Here we are again, beginning a New Year. And 12 months from now, we will once again be looking back and saying, my goodness, how fast the year went by. I don’t know if it’s just me, but the merry-go-round of lifeeach year continues to spin faster and faster. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m getting older or because I havemore responsibilities that keep me busy trying to catch up. But before I get ahead myself and ruin the spirit of a brand-new year, let me stop and reflect upon 2025 and see how my summary compares to yours last year.

The year started out dry in the region west of I-35, but was a lot wetter to the east, which is exactly whatour weatherman, Brian Bledsoe said it was going to be. As we reached April, May and June, most parts of Texas were growing green grass, except for deep South Texas and far West Texas. But eventually, the rain did show up and blessed most of us with moisture across the state until we got to August and then all bets wereonce again off and we’ve been dry ever since.

With great anticipation, all cattlemen were expecting an incredible calf market and thank goodness they weren’t let down. We saw record prices for calves all across the United States and like I told several of you,we deserved every dollar they brought. Some producers decided to sell them when they were younger andlighter, while others held on and packed on as much weight as they could trying to maximize their gross check, instead. Either way you may have done it, you really couldn’t make a mistake in 2025 and that, my friends, is something you don’t see very often and maybe something we will never see again.

Reflecting back on 2025, I can honestly say this was the most rewarding year I’ve ever experienced in thecattle business. My wife, Vicki, was so excited this past year to go feed for me and see the new calves beingborn. The problem is she didn’t count them the normal way like one, two, three or four head. Instead, she would count them in anticipated dollars like $2,000, $2,000, $2000, $2,000 equals $8,000, or four calves. Shewas right there when we worked our calves and of course, she helped when we sold them. Working togetherhas been a special experience for me this year and except for the times that I make her mad while sorting cattle, we make a really good team.

As for 2026, I think the prices this year will be even stronger. Don’t get me wrong, there will be a few hiccups in the market along the way, but I believe it will bounce back sooner than later. I believe if producers start retaining heifers, that of course means we should see less inventory in the feedlot, which will drive prices even higher. If the cattle on feed numbers don’t go down, that means either the producers are still not willing to retain the heifers to rebuild their herds and that means the strong market will last even longer. There is a possibility that the Mexican border can open back up sometime in 2026 and that might be another reason wewill see an increase in cattle on feed. All in all, I think 2026 is going to be a very prosperous year for the cow/calf producer and I look forward to seeing what the future holds.

The 2026 San Antonio All Breed Sale is starting to shape up and once again we will be representing thecream of the crop when it comes to quality bulls and females. We have witnessed a strong demand forbreeding bulls and replacement females since the beginning of 2025, and we will see it again for 2026. Wehope to see you in San Antonio on Feb. 18^th to witness the excitement of the best commercial sale in the state and see some outstanding cattle.