High Country Droughtmasters purchases first Shorthorn bull at Beef sale

A total of 26 lots were catalogued for the sale, including semen, embryos, flush, ET calf, females and bulls.

The top selling lot was, Royalla Ventura's Best, a short haired roan polled bull offered by Royalla Shorthorns stud, Yeoval, NSW.

After 26 bids, including four bids over $40,000 from four separate buyers, the top price bull sold for $55,000 to the Laycock family of High Country Droughtmasters, Toogoolawah.

According to the catalogue, the 24-month-old bull was the son of the Beef 21 supreme champion bull, Royalla Ventura, and out of Royalla Isobel.

Elders stud stock agent Lincoln McKinlay said there was a lot of interest in the top price bull right across the country, followed by widespread interest in the females and genetics offered at the sale.

"There was good nationwide support and good for the breed to have such a good result on a stage like Beef Australia," he said.

Buyer of the top price bull Paul Laycock said the bull would fit into their plan to extend their genetic offerings to their clients as the family opens up its own IVF, ET and semen centre in Linville, south east Queensland.

The beast was the first Shorthorn bull the Laycock family had purchased.

"When we looked at that bull he was just so well put together and his characteristics for producing a commercial product was just absolutely outstanding," he said.

"So the goal with him is to collect the bull and we will market his genetics.

"We also invested in some heifers and some flushes at the sale, so we hope to be able to utilise him across doing genetic work with IVF and ET with those and look at also putting those genetics on the market as well as taking some bulls and heifers to be prime candidates for our sale in two years' time."

Following post sale negotiations, Elders reported that five out of seven bulls averaged $18,600, four females averaged $5125, two pick the draft drop heifer calves averaged $9000, three flush packages averaged $7583, 27 embryos averaged $1874 and 25 semen straws averaged $200.