Rachel van Dissel and her children Georgia and Sid Gibson will take the leap into seedstock Angus production this year, having been impressed with the results that the breed provided in their South Australia-based commercial herd.
The family's passion for the breed was further heightened when Rachel's father, Wayne Bellman, upon retiring from full-time work, established his Ranges Angus stud eight years ago, with the purchase of a cow from Banquet Angus. Mr Bellman continues to sell several bulls on-property each year.
Along with her brother and mother, Georgia Gibson is still involved in the Ranges Angus stud, especially the showing side of things, for which the family had heifers place fourth in 2022 and fifth in 2023 at the SA Junior Heifer Expo.
"Between us, we have two properties. My grandfather has land in the Adelaide Hills, near Wistow, which he has owned for 30 years, and our family has had property in the Barossa, near Springton, for close to 12 years. Both of these properties are used to run the stud cattle," Ms Gibson said.
Both properties consist of undulating terrain, with the Springton country featuring outcrops of moss rocks. The Wistow property receives close to 762mm annual of rainfall, while the property at Springton receives about 685mm annually.
"We have had good early rain so far this year (2023), with the season cutting off very sharply in spring. The cattle have carried good condition through last summer and are still in quite a forward condition at present.
"My family has run a crossbred commercial female herd for 15 years and has utilised Angus genetics over these females through this span of time.
"We have used Angus genetics as they offer calving ease, good growth rates, and have the added bonus of higher prices at sale time. We also appreciate the availability of solid EBV data being available, to aid our breeding decisions."
After having been heavily involved in Mr Bellman's stud business, Rachel, Georgia and Sid have decided to establish their own stud, as they're keen to pursue their own breeding objectives.
"We'll maintain our use of Angus genetics in our commercial operation as the breed offers us many options for joining sires through AI (which we use in our commercial herd) as well as price premiums through our sale points. The decision to begin a stud has largely stemmed from our satisfaction in the use of commercial Angus genetics and the more active participation of my family members in the show scene."
Ms Gibson said their stud cows were predominantly sourced from the Stoney Point dispersal sales, while recent purchases have been made from Maryvale stud.
"Our heifer purchased from the Stoney Point sale is due to have her first calf and we are eagerly awaiting its arrival. We are looking to purchase some embryos to implant in commercial cows and would also like to add another young breeding female to our herd."
She said their early objectives for the stud program are to breed moderate, sound cattle with balanced carcase data.
"A bit of added style is a bonus! At this early point, establishing a fertile, maternal cow base is important. Our long-term goal will then be to remain consistent with our early goals, while focussing closely on carcase traits the further we progress. But it's really about having a good balance."
The utilisation of modern industry technology is of particular interest to Ms Gibson.
"We're keen to explore new breeding technologies, in an effort to progress the better female lines we identify within our herd. We've already utilised performance data and will continue to do so in our breeding programs going forward."
Ms Gibson's parting words to others getting established in Angus production were to have some specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals and objectives to work towards.
"Just remember they aren't set in stone and you can always ask for help, as we all have to start from somewhere. I also think that networking with other like-minded people is a great way to gain extra knowledge and can provide some great opportunities in other aspects of starting a herd."
