STOCKTON, Mo. – “The Missouri Show-Me-Select (SMS) Replacement Heifer Program educates cattle producers on heifer development strategies in the areas of management, reproduction and genetics to create a reliable source of quality replacement heifers,” says Patrick Davis, University of Missouri Extension livestock field specialist.

The fall sale for program participants in southwestern Missouri is 7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 15, at Joplin Regional Stockyards near Carthage. About 118 spring-calving (February to April) SMS-certified bred heifers will be for sale.

“Breeds represented in this sale include Angus, Akaushi, Balancer, Beefmaster, Gelbvieh, Red Angus and Hereford,” says Davis. These commercial bred heifers are either purebred or crossbred, with 62% of them being black/black white face while the remaining 38% are red/red white face. Many of the heifers are composite breeding or crossbreds, providing them with a production boost from hybrid vigor. Research consistently shows crossbred females have more longevity, providing one extra calf in their lifetime compared to a purebred cow.

“Many of the heifers have been artificially inseminated (AI) and carrying a pregnancy from a high-accuracy AI sire,” Davis says. He urges cattle producers to buy heifers carrying AI pregnancies from high-accuracy sires because this gives more knowledge on how their progeny will perform. It also helps in choosing replacement heifers that will produce progeny to help the cattle operation’s bottom line.

“An SMS heifer is a sound, blemish-free heifer that sells as a bred heifer in optimum condition,” says Davis. These heifers follow a research-based heifer development program from weaning to sale day, which promotes optimum management in growth, reproduction and health. The heifer is bred to a bull whose progeny are likely to be born with ease. The heifer has been pregnancy checked multiple times to provide the most accurate calving date possible. Therefore, as cattle producers add replacement females to their herd, Davis urges consideration of SMS heifers since their development leads to functional, sound, healthy females that have their first calf with ease and continue to produce in the herd for a long time.

To view the presale catalog, go to Catalog_Joplin_11.15.24 at https://shorturl.at/z6mX5.

For information about the Show-Me-Select Replacement Heifer Program, go to http://muext.us/sms or contact MU Extension livestock field specialists Patrick Davis at 417-276-3313 or davismp@missouri.edu, Andy McCorkill at 417-345-7551 or mccorkilla@missouri.edu, or Ian McGregor at 417-466-3102 or ian.mcgregor@missouri.edu.

For information about online bidding through DVAuction or for new in-person bidding, contact the Joplin Regional Stockyards at 417-548-2333.