This year the Gibbs family celebrated their 50th year farming and ranching on the land they are blessed to call home. They are located south of Glendive on the south side of the beautiful Yellowstone River. It's safe to say a lot has happened and changed since 1969; Tim started AI'ing in 1972, the first bulls were sold in 1976, and Tim and Laurie purchased their first registered Angus cows in 1982. Fast-forward to today, and the family continues to work hard to help provide food for the world.
Though it can have its challenges, being able to work together as a family is one of the best things about agriculture. Tim and Laurie have five daughters; Allison and Alicia live and work in North Dakota. Bailey and her husband Dylan, Danielle and Megan all work on the farm. We are also lucky enough that the fourth generation is already tagging along and helping out wherever they can - along with asking a lot of questions!
Besides raising bulls, they grow most of their feed for their cow herd. They raise irrigated crops - alfalfa, corn and millet. They also have some dry land hay, millet, peas and barley that is put up for feed.
After weaning, the calves are back grounded at home until May or April. While the calves are on the mother cow, she is expected to raise her calf without supplementation to her or her calf, and to be as maintenance-free as possible. They raise all of their own replacement heifers; when selecting females, they look for disposition, under quality and foot structure.
Over the years, they have strived to continually improve their cow herd. AI'ing has been a big contributor to this. Birth weight and weaning weight are just two of the genetic factors that are looked at and paid close attention to when selecting AI sires. They also breed for increased feed efficiency. The end product is always kept in mind when breeding cows. The 2017 calf crop of 500 head of home raised steers graded 100% choice and prime; on the 2016 calf crop, 505 head of home raised steers graded 95% choice and higher and 13.4% prime. The 2016 heifer crop of 292 head graded 95.5% choice and higher with 12.3% prime. The goal at Gibbs Angus is to raise bulls and heifers that will build a cow herd. Their bull customers are an important part of their operation; they want them to have few problems during calving and heavy calves at weaning.
They will be having their bull sale, along with Stortz Angus Ranch, on Feb. 26, 2020 at 1 p.m. at Glendive Livestock Exchange. They would love to see you there! They hope 2020 is filled with God's blessings for everyone! Check them out on Facebook at Gibbs Angus Ranch, or give Tim a call at 406-939-1084 or swing by for a visit!
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