ANGUS stud breeders Lindsay and Allison Wolrige, Esslemont Angus stud, Busselton, can't wipe the smile off their faces after selling a young sire to the well-known Pathfinder Angus stud, Gazette, Victoria, recently.
Mr Wolrige said they were amazed at the interest shown in their young sire, Esslemont Lotto L3(AI) WWEL3, from the Pathfinder stud.
After travelling to WA to inspect the bull and its cow family, prominent Angus breeders Nick and Sarah Moyle, Pathfinder stud, purchased the bull from the Wolriges for an undisclosed amount.
Accompanying Mr Moyle to WA for the inspection was a representative from leading semen distributor Agri-Gene, which has secured the semen marketing rights for the bull.
The January 2015 born, Lotto was sired by Aryvale General G18, whose progeny have been topping sales in the current record breaking bull selling season in the Eastern States.
Lotto is General G18's leading ABI $Indexed son.
General G18 is also owned by Pathfinder Angus stud so the Moyle family had the confidence to purchase the bull's highly credentialed son for use in their herd.
Pathfinder Angus stud is renowned for its reputation as having a leading objective measurement cattle operation in Australia.
Prior to the sale of Lotto to the Moyle family, semen had been presold into New Zealand with possible interest from the USA.
After being pulled out of running with cows at Esslemont Angus stud, Lotto was shipped across the Nullarbor to a Victorian collection centre for export semen.
Under the more generous conditions at the collection centre, Lotto is gaining almost 3kg per day and is due to commence work once again at Pathfinder Angus stud for a late spring joining.
The bull's paddock work as a 15-month-old was short lived as it was taken out of the cows as the back-up bull to Esslemont's AI and ET program.
Its early withdrawal was precipitated by the urgency to supply semen orders and requirements for the cohort seven Angus Sire Benchmarking Program.
Esslemont Lotto L3(AI) was registered as "Lotto" by Mr Wolrige when he realised how balanced Lotto's EBV numbers were - thus the name "Lotto" as the figures all lined up.
In growth and carcase traits, Lotto is in the top five per cent of the breed for EMA, 200, 400, 600-day growth, and in the top one per cent for IMF.
Despite a below average birthweight, the bull has excellent maternal credentials, positive docility and an Angus Breeding Index in the top 1pc (+$160) for the breed.
Esslemont Lotto is the culmination of 10 generations of objective breeding, primarily for EBV index values, with an emphasis on docility, without compromising other EBV traits.
