Dianne Hardgrave
In Town: “I worked for the State of Arkansas in the Animal Science Division keeping track of cattle sale prices comparable to weights. I go to four auctions per week and I’m one of five auction clerks for a total of 17 auctions covered per week. I sit with my computer among the buyers and enter the weight and prices of the calves sold usually recording 80 percent of the calf sales. I grade them in 10 seconds by focusing on the 12th rib bone as an indication of how much meat the animal will provide at slaughter. We start by grading whether the frame is small, medium or large and then subdivide each of those areas with a rating of one, two, three or four with one being the best. The premium calf has a medium frame with a rating of one meaning that the frame is large enough to support muscle but not so large that the frame makes up too much of the total weight at slaughter. Arkansas is the only state to support the statistics with a physical description including weight, color, whether or not the animals have horns and other details in order to have a more complete record for comparison of market trends.”
In the Country: “Our cattle business is a family business with close to 1,000 acres supporting both a cow-calf operation and a backgrounding operation near Clarksville, Ark. We sell our animals at 700 pounds or more, often in Fort Smith. I am still at my dad’s beck and call when he asks for help. We believe in grain feeding daily and I help him feed grain every morning. In addition, we always have hay out for the cattle regardless of the time of year. A good pond system also supports our operation and only rarely needs to have the ice broken up during extreme winter cold.
“I am now beginning a pecan farm on my acreage because I don’t want to raise cattle for myself and because I want to leave a place that is on the original homesteaded land that my kids or grandkids can always come back to. There is always a chance one of my grandchildren or future great grandchildren will love cattle the way I do.”
