Welcome to Strang Herefords &
Black Angus, Meeker, Colorado, located in the mountains of northwestern
Colorado. Our purebred cattle operation is based at an elevation of 6,400
feet, and the rigors of the winters require that the livestock be hardy and
easy fleshing. Strang Hereford and Angus cattle have this sort of resiliency
and, therefore, will thrive in a wide variety of environments. Not all
herds have such a good test environment. Our cattle have been successfully
tested in Alberta, Canada; Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Idaho,
Kansas, Montana, New Mexico, Mississippi, Nebraska, Ohio, Oregon,
Pennsylvania, Texas,
Utah and Wyoming – as well as all parts of Colorado.
Family
Ours is
a family enterprise and we have been in the Hereford business for 47 years.
18 years ago we added a registered Black Angus program. Our four daughters,
Mary, Ellen, Lisa and Sarah were pivotal to the ranch growing up and through
their college years. Today, two of them and their families are directly
involved. Lisa and Tom Walsh are part of the ranch in Meeker and Mary and
Greg Cunningham provide us with a satellite herd of Herefords in Kaycee,
Wyoming. Their foundation genetics came from our herd and they continue to
use our herd sires.
Program Goals
Genetic Improvement
The bottom line requires that we produce
functional cattle that will perform efficiently in the many climates and
under the varying management practices of our diverse group of buyers. To
this end we’ve built our breeding programs on cattle with a balance of
traits to facilitate calving ease, performance, structural correctness and
carcass merits. Genetic improvement is always our focus.
Cow Herds
Both cow herds are long, easy keeping individuals who
are reproductively superior. Fertility in bulls and the ability of cows to
conceive easily is our #1 priority because it is fundamental to
profitability. They must milk and have neat udders with small teats in
order to stay in either herd. Neither the Hereford nor the Black Angus
programs chase frame – as such single trait selection usually means a
sacrifice of fertility and/or structural correctness.
Pulmonary Arterial Pressure
Acceptable
Pulmonary Arterial Pressure for high altitudes is another focus of our
breeding programs. This is important to our many commercial customers who
summer their cattle at/above 8-9,000 feet above sea level. PAP, as it is
known, is not an exact science, but it is the only tool the industry has in
trying to avoid brisket disease at high altitudes. An animal’s PAP is
significantly affected by his/her genetics, environment and, to a lesser
degree, nutrition.
Calving Ease
There is
no room in either breeding program for herd bulls who sire outsized calves
with undesirable dimension. Calving ease is pivotal to the reproductive
cycle and we feel that the dimension of the calf is critical. It is
something we carefully scrutinize and any genetics we bring into the herd
must fit these optimal parameters. Birth weight is a factor and is
something we have been paying particular attention to and we’ve
successfully modified our Hereford birth weights. Birth weight can also be
related to management practices and environmental conditions. Our cowherds
are fed for 5 ½ months each winter which will result in higher birth weights
than producers whose cows run out in range conditions all winter.
