any day now. The Junior National is always a highlight and will be even more exciting since it is close to home in Madison, Wisconsin. The year will surely be here and gone before we know it. I hope each of you has a blessed year and the health and motivation to accomplish all your goals. Let’s Go!!!

We all know that weaning can be stressful on both cows and calves. There are numerous theories about when and how to wean in order to reduce stress and keep pounds on both calves and cows. For longer than we can remember Jon and I have been using Quiet Wean nose clips during weaning season. We’ve had quiet a few questions about them recently so we thought we would summarize why we love using them.

1. Keep pounds on calves. For us it is critical that we keep as many pounds on our calves as possible. We are paid for pounds on our steer calves, and every pound we can keep on our replacement heifers and bulls means less dollars spent on inputs. Jon’s first exposure to Quiet Weans was at Star Lake. The year that they began using them, Star Lake tested the Quiet Weans on two groups. One group was fence lined weaned, the other received Quiet Weans. At sale time the group with the Quiet Weans weighed 50 lbs. more than their counterparts.
2. Convenience. On our farm we are limited on space. Once the Quiet Weans are in the calves return back to the same pasture as their mommas. This reduces the amount of space we need. Also, since our calving season is spread out into two periods (January and March/April) we can wean a few calves at a time if necessary.
3. Reduce Overall Stress. We have noticed a big difference in the stress levels of both calves and cows. Research has also shown by using a two-step weaning process (Quiet Weans and then separation) that calves vocalize 85% less, walk 80% less and spend 25% more time eating than compared to traditionally weaned calves. Less stress means happier, healthier calves.

How does the process work?

Calves are run through the chute and the Quiet Wean in placed in the nose. Quiet Weans are a little over $2 a piece, but can be reused year after year. We also give all of our calves a dose of Vita Charge Paste while they are in the chute. While the Quiet Weans are in they can still graze and eat creep feed, but it prevents them from nursing.

We leave our Quiet Weans in for a minimum of seven days, however we have also left them in for up to two weeks. Some calves will lose the Quiet Wean, however after many years of using them we find the number will range from 0-10%. The only downfall of using the Quiet Wean is that you do have to run them through the chute a second time to remove the Quiet Wean.

This post is all our own opinions. Quiet Wean has not paid us or asked us to write this post. However, if they would love to send us anything we would sure take it