A pen of 11 Droughtmaster heifers from Dimbulah topped the first Mareeba Sale for the year on Tuesday, on the back of a strong start to the 2017 selling season.
The naturally polled, quiet heifers sold for 349.2 c/kg, under the account of Gerdhill P/L, to local buyer Ian Shaw.
Queensland Rural livestock agent Jacko Shephard said the pen offered the purchaser three options.
“You can grow them out to killers, put them on a boat or they are beautiful breeder heifers,” Mr Shephard said. “They had the temperament as well.”
Livestock agents were impressed with the numbers and buyer turnout at the sale, which traditionally kicks off a new year with small yardings and only a handful of buyers.
Elders livestock agent Brian Rowling said Tuesday’s sale was a strong start to the selling season.
“It was above our expectations,” Mr Rowling said. “We had a southern buyer who competed with our regulars in the marketplace and I think our vendors would be very happy with the first sale of the year.
“We did have a lot more cattle booked in but the four to eight inches of rain to the north and south of the Tablelands over the weekend stemmed that flow. But they’ll be here for next week.”
Mr Rowling said prices were strong across all categories. “We were lacking store steers,” Mr Rowling said. “There were only had a few but there were plenty in the lane way looking for store steers.”
“For Mareeba it was a decent set of numbers for the first sale and we had a reason to talk to buyers and attract some very good buyers,” Mr Shephard said. “On this market here today, we hope that it will encourage people to put some cattle through.”
The total yarding of 117 head was double of what would be normally yarded for the first sale.
The yard average of 258.6 c/kg returned an average $899.71/head. This included:
- 10 bulls averaged 212.2 c/kg selling to a top of 330.2 c/kg
- 28 cows averaged 204.8 c/kg selling to a top of 247.2 c/kg
- 38 heifer averaged 265.2c/kg selling to a top of 311.2c/kg
- 16 steers averaged 286.1 c/kg selling to a top of 345.2c/kg
- 17 yearling heifers averaged 327.4 c/kg selling to a top of 349.2 c/kg
- 1 yearling steers averaged 314.2 c/kg selling to a top of 314.2 c/kg
- 1 cows & calf @ $1000/unit
- 1 cow & calf @ $465/unit
- 2 cows & calves @ $1310/unit
- 1 cow & calf @ $1300/unit
