It is no surprise that sister duo Diana and Bec Muir are so passionate about the cattle industry and the Angus breed, having grown up at their family's cattle stud, Mordallup Angus, nestled in the Southern Forests region 50 kilometres East of Manjimup.
Considering they were born and raised on the stud, starting out as chief gate openers and slowly moving up the ranks, there was never a doubt in their minds that farming wasn't the perfect fit.
For the Muir girls, being involved in the stud game alongside their close-knit family and continuing to carry on its successful legacy dating back to the stud's founding in 1956, is a dream come true.
After the pair graduated from the WA College of Agriculture - Harvey, Diana in 2016 and Bec in 2021, returned to the family farm and broadened their knowledge within their own stud, and the livestock industry.
Diana has been farming alongside her family for seven years and said although it was a no-brainer for her to return home to the farm, she grows to love it more and more everyday.
"My interest for the farm grew naturally, the more involved I became the more I wanted to learn and my passion for genetics took off," Diana said.
"Returning home was a dream come true for me and a huge opportunity to take on the family farm that has such an extensive history.
"It's such a rewarding lifestyle."
Having fallen in love with Angus cattle since she laid eyes on them, Diana said she would spend every moment she had to spare growing up with her parents Mark and Geraldine or grandparents Graham and Gail Muir, checking the cattle.
"I have been able to become more and more involved over the years," she said.
"Each year I look forward to our artificial insemination (AI) programs and get excited to see the next lot of calves drop.
"Calving season is mine and Bec's favourite season.
"Watching calves from birth right through to sale day, or their mature breeding age is something I love to see."
In terms of changes Diana has seen in the industry during her time, she said technology would have to be a major one.
"It has been great to see AuctionsPlus come in, which has given many stud and commercial breeders the opportunity to sell cattle Australia-wide," she said.
"It connects producers to the otherside of Australia and makes the selling world a bit more cohesive."
Another growing trend Diana has noticed, particularly in the past 10 years, is selling yearling bulls.
"They produce so many positive results," she said.
"We love selling them and we don't regret not selling two-year-olds because we've used yearling bulls since day dot.
"To be able to produce such a quality line-up of yearling bulls the past few years and achieve good results from them, there was no way we were selling two year old bulls again."
Diana also highlighted the progress that genomics had made in the past few years.
"Genomics gives us a more accurate representation of an individual animal's performance and will be a very good tool to use going forward," she said.
"We will eventually build a good database from other breeders submitting their samples to."
The Muir family has always stuck to its traditional principles when it comes to its herd, having produced consistent cattle since the 1950s.
"Within our own herd, we've always stuck to our own principles and never chased any fads," Diana said.
"We've always strived to select and produce good large, easy doing Angus cattle, with traditional early growth."
In recent times, finding good genetics has taken the family both interstate and internationally, which Diana said was an amazing opportunity.
"We've just returned from New Zealand and have also been lucky enough to travel over east a few times in the past seven years looking for new stud sires for our herd," she said.
"In recent times we have visited New Zealand to find bloodlines to complement our breeding herds to be able to supply bulls to suit WA markets.
"As we are selecting new bulls we select phenotypically, while incorporating Estimated Breeding Values (EBVs), which will help us breed the type of animals we want to see in our paddocks."
Tying in with cattle types, Diana said although some buyers had adapted and changed their buying preferences over the years, they each selected bulls on different traits.
"Every buyer has their own agenda and opinion when selecting bulls depending on what market or goal they aim for," she said.
"I have noticed people have been getting back to basics and physically assessing bulls and going off raw data such as birth weights and weaning weights."
Being able to produce and maintain relationships with the stud's clients is something Diana thoroughly enjoys.
"Having really good relationships with clients who support us is really important, we want to support them with their goals and markets as well as getting to know them on a deeper level and help them wherever we can," she said.
Diana and Bec are both thrilled to be heavily involved in the stud and are keen for this to continue.
"The future is looking very bright and promising" Diana said.
"The beef industry is in a good place despite current prices at the moment, and the demand for quality red meat will always be highly sought after.
"We will get back into a good place in the months to come, farmers are incredibly resilient and have prepared for tough times over the years."
