Wilkah Herefords top bull sells for $24,000 to first-time buyer

Wilkah Herefords sold 17 of its 18 bulls to the impressive top price, recording an average of $9882.

Wilkah Herefords stud principals Andrew and Angela Lyons said the previous top-priced record set in 2021 was $11,500, and the new record showed demand for their cattle was growing.

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"We try and offer cattle with a thick top line, well-muscled and the good dark red colour and all of that forms a commercially-viable bull," Mr Lyons said.

"The people that have been buying our cattle have found that they're getting weight in their weaners so that shows the type of cattle we're breeding is doing our clients the world of good."

Last year the stud sold only 11 of its 18 bulls, and Mr Lyons said the higher clearance rate was promising.

"The bulls sold have covered an area from Penola in South Australia through to Benambra in Gippsland and most of the others stayed locally," he said.

The top-priced buyer Anthony Lees, Tallara Holdings, Migalake, bought the sale topper, Lot 3, for $24,000.

The first-time buyer said he liked the bull's figures, structure and head, describing him as a sound bull.

"It's been difficult to buy this type of bull this year, with low birth weight and high growth rate figures along with a good EMA," he said.

He also cited the homozygous polled bull's temperament as a reason for the purchase and said it would be joined to some of his better poll Hereford cows.

Lot 3's figures included a birth weight of +4.8, a +22 score for milk, his 600-day growth was +98 with an EMA of +5.1 and an IMF of +0.6.

Long-time buyer Jason Koch, Rosebank, Dergholm, bought four Hereford bulls to $17,000 to average $12,000, while first-time client David Neale, Kalangadoo, SA, bought one Hereford bull for $11,500.

Return clients Kelvin and Jackie Pendergast, Benambra, bought two Hereford bulls to average $8000.