Dear Hereford Enthusiasts,   

Welcome to our 14th Annual Online Sale in September. What an interesting year it’s been since our sale last Fall. Covid is behind us, but climate change is in our face. The winter here was fairly normal after we got by that real cold spell in December. It rained a lot but it’s the North Coast and that’s to be expected, calving was good with 29 of 35 calves either AI or ET. Our second Online Spring Bull Sale was a success and Dr Darrow was back to collect embryos again at end of March. Although we have had better flushes, we still managed to put some exciting exportable embryos in the tank for this sale. Cows rebred as expected and calves looked good and we confidently overseeded some pastures and put out the usual fertilizer in a lovely sunny early May with everything green but not really growing. Our silos went empty, and we had to supplement feed for 2 weeks before we could get turned out in early June. Then it got hotter and dryer and all but our estuary meadows dried up and went to seed. Silage crop was 30% below where we need to be to support 30 cows and we had 37 cows at end of May. Our plan now is to go into the winter with 25 pregnant cows and buy a little feed to get us through next winter. There are cattle in this online sale that would normally never leave this place, but it isn’t normal. But it is a great opportunity for you to acquire some of my “private stock” that I bred this spring with no intention of selling this fall. Once again, we have done genomic profiles on every calf this spring as well as horned/polled tests. Select with confidence knowing our program is able to predict the genetic value of each animal as accurately as today’s science will allow.

Richardson family is proudly entering into our 106th year of raising beef on Haida Gwaii. We are proud to still have four generations involved on the farm and Leslie and I are fortunate to have 4 grandchildren to interact with every day. While it may not be the best place in the world to raise cattle, it is arguably the best place to raise a family. Thanks to the whole family for all their contributions which make it possible for us to raise and market pedigree Hereford cattle and genetics. We look forward to selling a female or embryo package from this sale to your family

Don & Les