On Tuesdays, Senior Farm and Ranch Broadcaster Ron Hays visits with Ben Hale of Western Livestock Auctions as he talks about the latest in the markets and more. Established in 1995, Western has grown into a multi-generational family-owned and operated business and stands as a symbol of tradition, excellence, and a deep-rooted passion for the cattle industry. Western Livestock Auctions operates the Western Livestock Commission Firm, which sells cattle on Mondays and Tuesdays. They also operate the livestock auction markets in Woodward, Comanche, Waurika, and Knoxville, Iowa.
Hale says it’s been “a pretty good run this week with about 5,500 head compared to 4,700 a year ago.” He notes the market was “overall better,” explaining that “feeders are holding steady” while “heifers are a little higher in some spots and lower in others.”
Hale says the calf trade continues to surprise him, adding that “unweaned calves were higher again this week.” He attributes part of the strength to weather and timing: “Some of those guys are trailing off planting wheat, and there’s still not a big number of lighter calves moving anywhere.” He says that many producers are choosing to sell calves now rather than “investing dollars back into preconditioning,” because “even though it’s not quite as high as a month ago, it’s still pretty good, and there’s still a lot of demand.”
When asked about what he’s hearing from customers, Hale says, “It’s really the same conversations every year — whether to wean them or not.” Some ranchers still have “some green grass,” and Hale has been “urging them to go ahead and move them while there isn’t as many moving to get a better price,” warning that “when it freezes and that grass is gone, there could be two or three weeks of some big runs.”
On heifer retention, Hale says, “There are some guys doing it. We’ve had some talk about buying heifers, but since it’s kind of dried out, we haven’t heard as much about that.” He adds that “you can’t find any front-end yearlings in our area,” though “you can find some pretty good heifer calves, but you’re going to have to straighten them out and keep them a while.”
Looking ahead, Hale reports upcoming market runs: “Waurika is going to have 700 cows, Comanche about the same, and Woodward already has over 500 yearlings.” He expects “a pretty good run up there and some calves on Thursday — it’s going to be a busy week.” Quality seems to be holding up pretty good, and “people have plenty of demand.”
Hale can be contacted at 940-631-2333. Check out more about the marketing options that Western offers by clicking here.
