Introducing APLX Envoy 2Y at the National Trust
Jeanne washing Envoy - Sunday Oct 23rd.
We are pleased to debut APLX Envoy 2Y at the National Trust on November 4, 2011 in Olds, Alberta. Envoy has a lot of potential, and we are pleased to have him as part of this elite showcase of Simmental cattle.
We really enjoy the concept of the Trust – a gathering of the best Simmental genetics from across Canada – and are thankful to Transcon for the opportunity to display our bull as part of this unique event. We feel it is a great opportunity to showcase what will likely be our lead calf from our bull group, that will all sell at the Red Deer Simmental Bull Sale on March 19th, 2012.
We have added a ‘page’ for Envoy which can be found under the ‘Herdbook’ heading as well as a shortcut link on the right. Pictured here getting what Jeanne calls his ‘Sunday bath’, we hope to having him looking good come Friday. We are looking forward to a great week in Olds, filled with lots of talk with fellow breeders and, of course, awesome cattle.
Reference Sires Updated
We have updated our ‘Reference Sire’ section to include separate pages for each of the 3 privately owned bulls that we have utilized extensively.
Our breeding philosophy consists of utilizing the best AI genetics we can find, supplemented by a strong walking herd bull group. While management intensive, we like the ability AI gives us to incorporate diverse genetics from top Fleckvieh bulls into our herd. It has also allowed us to utilize and help prove some exclusive Dora Lee genetics.
As our numbers have grown, we now have three management groups, giving us the potential to run up to three natural service sires at once. Going forward, we anticipate maintaining a balanced approach between AI and natural services. The new section is dedicated to each of the privately owned bulls that we have been fortunate to either acquire semen on, or utilize as walking bulls. New bulls will be added as we continue to diversify our genetic base.
Hopefully shortly, the Female section will also get the similar treatment to showcase the top 12-15 of our cows.
New Addition at Applecross
The Newest Edition to Our Female Lineup - Delta-Rho Miss Marnie
We have been successful in acquiring ‘Delta-Rho Miss Marnie’ at the recent Fleckvieh Forum Sale, held in conjunction with Bar 5’s Extravaganza on October 2nd. We couldn’t make it to the event, but were very fortunate to have Dad there to look over Marnie for us. It is great to be able to have ‘eyes’ in two places at once, when we can’t make it back to Ontario.
There are a lot of factors that drew us to Marnie, not the least of which was her sire, Well House Kestrel. We are very familiar with this classic sire, as Mom & Dad have utilized him extensively. Our favourite daughter of his was SRN Ms. Bestrel 7Y who walked the Dora Lee pastures in the 1990’s and produced some really impressive offspring. The ‘classic division’ of our program in now
essentially complete. With Marnie’s addition, we now have direct daughters of Well House Kestrel, King Arthur, Antonius and Sim-Roc C&B Western all walking our pastures.
We are, as mentioned, quite happy to have added a Kestrel daughter to our herd, but at the same time there are a lot of other factors (her feet and udder, bred to a calving bull and her temperament / halter breaking) that played into our decision to buy her. Quiet cattle are very important to us, as we really enjoy walking the cow herd without them being disturbed. The Rauscher’s at Delta Rho also had a DNA profile completed on Marnie, which we used as another ‘piece of the puzzle’. It is nice know that Marnie has the genetic potential to be very feed efficient, and will hopefully pass that trait on to her offspring.
Pictured here, fresh off the truck, Marnie fits in quite well with our bred heifer group, and we look forward to an exciting calf in January. We certainly know her service sire, Eclipse, well. We are confident Marnie will be an important part of our cow herd for many years to come.
Giving Thanks
As we pause to give thanks this week-end across Canada, it is a great opportunity to remind ourselves of how blessed we are.
We live in a country that, while not perfect, is among the best and safest countries on the planet. We are blessed with an abundance of natural resources, clean air to breath, inexpensive food, and a roof over our heads. Closer to home, we are thankful for another year of healthy cattle, abundant grass, and big calves. We are thankful for a strong cattle market, and what appears to be a turning of the tide in the beef business.
And finally; most importantly, we are thankful for our friends and family. They are our support network that helps ground us to reality when times are great, but are always there to pick us up when times are tough. Hopefully everyone gets the chance to have a visit or share a meal this week-end with people that are important to them.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Applecross Cattle 