FORWARD – To Better Cattle & Better Beef
THE WHITLEY RANCH STORY
How It Started
Whitley Ranch was the late Ron Whitley’s dream. More than 15 years ago, Ron built the operation and began producing commercial Brangus cattle. Today, Ron’s wife, Starr Whitley, is carrying on Ron’s dream. The ranch still operates with commercial Brangus as the cowherd base.
Where It’s Going
Our program is rapidly evolving into an efficiency-based operation. Through the drought of 2021-2022, we made use of high cull cow prices so that we could focus on our most productive cows in the herd. The drought also brought a different perspective to mind, we may not always be able to run as many cows per acre but we can still seek higher calf crop values in down years. This is the perspective that pushed us to the Akaushi breed. By using full-blood herd sires on our commercial cow herd, we not only test our genetics in the real world, but we also have premium markets available year in and out. With the beginning of our Fullblood Akaushi herd, we are breeding these animals to be maternally driven cattle that can perform throughout the industry sectors.
Vision: To be a leader in a changing beef industry.
Mission: Provide high quality genetics that promote profitability in other operations.
About Our Cattle
Our main herd consists of both spring and fall bred commercial females. These cows have been mated to fullblood Akaushi bulls since the fall of 2022. While maintenance cost remains the same for our commercial cows, we now have access to stronger markets for our F1 calf crops. Thus, bringing more profitability to the table.
We are currently starting our fullblood Akaushi herd through an Embryo Transfer program. Through a strong partnership with Artesian Cattle in Gustine, TX we now have access to breed leading genetics that require the same amount of real-world substance as our own operation. While the breed is known for sheer carcass quality, our operations require genetics that work for the commercial operation.
Our Full-Blood Akaushi Genetics
Our Herd Sires
J04 (Margin Call) – AF209877
We are partnered with Artesian Cattle on Margin Call. Semen available through Artesian Cattle, Stored at Elgin Breeding Service, $25/unit.
J09 (Archie) – AF209874
Archie is our other young herd sire. While semen is not available yet, we will be collecting him in the next year. Photo coming soon!
Our Donor Females
These donors have remained at the forefront of strong programs both at the Matador and Artesian herds for years. They are long lived females that are incredibly fertile. We take a slightly different approach to our fullblood herd in that we select heavily for maternal genetics, using only the most effective cow families to build upon.