TAKE a couple of rains, add some sunshine, and the result is a large increase of confidence.
This confidence, along with a couple of lotfeeder buyers, helped propel last week’s Elders Boyanup cattle sale to a higher level, with certain classes of cattle being as much as $200 dearer than the company’s last sale.
Above advertised numbers of 835 head were penned and they sold to good competition and values.
Beef steers selling liveweight reached $1476, with lighter cattle making up to 334c/kg.
Beef heifers topped at $1391 and a lower 264c/kg.
Beef cross steers were in limited numbers and these sold to $1067 and 232c/kg.
Three pens of quality Montbeliarde steers sold to $1171 and 212c/kg.
Liveweight Friesian steers sold up to $1082 and 210c/kg with consistency the highlight.
Appraisal beef steers topped at $835, Friesians made up to $815 while dairy poddies held to sell up to $515.
The top pen of unmated, first-cross heifers sold for $1240 while a better quality penning of cows and calves attracted competition to sell to $2400.
The top beef steer was a single Shorthorn from JR & AM Hohnen, weighing 615 kilograms and it made $1476 when bought by John Gallop for Kookabrook Grazing at 240c/kg.
Greg Jones snapped up two pens of Hohnen steers for Goodchild Meats, paying $1391 and $1268 for steers weighing 560 and 512kg, both at 248c/kg.
The next highest was a line of 13 Murray Grey steers from MK & RE Barnes, Waterloo, which made $1329 when the 402kg steers were knocked down at 330c/kg.
Another 10 in the next pen weighed 413kg and sold for $1240 and both pens went to O’Meehan & Co, Borden.
Several pens of beef steers were bought for RA Rogers, with the two lotfeeders dominating the beef pens.
A pen of seven prime Murray Grey heifers weighing 556kg sold to Kookabrook Grazing for the top price of $1391 at 250c/kg, with these sold by JR & AM Hohnen.
Among the numerous lines sold account IG & SB Rutherford, Duranillan, were the top heifers at 264c/kg when the 14 Angus weighing 287kg were bought for RA Bentink at $758.
Primaries representative Simon Green and Galati Family Trust added to the competition, securing several pens each of the lighter weight heifers.
A few pens of beef cross steers were sold, with a pen of two Hereford cross steers weighing 485kg making the top price of $1067 when sold by Norsca Holdings to Bonny Farms.
Three pens of quality Montbeliarde steers were sold by Joshua Creek Valley.
The first line of nine weighing 552kg went to Kookabrook for the top of $1171 at 212c/kg, with GE Payne, Alexandra Bridge, taking the other two pens for $1091 and $998 at 204 and 198c/kg respectively.
Western Meat Packers (WMP) snapped up the first three pens of Friesian steers, all containing 10 steers, from Range Lee Grazing, including the top pen at $1082.
They also paid $1067 and $1036 for up to 198c/kg for the three lines.
Also selling for 198c/kg were 10 steers averaging 538kg from MR Piggott, Busselton, costing WMP $1065.
The top of 210c/kg was paid by Glenluce Livestock, Cowaramup, for 11 steers weighing 424kg sold by Girvan Park, costing $829.
Bucket-reared, beef cross calves varied in age and size with the older types topping at $835, paid by a Landmark agent for 15 head sold account HY Armstrong.
A line of 15 Murray Greys returned $790 for Campbell and Lindberg when bought by Clint Gartrell, Elders Busselton.
In the young calves, pens of Hereford and Angus cross from Kaleden Farms, Harvey, sold for $600 and $605, going to Elders agents, Bill Kessell and Rob Gibbings respectively.
The early pens of appraisal Friesian steers were dominated by Elders Nannup agent Terry Tarbotton, when he secured the first five pens for client Gralyn Estate.
This included paying the top of $815 for 12, sold account Redvalley Nominees.
Pens for $805 and $720 were added from B & C Hester.
Small steers, or large poddies, topped at $515 for 15 sold by Elgin Park Pty Ltd to
D Wood.
Negus Enterprises sold 10 for $510, bought for M Tosano, Mullalyup, while Alex Roberts, Elders Brunswick/Harvey, bid to $480 for 15 sold by Kaleden Farms.
Shade River Dairy sold the top pen of first-cross, unmated heifers when Mr Kessell, bid to $1240 for the five largest Angus cross heifers suitable to mate.
Another two were added for $1000, also going to the bid of Mr Kessell.
Smaller heifers sold by Consero Pty Ltd were a longer term project with the first two heifers making $660, with another four selling at $510 when bought by heifer specialists, LM & EA Crouch, Nannup.
A better selection of cows and calves were offered, with five Angus cross with weanable size sappy calves at foot from CD Sharp & Son topping the section at $2400, bought by Mr Kessell for Glenoran Estate.
Close behind were five grey units from D Dulex selling for $2300 to the same buyer.