GANDY Angus stud's first stand-alone yearling bull sale was a resounding success at Boyanup.
After mainly selling yearling bulls privately on-farm in recent years, the decision by the Gandy family to host its first yearling bull sale proved a wise one.
There was no shortage of demand for the quality line-up of 51 February-March 2022-drop yearling Angus bulls - with 70 registered buyers attending, largely from the South West and lower Great Southern regions.
The sale was also live streamed on AuctionsPlus, with plenty of interest coming through on the online platform.
Read more:
Prior to the sale, the catalogue received 2231 online views which yielded 36 buyers registered, along with 25 viewers and 15 guests from throughout the country - with six active buyers placing 46 online bids on 12 lots, resulting in six lots sold on AuctionsPlus to WA buyers.
When the 51st - and final - bull had its time in the sale ring, the Elders South West livestock team, under the gavel control of stud stock auctioneer Nathan King, had cleared all bar one bull at auction to average $10,360.
The single overlooked bull at auction was soon snapped-up.
The Gandy family presented an outstanding line-up of young Angus bulls featuring new and proven Australian and international genetics and strong female bloodlines, which Mr King resonated in his pre-sale address.
Buyers showed they agreed and, with the traditional joining period approaching, they went about filling their pre-mating sire requirements with confidence - and were not afraid to bid-up on selections.
The sale was consistently buoyant throughout, with 26 bulls selling for $10,000 or more.
Without any extreme highs, the solid average of $10,360 showed an accurate reflection of the sale.
While not directly comparable, the Gandy's summer bull sale in late November, also at Boyanup, saw 65 of 70 rising two-year-old Angus bulls sell at auction for an average of $8977.
The $17,000 top-priced honours were shared by three bulls.
First to pay top dollar was Nutrien Livestock's Jordan Dwyer, bidding on behalf of the Oates famiy, Illginup Farms, Busselton, for Gandy Paratrooper T70 in lot five.
The classy 638 kilogram bull was an AI-bred, mid-February 2022-drop son of influential Australian sire Millah Murrah Paratrooper P15 and a Chiltern Park Moe M6 daughter - Diamond One Moe Q19.
With calving ease matched by high performance figures, the versatile 36kg birthweight bull fitted the curve bender description.
It ranked in the breed's top 3 per cent for gestation length (GL), top 7pc for calving ease (CE Dtrs) and top 11pc for CE Dir - with weight intervals in the top 5pc for 200-day weight (DW), top 6pc for 400-DW and top 9pc for 600-DW - top 5pc for carcase weight (CW), top 3-4pc for both Angus selection indexes, top 8pc for milk and top 11pc for docility.
The Oates family runs a 550-head, self-replacing Angus breeding herd which calves from early March onwards - in conjunction with its dairy enterprise that involves milking 500 Friesian cows.
Buyer Tom Oates, who has purchased from Gandy Angus bulls in the past, said the bull was selected for its low birthweight, good structure and growth to be used over their heifers.
Illginup Farms followed up with a $13,000 bid for another calving ease lower birthweight bull with strong growth, a 616kg AI-bred son of Karoo K12 Realist N278 and a Baldridge Beast Mode B074 daughter.
Lot 10 containing Gandy Checkmate T73 was the next bull to receive a top-priced bid, which was placed by David Lindberg, of Elders Albany, representing Briandi Pastoral Company, of Albany.
The mid-February 2022 born bull was AI-bred by US sire SAV Checkmate 8158 and a Connealy Forward and Sydgen Trust 6228 grand-daughter, Diamond Tree Forward L238.
It tipped the scales at 670kg for a lower birthweight bull and recorded an even spread of performance across its recorded traits, particularly its feed efficiency (NFI-F) ranking in the breed's top 7pc.
Mr Lindberg said Briandi Pastoral Company runs a straight-bred Angus herd and was a first time buyer at Gandy Angus.
He said the new bull was selected on the day and was a perfect fit for what the enterprise was looking for.
"It is a good all-round bull that can be used over heifers, but will go on," Mr Lindberg said.
A couple of lots later in lot 12, Gandy Realist T214 became the third bull to reach top dollar when it was snapped up by the Bennett family, of Western RB Angus stud, Manypeaks, which was operating on AuctionsPlus.
The mid-February 2022-born bull was AI-bred by Karoo K12 Realist N278 and a Musgrave Mediator daughter - Diamond One Mediator Q31.
It was another ideal heifer joining option, ranking in the top 5pc for CE Dtrs, top 15pc for GL, top 17pc for CE Dir and top 16pc for BW. And, while its performance data was well above average, it was its actual performance which impressed - growing from a modest birthweight of 34kg to the heaviest bull in the sale team, weighing 690kg.
The sale's next highest price of $16,000 was also recorded more than once to open the sale.
Local buyer Kim Payne, trading as K & AL Payne, Boyanup, took a liking to the sale team leader Gandy Paratrooper T17, an early February 2022 born AI-bred son of Paratrooper P15 and a Beast Mode B074 daughter.
The 592kg bull was another high-performing and indexing calving ease bull ranking in the top 6pc for CE Dtrs, top 10pc for CE Dir, top 7pc for GL and top 21pc for BW - with weight intervals ranking from top 10-23pc, top 13-19pc $Angus selection indexes, top 26pc CW and top 21pc docility.
The next bull into the sale ring, Gandy Paratrooper T29, was again knocked down for $16,000 - this time to return stud buyers the McDonald family's Kuloomba Angus stud, of Esperance, operating on AuctionsPlus.
T29 was another early February 2022-born Paratrooper P15 son, and out of a home-bred young female - Diamond One Weigh Up R224 - with the 630kg bull recording a strong set of figures including top 7pc for 200-DW, top 9pc for 400-DW, top 12pc for 600-DW, top 15pc for mature cow weight (MCW), top 12pc for CW, top 14pc for retail beef yield (RBY), top 22pc for NFI-F and top 23pc for $A-L index.
Rosalie Grazing Company, Chittering, didn't shy away from bidding up on its two selections by homebred sires costing $15,000 and $12,000.
Its top bid and the sale's third-top price was paid deep into the catalogue for Gandy Beast Mode T247 in lot 35.
The younger mid-March 2022-born bull was naturally sired by a Baldridge Beast Mode B074 son - Diamond One Beast Mode R122 - and out of a Stonedale All In N129 daughter - Diamond One All In Q226.
The 590kg bull (31kg BW) was another versatile calving ease, lower birthweight (top 28pc) and strong performing bull ranking in the top 19pc for CE Dtrs, top 13pc for 200-DW, top 10pc for 400-DW, top 17pc for 600-DW, top 18pc for CW, top 19pc for milk and top 17pc for NFI-F.
There were plenty of buyers to pay five figures for their selections, but some of the other higher prices included $14,000 paid by DM & C Omodei, Manjimup, for a 652kg high growth AI-bred bull by Checkmate 8158 - ranking in the top 15-18pc for all growth intervals and top 7pc for NFI-F.
Nutrien Livestock, Mt Barker agent Harry Carroll finished the sale with five bulls costing from $10,000 to a $13,000 top twice for three separate orders.
Mr Carroll's top bids went to AI-bred bulls by Millah Murrah Quixote Q96 and Paratrooper P15.
F Pessotto & Sons, Manjimup and Treeton Lake, Cowaramup, also paid $13,000 for sons of Paratrooper P15 and New Zealand sire William Of Stern respectively.
Volume buyers from Gandy Angus's summer sale included Alcoa Farmlands, Wagerup/Pinjarra, which stocked up on another four yearling bulls.
Represented at the sale by Richard Gardiner, Alcoa Farmlands, and Wade Krawczyk, Elders, Waroona, they paid from $7000 to a $12,000 top price for a 644kg Paratrooper P15 son in lot 25.
Brad McDonnell, Elders Manjimup/Pemberton, representing TJ & MB Waugh, of Manjimup, collected three bulls costing from $8000 to $11,000, while other multiple bull accounts with two bulls each were MJ Omodei & BD Combes, Pemberton and FR, LF, SF & TL Prosser, Scott River East.
