I have enjoyed reading everyone's take on the Impact meeting and future of the breed. I enjoyed the meeting, and I think the comments and information was more geared to the commercial producer than the show ring. That alone was a positive. I work in the pig genetics business. If you create value for your customer, you get a repeat customer. The only way you make genetic improvement is with data. This doesn't mean that we want ugly cattle with great numbers. But we need functional cattle that create value.
It is not a fast process, I very much agree. I bought my first shorthorns in 1996, and finally started to produce bulls that worked for commercial producers 3 years ago. But I am a slow learner. I spent too many years trying to use the "promoted" bulls. Until I sat down and wrote a business plan with a mission statement, I made little progress. What did that change? It made me focus on my customer/market. In turn I found that I had to find a new kind of "bull or female" from a different set of breeders. This has led me far away from the show ring and has made it harder to find cattle that fit my goal. But the cattle are there in the Shorthorn breed. But you won't find them without lots of looking, and some trial and error.
I have been fortunate enough to travel and see a lot of herds both commercial and purebred. The best thing you can do is understand what your customer wants. Is his goal to make F1 females? Does he even assist with calving? Does he like to feed cows are does he like cows' to feed themselves? Any genetics decision that ignores what your customer wants, should be avoided at all costs. Otherwise, you will have to find new customers.
We can't change the past, just like we can't change the show ring. If the show ring is your market, breed that way. But don't try to succeed in a commercial market with show ring genetics. I do think that there is not as much difference between the 2 in Canada, but maybe I am wrong.
Lastly, if you don't produce the kind of cattle that a customer wants, give them a name of a shorthorn breeder that can meet their goals. Ask a lot of questions about what they want. Don't disparage what they want to buy. But help them find a shorthorn breeder that can satisfy their needs (not your needs). I have sent people to show ring breeders, because they wanted their child to win in the show ring.
Many of the people that comment on this site are successful at marketing to the customer/market they have chosen. Find the breeders that are selling to the market you want to be in and visit their herds. You may want to target something slightly different, but it will help you make your own decisions. Find some mentors both in the breed and out of the breed. Why do you need a mentor? Because I win most of the arguments with myself. But when I have to justify a choice with someone else, I have to do more homework and develop a better answer. I have learned a lot from a number of Shorthorn breeders, to many to mention and I might forget someone, and they don't all raise the kind of cattle I raise. But I have five or six they I communicate with on a fairly regular basis, and several others on a semiannual basis. They are invaluable in helping me avoid bad breeding mistakes, based on their experience with trying a genetic line and on their knowledge of breeders or lines that I haven't tried.
I didn't mean to write this much. I hope you all have a successful and blessed year. May you improve your cattle, your customers cattle and your life.
