Page 24 - Demo

Page 24 %u2022 The Midwest Cattleman %u2022 January 2025BREEDER PROFILE: McENTIRE RED ANGUSQ: How did your operation get started and where are you located?A: Randy & Crystal McEntire of McEntire Red Angus ranch halfway between Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and Amarillo, Texas. %u201cI%u2019ve been here all my life, farming and ranching the same as my dad Richard and uncle Eugene did,%u201d McEntire said. The Sweetwater native said he sold every cow he and Crystal owned to purchase some commercial Red Angus heifers from Pieper Red Angus in Hay Springs, Nebraska, in 2005.%u00a0%u201cNo one around this part of the country had them,%u201d McEntire said. %u201cWe had such great success with the heifers that we purchased another 40 commercial heifers and six registered head at Pieper%u2019s next Red Angus Fall Production Sale.%u201d%u00a0Since that purchase, the McEntire%u2019s have enthusiastically grown their registered herd to over 200 head with the help of their daughter Chloe and son Rance.%u00a0Q: How do you market your genetics?%u00a0A: Most of the McEntire Red Angus bulls are sold through spring and fall production sales on the ranch, with a few selling private treaty also. Since their first sale in 2012, McEntire has faced the dilemma of how to market bulls that exhibited quality, but were on the younger end of the calf crop. %u201cOne year, we held and sold those younger bulls as two-yearolds,%u201d McEntire said. %u201cThen we thought instead of holding them, we%u2019d try to market them in the fall at 18 months old, and sell some commercial heifers through that sale as well.%u201d Two fall sales thus far have proven to be a profitable decision, with 37 bulls averaging $7,144 at the 2024 event.Q: What is one unique way you serve your customers?A: McEntire%u2019s roots in commercial beef production prompt him to use strict culling practices that result in a low-input cow herd that%u2019s able to adapt to a variety of environments. Customers come from arid New Mexico, elevated Montana, native Oklahoma and the Fescue Belt of the Midwest.%u201cWe strive to help anybody, whatever their needs,%u201d McEntire said. %u201cWe also buy commercial heifers off of our bull customers. We develop them in the winter, A.I., and will sell 50 to 100 commercial bred heifers in the fall, and 60 to 70 commercial pairs in the spring.%u201dQ: What management strategies have provided the greatest benefit to your operation?A: %u201cWe try to be good stewards of the land and refuse to over graze,%u201d McEntire said. %u201cWe do quite a bit of rotational grazing and let pastures rest.%u201d Grass management has cut back on feed and hay costs significantly. %u201cNow, we%u2019re mixing our own cow feed and it sure has helped reduce cost as far as what we have been having to spend for feed through the winter. And it helps the cow%u2019s condition.%u201dMcEntire Red Angus also takes advantage of kill data on progeny. %u201cWe know what bulls our customers are buying,%u201d McEntire said. %u201cOf course, we weigh them when they go on test here and when they come off. We scan for REA and marbling.%u201d McEntire contended that a seedstock producer can believe their bulls are good, but you don%u2019t really know until you get the data back on a pen of calves sired by your bull. %u201cIf they do well, I feel better about those genetics being the right breeding decision for our customers.%u201d%u00a0Q: If your ranch could be known for one thing, what would you want it to be?A: McEntire is excited that his 16-year-old son Rance is helping with genetic selection. %u201cAnd he has a good eye for cattle,%u201d McEntire said. Rance%u2019s hands-on experience with breeding decisions and good land stewardship is coupled with learning that the customer is king.%u201cI want our ranch to be known for good cattle and good honest people who are here to work for the everyday folks,%u201d McEntire said.%u00a0%u00a0Q: What new innovations or opportunities are you planning to pursue in the next 1-3 years?%u00a0A: McEntire purchased two more females from Peiper Red Angus last spring and is flushing them to a variety of bulls. %u201cWe put 40 embryos in our fall cows and are going to do a bunch this spring,%u201d McEntire said. %u201cThese females are phenomenal for udder quality and good feet. We%u2019re doing some experimenting with some black bulls also to get that total outcross deal. We%u2019re going to go at it hard, and create that outcross that everybody sees and goes %u2018Wow!%u2019 We want to produce that elite bull for the Red Angus breed.%u201dEditor%u2019s Note: Hear the full interview to learn more about McEntire Red Angus online at www.midwestcattleman.com. Dby Brenda Black | Photos courtesy of McEntire Red Angus