There are more than 12,000 heads of cattle from all across North America attending the 2025 National Western Stock Show this year. Some will simply be shown to help build the reputation of their bloodlines, while others will be sold to new owners.
Terry Florain and his team with the Brand Inspection Board ensure the animals that do get sold are transferred to their rightful owners.
“Cattle are just like a car, they have a title that goes with them their whole life,” Florian said.
Upwards of a thousand Angus cattle are sold at the Stock Show every year and behind them are hundreds of people working to show off their best traits.
“They get 'em dolled up. They get 'em clean and fluffy and pretty and they go into a show ring with similar animals and they pick a winner,” Florain said. “A lot of the ranches set their reputation at big shows like this.”
The beautifying process can include the use of purple toning shampoo, brushing and blow-drying all to show off the lines of the cattle's bodies and the traits that create an ideal form for various breeds.
“There are some really high-priced cattle going through here,” Florian said. “These people know exactly what they're looking for and then they buy to suit what they need for their operation. There's some that sell for $25,000, $35,000.”
Bill Schermer of Schermer Angus in Clarion, Iowa has been attending the show for decades.
“This is our 60th consecutive year out here at the National Western, [it’s] the Cadillac of all shows. People from all over the country,” Schermer said. “Just so many diverse operations, and of course you can learn from everybody and it is just a great atmosphere.”
This year, Schemer is showing a pen of heifer cattle.
“These are purebred Angus cattle, and so they're all totally black and they're noted for their high carcass qualities,” he said. “You got to have that good Angus steak on Saturday night, and that's what these cattle are noted for.”
But he doesn’t have any plans to sell. At least not yet.
“We want to take these heifers back and put them into the breeding program. But if the right person comes along and wants to offer enough money and we can work something out and get some embryos out of her or something like that, we're always willing to listen,” he said.
In the 60 years Schermer’s family has been showing their cattle at the Stock Show, the technology behind cattle breeding has changed drastically.
“Take a look at our world,” he said. “I mean, years ago everything was visual appraisal and that's still important, but you’ve got to use modern technology, too.”
Schermer’s ranch doesn’t have a herd bull meaning all breeding is done through artificial insemination.
“That allows us to use the top bulls of the breed,” he said. The sire of three of the heifers he’s showing this year was sold for nearly $400,000. “You couldn't justify spending that much for a bull on a small herd. But I can buy the semen and have the same genetics. And then with the use of herd improvement records and DNA, we can identify the top genetics and kind of stay in the trend of things, so to speak.”
The DNA of Angus cattle can be accessed through various online databases, allowing ranchers to learn about their Expected Progeny Differences or statistics that predict how well a cow will pass on its genes for a specific trait.
“When you have these top tier bulls where they may have 10,000 to 12,000 progeny across the country, I mean, that's real data that you can use. Disposition is really important in our program,” Schermer said.
Schermer also owns Stockman Magazine, a job that requires a lot of travel.
“So my wife and the grandkids do a lot of the work, and so I'm not going to take a chance of having [a cow] that's a little testy,” he said. “There’s an Expected Progeny Difference for disposition and it will help identify. Nothing is a hundred percent, but there are indications. There are some bulls that you just don't want to use, and then there's some that they're surefire, tame and quiet and so forth.”
Attending the show with Schermer this year is his grandson Jacob. It’s the first time he’s been back since 2019 when he was just 14 years old. He said it’s special to be at the stockyards, carrying on a family tradition while many ranchers don’t have someone to take over.
“I’m most excited just to see what the future brings,” Jacob said. “There's so many new people that come and go out of this business. A lot of new faces and a lot of the old faces have retired and they don't have anyone to take over for 'em.”
He hopes to take over for his grandfather one day and plans to continue attending the Stock Show for years to come.
“Maybe you’ll get another 50 years out of it,” Florian said.
“Maybe so,” Scheremer agreed, smiling at his legacy.
The National Western Stock Show ends on Jan. 26.
