Barzona Bulletin Winter 2025

By Matthew Heinz, Golden Hz Farms, BBAA President President’s Message

Raising Quality Barzona Cattle for 46 Years. Bulls & Females Available 2-Year-Old Bulls Available Now F & F Cattle Company W elcome to the winter issue of the Barzona Bulletin . As I write this article, much of the United States is experiencing an arctic blast. Here in Iowa we get bundled up to do chores, trudge through feeding livestock, thawing hydrants and hoses, and bedding cattle for the cold days and colder nights. As I was feeding the fat cattle, the cows in the south pasture caught my eye. They were on the hillside, browsing and working. They weren’t huddled up around a hay ring or standing idle; they were foraging. As we fed, each group came out to eat as if it was like any other day. As farmers do, I wondered if that was the case at the neighbor’s. I walked over to the east side of our farm and watched the neighbor feed ing his cows. He was in the pasture putting forage in the tractor tire feeders with no stock following the tractor. There weren’t any at the tires he had already filled. The cows were huddled up behind his windbreak, watching but not moving. It’s days like these I am glad we have adaptable and sustainable cattle that are bred to go out and work! Since our annual meeting, the Barzona Breeders Association of America (BBAA) Executive Board has had several meetings to bring the BBAA back toward its original purpose. One item

Hampton Cattle Company Breeding Purebred Barzona since 1973 Fertile Range Cattle Steve Hampton P.O. Box 134 • Kirkland, AZ 86332 (928) 442-3438 was to locate a copy of the association bylaws, which was found after a lot of digging by several current and past mem bers. The board determined that items belonging with the association needed to be brought back to the BBAA. We want to gather and archive everything we can, not only to learn more but to have our past gathered from current day to our inception back in 1968. While looking through the boxes of paperwork “we” have (items the executive secretary was given over time), Alecia and I found out the BBAA used to offer several programs, including embryo transfer, semen certificates and performance pro grams, to the membership. We also found results from studies done by New Mexico State, Texas A&M and past feedlot tests. One interesting thing I noted: In the early 1990s, the BBAA had 8,400 registered purebred stock within the registry, and it had been growing by nearly 500 cattle a year! These are the types of things the board wants to learn about to help continue building our new foundation as we look toward the associa tion’s next 20 years. If you have any items such as meeting min utes, photos, even boxes of stuff from an estate (yes, we had someone send three boxes of items from an old board mem ber), we would love to have copies. Reach out to Alecia or me to expand the BBAA archives for the whole membership and others to enjoy and research from. We should be the experts on Barzona cattle, and the more history and documentation we have, the better we are! Last, Golden Hz Farms and the Charles Fitzgerald family have delivered cattle to Hereford Feedyard for the next round of feedlot tests. As we continue these tests, please consider participating with bulls, steers or heifers from your herd. If you would like cattle to be part of the test but logistical issues prevent your participation, reach out to or your district board member or me. We will find a way to get your cattle included. Any other questions, comments or concerns should be han dled the same way. I encourage you to stay warm during the winter season, and we all strive to be adaptable, sustainable and profitable! BB

Mike & Pat Fitzgerald 130 Fitzgerald Lane, Mosquero, NM 87733 (575) 673-2346 ffcattleco@plateautel.net

Golden Hz Farms Barzona: The breed for busy people These cows take care of themselves!

Breeding Stock Available

Matt & Alecia Heinz 2432 250th St Greenfield, IA 50849 smartace007@yahoo.com (641) 745-9170

Alvin & Karen Havens 2429 Orange Ave. Greenfield, IA 50849

www.barzonas.com

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