A Letter to the American Simmental Association

     

  Full disclaimer: I am just a long time breeder who threw her thoughts onto the internet.  I am no writer, but my voice is here and will be used if the time comes. 










  As a breeder who was born and raised with Simmentals I need to voice my opinion on the new ruling to allow 3/8 blood cattle to show at national PTP (Progress Through Performance) sanctioned shows.  Before this ruling a calf had to be 1/2 blood to show.

Simmental breeders and others who have Simmi registered calves have tried the angles:

• what about genetic defects
• we are downgrading-compromising our breed
• hurts our "established" EPDS
• taints the simmental characetics (Do I need to add photos of OUR breed from the 70s)
• changes how people see our breed

This new rule would only affect SHOWS.  As our herdbook is currently you can paper anything from a 1/4 to PB along with registering super-low percentages as foundation stock.  Keeping that the issue is only in ring in mind my intial thought was people just don't want to get beat.  We in the show world often say "a good one is a good one."  After hearing the side for people against it, I thought about how we could work around these issues.

• we already let THE dirtiest breed (Angus) with the most lethal defects in our shows???? confused about that argument
• our breed is already compromised.  Being in the show circuit, the simmental breed is the smallest most sawed off midget breed right now.  As a whole we have compromised the thing we were built on: DUAL PURPOSE.  Cows that can raise a calf and still fill a box of beef.  Simmental cattle are on the decline for both of those traditional trademark. 
• My buyers don't a lick about EPDS, most commercial breeders (who keep a lot of us in business) don't care either.
• SLIP N FALLS-- that's what we were known as.  bad structured, barrel gutted, harder doing cattle but through progressing outbreeding we have changed that perspective.  
• How do YOU think people see our breed?  I am in multiple breeds, we are seen as the breed who wants a big belly and no frame.  I don't need to beat a dead horse, but we are in the BEEF business.  

A couple more points I'd like to add to the "for" side of the argument.  

• We are an association who highly promotes our junior program...yet we are excluding kids who have these 3/8 blood cattle.
• lower percentages eligible for majors=more money for a very money hungry group of people
• Bigger shows = more publicity 
• Increase competition. 

I have heard both sides, our farm is a fourth generation Simmental seedstock operation and we are in full support for this ruling.  It only affects the show ring and really does it even????  At many shows they have so many SimAngus cattle they get their own show, ding ding, put the 3/8 blood (maybe one day  1/4 bloods) in a low percentage show.  We already allow them into the herdbook, most majors already have a low percentage/SimAngus show what the heck is wrong with a little more competition from a flat good 3/8.

RAISE BETTER CATTLE-- a good one is a good one