LAST year's results tumbled at the 2020 Bannaby Angus Bull Sale today, with demand for heifer bulls from local producers fuelling bidding.
Overall Bannaby Angus stud principals Keith and Maureen Kerridge, Taralga, sold 36 bulls of the 42 on offer, resulting in a 86 per cent clearance, $20,000 top and $9222 average.
This is up from a $10,000 top price, and $6707 average in 2019, which Bannaby manager Glynn Langford said was a fantastic result.
First time buyers, the Walkom family of Loch Hill, Crookwell, purchased the $20,000 sale-topper, Bannaby Cowboy Up P126, as a heifer bull to use in their crossbred operation.
Weighing in at 964 kilograms with a scrotal circumference of 47 centimetres, he was by HA Cowboy Up 5045 and out of Anvil Jestress J212.
On Breedplan Cowboy up P126 was a high-growth bull, sitting top 1pc for 400-day and mature cow weights, and top 5pc or higher for 200- and 600-day weights, gestation length, scrotal size and net feed efficiency. His indexes were also ranked in the top 10 of above.
The Walkoms run a self-replacing herd of around 150 breeders and aim to grow their calves out to 10 to 12 months, with the season impacting when and how they are sold.
"We were looking for good growth, calving ease bulls," Lewis Walkom said.
"They will be used over Hereford heifers to create black baldy calves."
They also bought Bannaby Cowboy Up P139, a full flush brother to the top-priced bull, for the third top price of $17,000. He weighed 870kg, with a 46cm scrotal circumference.
The Walkoms averaged $18,000 across their two purchases.
Bannaby Capitalist P156 reached the second top price of $19,000 to Cate Investments, Crookwell, through Daniel Tarlington of Elders.
Sired by LD Capitalist 316 and out of Bannaby Jestress L04, he was another high-growth figured bull, ranking top 5pc or above across his four growth traits. His raw data had him weighing 964kg with a scrotal circumference of 45cm, as a two-year-old.
Merricroft Pastoral Company at Crookwell took home the $16,000 high-selling Q-drop bull, Bannaby Reality Q05 a son of KO 839 Reality L87 that weighed 664kg.
He was one of two 18-month-old Q-drop bulls sold for a $10,500 average.
The largest volume buyers were J and MA Coles through Michael Hall Livestock who bought four bulls to a $7000 top and a $6000 average.
Auctioneer Tim Woodham of Nutrien, Wagga Wagga, congratulated Bannaby on putting together a good run of commercially orientated bulls that were well received by buyers from local areas.
Bulls with calving ease and low birth weights sold very well, Mr Woodham said.
The sale was conducted by Nutrien and Elders, with Tim Woodham of Nutrien Livestock, Wagga Wagga, as the auctioneer.
Read the full 2020 Bannaby Angus Bull Sale report in next week's The Land.