I don’t know about the younger generation, because I don’t know what they teach anymore in school. I would be willing to bet that most of you know the story of Paul Revere and how he warned the public about the encroaching British troops, stationed in Boston were about to march to the nearby town of Lexington and arrest Samuel Adams and John Hancock.  Now, the part I didn’t know was that Paul Revere was employed by the Boston Committee of Correspondence and the Massachusetts Committee of Safety as an express rider to carry news, messages, and copies of important documents as far away as New York and Philadelphia…I actually thought he was a volunteer or sympathizer. My point in bringing him up is this, Paul Revere was very important in informing the public about what was going to happen next…a forecast into the near future.

     I bring up the Paul Revere story, for the simple fact that I have for many years said that the three major stock show replacement cattle sales, Ft. Worth, San Antonio and Houston, are very important events because they help set the tone for spring prices on replacement cattle.  One of the biggest mistakes I hear from producers is, what are my cattle worth if I were to try and sell them.  By now, most of you have heard what the prices on bulls and females were worth at the recent San Antonio All Breed Sale.  In today’s modern society, unlike Paul Revere’s days, news and information is reported instantly.  I looked on Facebook after the sale and there were several post during the sale that was reporting the San Antonio sale was on fire and that the pens of females were bringing it all.  The Grand Champion pen of commercial females sold for $12,000 per head for a pen of five pairs.  Then they reported other numerous pens of cattle bringing $10,000, $9,000, $8,000, and $7,000 including one pen of open tiger stripe heifers that brought $11,000 per head.

     So, what does this mean?  It tells me that producers are needing replacement bulls and females and they are not afraid of the cost, even in a drought.  It appears they are optimistic and bullish about the future and are ready to slowly build back their herds even while they are experiencing serious drought conditions.  Personally, I watch the cattle markets on a weekly basis, especially the really good replacement sales and many of them are experiencing the same response that we did in San Antonio.  In fact, recently Jordan Cattle Auction special cattle sale saw a sharp increase for quality pairs in their last sale on Feb. 21st.  Meanwhile this past Saturday, Feb. 28^th, Hallettsville Livestock Commission had a special replacement sale, and some of the top-quality Brangus pairs were selling for a premium between $7,000-$7,200.

     As far as I can tell the table is set for an outstanding spring when it comes to selling replacement females.  Now all we need is some much-needed rainfall, green grass, tank water and a chance for the new calf crop to gain a lot of weight before we sell them.  Personally, I think cattle producers are ready to start rebuilding their herds but hopefully history has taught us all a lesson, let’s do it slowly and methodically this time around.  I like to believe that quality pays off during the good times and the bad times and we have waited for so long to be in the position we are in at the present time.  We don’t need tax incentives or any other worthless programs to build the cattle herds back, we just need time and I think the American consumer is willing to wait.