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Our
cattle ranch
is located in Alturas, California, Modoc County, in the northeastern corner of
California
Map to
be added soon.
neer@frontiernet.net
mcneer@frontiernet.net
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Ranch History
Neer Hereford Ranch
859 County Road 56 Alturas, California 96101
530 233 2255
530 233 4633
In the fall of 1936, John C. Neer
loaded his wife and two young sons in the family car and headed east for
their first "cowman's vacation," a trip that would become an annual quest
for the Neers over the next third of a century. John was looking for
good Hereford bulls--in quantity. Modoc
County, California, the Neers' home, was cattle country, but the cattle
had not improved significantly from the time the first drovers and
cattlemen settled the area in the late 1800s. John Neer knew this
because he had been feeding local cattle for his slaughter and retail
butcher business since the late 1920s.
Determined to improve cattle in Modoc County,
John shipped tree carload of high quality Hereford bulls from Chadron,
Nebraska, to sell to his friends and neighbors. One the same
train came a carload of young registered females that would form the
foundation of the Neer Hereford Ranch herd. |
| The Neer family shipped
Hereford bulls to Modoc County from eleven states and Canada, selling more
than 3,000 bulls, many from their own growing registered herd.
This experience gave the younger Neers a great opportunity to learn about
Herefords from some of the best breeders in the country, and to learn how
to select the kinds of Herefords that thrive in the semi-arid rangeland of
northeast California, southeast Oregon, and northwest Nevada.
Dean Neer took over the supervision of Neer
Hereford Ranch in the mid-1960s when his father retired. Marie
joined in the management of the ranch in 1972 when Dean and she married.
She is now the ranch's AI technician. Dean remains the
geneticist and herd planner.
Neer Hereford Ranch follows a line breeding
program in a cow herd that was closed in 1966. outcross blood is
obtained through artificial insemination to recognized and successful
national herd sires.
For the Neers, fertility is the highest
priority in selection, followed by efficiency of gain. An
absolute cause for culling is bad temperament. Good disposition
is essential. Muscling and body structure have
remained important, as well as rate of gain. The Neer
Hereford Ranch has had whole herd performance evaluation since 1968.
Birth weights have been recorded since 1976. Artificial insemination
to top sires and pelvic scoring have been practiced since 1980.
The Neer Hereford Ranch aim continues to satisfy
the requirement of the commercial cattleman--quality and range ready
condition at an affordable price.
The ranch has many return customers, who range
from Petaluma to southern Oregon to western Nevada. In
October, 2004 one loyal customer, Pinky Anklin, bought his 76th bull from
the ranch.
Stop by Neer Hereford ranch or give the Neers a
call. They always like to show people their cattle.
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