Dunoon Angus' dynamo bull sets season high of $225,000

This week's stud sale spotlight for the week ending Friday, August 30 will be one to remember for the 2024 Spring stud selling season.

From interfacing Australia’s most remote bull sale in Fitzroy Crossing WA, to bidding on multiple bulls entering five to six-figure values, the team at AuctionsPlus is in the thick of the stud selling season.

The fierce online activity this week saw numerous studs achieve perfect clearance rates and price records within their seedstock across several breed offerings.

Dunoon Angus' dynamo bull sets season high of $225,000

The ‘Dunoon Angus Spring Bull Sale’ held in Holbrook NSW, has taken the lead for the highest grossing bull interfaced through AuctionsPlus this Spring stud selling season.

The six-figure young sire DUNOON T1361 (lot 30) was purchased for $225,000 by Gilmandyke Pastoral, Orange NSW. The bull nicknamed ‘Bob’, was described as “very quiet, a strong spine, great body width, a lovely frontend and a great outlook”. The almost two-year-old bull, born in September 2022 weighed in at 808 kg on August 26, 2024.

‘Bob’ the top grossing bull, has been purchased for $100,000 more than the 2023 ‘Dunoon Angus Spring Bull Sale’ top sale, where DUNOON S603 was purchased for $125,000.

The 2024 Spring sale achieved an auction average of $14,432, with eight lots secured to online bidders.

This impressive purchase comes only a week after the top buyers from Gilmandyke Pastoral held ‘Gilmandyke Angus Bull & Production Sale’, where they achieved their stud record price of $100,000 purchased by Corio Ag, Moss Vale, NSW.

Read more: Spring stud spotlight: Gilmandyke bull sale tops at $100,000

Rennylea record breaker

A historic milestone was achieved at the ‘Rennylea Angus Spring Bull Sale’ in Culcairn NSW, achieving a stud record price as well as selling bulls across seven states and territories nation-wide.

This year, a record price was set for a Rennylea stud bull with with RENNYLEA T1430 (lot 29) purchased by the partnership of Yalgoo Genetics, Walcha, along with Hazeldean Angus, Cooma, selling for $75,000.

The stud surpassed their previous sale record of $65,000 set in 2022.

The sale saw a complete clearance, with 243 bulls sold at an average of $14,230—slightly below last year’s spring average of $14,697, where 215 bulls were offered, closing the spring sale with the top price of $40,000.

The auction culminated in fierce online activity securing 53 lots and attracted almost 4,500 online catalogue views.

Full clearance for Fitzroy Crossing Bull Sale

Australia’s most remote bull sale wrote another chapter of ‘success out in the sticks’ with full clearance achieved at the ‘Fitzroy Crossing Bull Sale’.

Held in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, the sale saw multiple lots selling for the top price of $7,750. Notably, a line of seven Red Brangus bulls offered by Queensland based vendors from the Redline Cattle Company repeatedly take home the top price of the day.

AuctionsPlus’ Business Development Manager, Zoë Macfarlan made the 4,500km commute from Dubbo NSW to attend the sale.

Ms Macfarlan said it was a great day out, making history as the first time it has been interfaced online over its 18-year tenure.

"Overall the market was softer than recent years. Nonetheless, all bulls found a new home," Ms Macfarlan said. 

"An online bidder on AuctionsPlus secured an SC Droughtmaster bull which will head to the NT. Despite the remote location, live-streaming the sale went off without a hitch!"

Heavy-hitter Herefords

Heading to Barraba, NSW, where the ‘Ironbark Herefords 2024 Bull Sale’ had the top grossing Hereford Bull interfaced through AuctionsPlus this week with IRONBARK P071 TRUE GRIT T035 (lot 3) purchased for $70,000 - a record price for the Ironbark Hereford stud.

The sale drew together strong online action with the top online lot purchased for $11,000. Over the 139 lots offered, the sale averaged $10,263.

Earlier in the week, the ‘Talbalba Herefords 2024 Bull Sale’ located in Millmerran QLD, achieved a top sale price with the purchase of TALBALBA LAPTOP T050 (S) (Lot 16) purchased for $32,000.

The offering of 72 heterozygous and homozygous polled bulls achieved an auction average $14,667 and fell just shy of perfect clearance with 97%. Last year, the homozygous polled bull TALBALBA KINGSWOOD T011 was purchased for $102,000 – a record price for the Talbaba stud.

Future bright for Futurity Pastoral

It was a showdown between the Shorthorn and Charolais bull’s at the ‘Futurity Pastoral Bull Sale’ with 101 bulls on offer. However, it was the Charolais bull, FUTURITY ULTIMATE U232E (lot 63) who topped the sale, selling for $32,500. 

Out of the Shorthorn bull offerings, the top priced Shorthorn sold for $30,000, averaging $10,636 across the 55 lots. The Shorthorn average gained a slight premium over the 33 Charolais offerings who averaged $10,106.

The sale overall achieved 94% clearance and averaged $10,219.

Santa selling spree

‘Doorabeeba Santa Gertrudis Bull Sale’ located in Wee Waa, NSW, displayed another line of sturdy Santa Gertrudis genetics on offer this Spring stud selling season. The top selling bull described as “a bull of substance, thick, dark and long,” was DOORABEEBA TEXAN T016 (lot 3), who was purchased for $25,000 to an online bidder.

The sale attracted fierce online competition, with 10 successful online bidders taking home 22 lots. The competitive flare drove the auction average to an impressive $10,386.

Sure-thing Simmentals

Starting off the week strong in Roma QLD, where the ‘Bonnydale QLD Black Simmental Bull Sale’ achieved the top price for a Simmental bull this week with, BONNYDALE ESSENTIAL U147 (Lot 6) purchased for $30,000 to an online buyer. The sale had strong clearance of 92% and plenty of online activity with seven lots purchased online.

Angus accolades

It was another strong week across the Angus bull offerings in studstock interfaced through AuctionsPlus. The ‘Ardrossan Angus Online Only Bull Sale’ started off the week strong, demonstrating solid results driven by buzzing online action. The sale achieved an average of $10,788. However, it was ARDROSSAN QONCOCT T283 (lot 16) who earned the top priced bull, purchased for $25,000 to an online bidder.

To Narrabri in Northern NSW, where the ‘Manchee Ag Annual Bull Sale’ achieved champagne clearance of 100%. YAMBURGAN OCTAVIUS T169 (LOT 6) was the top selling bull, purchased onsite for $28,000. However, it was YAMBURGAN OCTAVIUS T162 (LOT 10), described as a “quiet-natured, high yielding bull with good fill behind the shoulder and over the loin”, who achieved the highest online purchase price, sold for $16,000 to an online bidder. The auction average was $11,548.