"Observations from 25 Years of West Kentucky Select Bred Heifer Sales" Kevin Laurent, Extension Specialist, Department of Animal and Food Sciences, University of Kentucky

​​The West Kentucky Select Bred Heifer Sale will be celebrating its 25th Anniversary Sale on November 23 at KY-TN Livestock in Guthrie, KY. To commemorate this milestone, I thought it would be appropriate to share a few observations and a little history of the sale. First the history.
Back in the late 1990’s when Dr. Roy Burris gave me the charge of starting a bred heifer sale in Western Kentucky, I knew this could be quite a challenge. Several attempts had been made to start commercial bred heifer sales on our end of the state and none had gained any traction. We sought advice and input from several sources. One being Glen Mackie, County Agent from Bourbon County who at the time was working with the well-established Elite Heifer Sale at Paris and his input was invaluable. As we began to plan the sale, Dr. Burris was of the opinion if we could just find the right consignors who not only had quality cattle, but most importantly were committed to buyer satisfaction and long-term success of the program, we could make this work. Enter Paul Beauchamp and Ova Alexander. Beauchamp & Alexander were well-respected Beefmaster and Angus breeders from Breckinridge County and had a long history and relationship with Dr. Burris and UK Extension. Paul and Ova took a leap of faith and were the major consignor that first year. That first sale held in November of 2000 sold 112 head for an average price of $968. The following year, Mr. John Bartee, County Agent in Montgomery County, Tennessee brought in another key consignor from “south of the border” in Sammy Bryant of Bryant Brothers Farm, Adams TN. Both of these consignors became vital fixtures in the sale and over the years have served as examples of producers who are committed to quality cattle and customer satisfaction. The final piece of the puzzle that helped establish the sale was the unwavering support of Mark Barnett and KY-TN Livestock Market.
With any special sale, whether it be feeder cattle or bred heifers, if the stockyard is not behind the effort, it will not survive. From the very beginning and through the years I never had to question the support from the Barnett family and KY-TN Livestock.
A lot has changed over the last 25 years from those humble beginnings. In 2006 a spring sale was added for fall calving heifers, and since 2000, there have been 43 sales, and 8183 heifers sold. Some of our management requirements have also been changed or tweaked to keep up with current technology. We went from using Birth Weight EPDs to Calving Ease Direct (CED) EPDs to genomically enhanced EPDs for our service sires which resulted in higher accuracy and less change in the CED numbers. We began testing for PI-BVD. We implemented a mineral requirement for better immune response to vaccines and added a Lepto booster prior to sale. And somewhere in the future we may add some form of genomic testing of the heifers.
Since the beginning, our consignors have been the backbone of the sale. They have always embraced recommended changes to make the sale and the heifers better and their commitment to customer satisfaction has been second to none. But obviously no sale can be successful without the support of the buyers. What is most satisfying is seeing the number of repeat buyers in the seats at every sale. Over the years, what the buyers put priority on has in some ways remained consistent but, in some ways, has changed a bit. High quality, docile, early bred, heifers will always be in demand. What seems to be changing, however, is more buyers are wanting to know more about the background and breed makeup of the heifers. Crossbred heifers with known breed compositions seem to be in more demand. I crunched a few numbers to see if this could be born out in real dollars from past sales. The table provided shows data from the 23 sales held since 2013. The first line of the table is data from 11 sales beginning in May of 2013. The second line includes data from the more recent 12 sales from November 2018 through November of 2024. 
These numbers seem to support the notion that buyers are placing more emphasis on crossbred replacements. If this is the case, this is good news since having a crossbred female with maternal heterosis is one of the most profitable breeding strategies cow calf producers can implement. Additionally, it seems the value of an F-1 female (a female with 100% maternal heterosis) is starting to be more readily understood and appreciated as well by heifer buyers. 
Realize when looking at raw data and averages such as these, that there may be confounding factors affecting the numbers. Consignor reputation, overall appearance and quality, disposition in the sale ring, along with a multitude of factors could be affecting price. So, it can be hard to definitively determine the effect of one trait or management practice on price.
I do know looking back on 25 years of heifer sales, the success of the program has a human or people element that can’t be quantified. Many folks have had a role in the continued success of this sale, from the consignors and buyers to the extension and stockyard personnel. I only have to think back of the days riding through the Tennessee countryside with Mr. Bartee screening heifers and watching his example on how he encouraged and related to producers, to remind myself that having a successful heifer sale, like most extension programs, is more about people and relationships than just the dollars and cents. Here’s to 25 more years. 

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