The Talihina, Okla., area – talk about scenic beauty. Some of the best scenery in the world can be found right in the backyard of Gerald and Jana Knapp, owners of Knapp Ranch. The Knapps raise Charolais bulls, even though with the wet and snowy weather of late, those bulls have been more brownish-gray in color.
That rainy/snowy weather has not been any good for calving, or anything else for that matter, Gerald relayed. But that doesn’t mean much. At a cattle ranch, the show must go on, regardless of the weather.
“I have all the cows that are calving in the two pastures close to the house. You need to check on them every day, and if you don’t see them you better find them; tomorrow will be too late,” Gerald warned. “Even if it has been one of those days when you want to throw your hands up and quit, if you do not get out there and work at it every day, you will not do any good.
“My father started this place in 1929 and I am 56,” Gerald said. Ranching is definitely in his blood. Today he and his wife have 40-plus Charolais bulls, and 800-plus crossbreed cows on around 3,500 acres. They have their hands full. When asked why Charolais, Gerald responded, “The proof is in the calves. They are weaned out completely at 650 lbs., all on paper. I use a couple of the black bulls (Angus) to breed with the heifers, but I just get a lot better weight with the Charolais.” Gerald’s success has his neighbors trying the Charolais bulls too, now.
Gerald’s wife, Jana, is a schoolteacher. They have three daughters, Ashley, Lacy and Ladona. Gerald’s two brothers, Bill and Wes are managing partners at the ranch.
Gerald was quick to note who got him into the Charolais business. “I got my first Charolais bulls from Everett and William Buckner of Charleston, Ark., and Larry and Peggy Aschermann of Missouri. They both got me off to a good start.”
Today, Gerald feeds hay and three tons of field cubes a day keep the herd looking good in the winter. In summer they are on pasture and minerals, producing a much larger steer – with the help of Gerald’s finest Charolais bull, of course.
“We started giving the cows mineral, and it has increased our breeding success from 80 percent to 97 percent over five years. That made me a believer,” he said.
With all the years of cumulative experience Gerald has in the cattle business, there is not much he does not know, or has not tried. For all the trials some in the agriculture industry have faced in recent years, Gerald sure seems to have found a recipe for success.
