RAIN received and a forecast for more to come activated store cattle markets last week and Dubbo was no exception with more than doubling recent yardings in close to 2500 head penned last Friday.
Cattle came from as far away as Broken Hill and Clare, South Australia with the majority in good quality and condition attracting a keen following from restockers on drafts in all sections.
Weaner cattle met solid demand with heifers possibly $100 dearer and steers up to $30 above the last sale.
Steer weaners totalling close to 900 head sold from $300 for young Santa Gertrudis calves to $1150 for top quality Angus with the section averaging $750 or 378 cents a kilogram live.
Heifer weaners (780 head) ranged from $270 to $830 (for Charolais crosses) averaging $630 or 311c/kg.
Yearling steers making up of 50 head sold from $775 to $1140 while 140 yearling heifers sold from $400 to $1010. One pen of 13 PTIC Angus heifers sold at $1400 a head.
Upwards of 300 cow/calf units attracted strong competition resulting in the section being considerably dearer than other recent store sales ranging from $1200 for lighter Murray Greys to $2025 a unit for Angus with second calves among drafts from a herd dispersal. A draft of Charolais-cross cows with first calves at foot made $1920 a unit.
Sixty PTIC cows sold from $975 to $1660 for Angus red taggers on their second calf from the same herd dispersal. Just 14 dry cows sold at $565 for Bos Indicus crosses and $990 for British crosses.
Dry conditions in West Darling pastoral country of the Broken Hill region forced the Siemer family to sell their young cattle 12 months earlier with the whole drop of weaner steers and heifers consigned to this sale.
According to PT Lord Dakin’s Mark Sheehan, the Siemer family had been forced into a dry pocket at their One Tree Station, forcing them to clear their five to nine-month old Angus, Angus/Charolais and Angus/Shorthorn drafts of Hardhat, Marelan and Carlton blood early.
“They normally sell these at feedlot age next year,” he said.
The consignment of 160 steers sold from $750 to $930 and 140 heifers making from $550 to $765.
Jamie and Julie Rae and son, Stuart, of Raeburn Pastoral, “Raeburn”, Narromine, dispersed their entire Angus herd after selling the property with 121 cows from second calvers to five and seven year-olds topping the sale at $2025 for 45 units to average $1944.
Of these 37 five to seven-year-olds selling in two drafts made $1920 and $1860.
Second calver red tagger PTIC cows selling towards the end of the section topped at $1660 and averaged $1572 for 46 head. The Rae’s 167 lots averaged $1841.