Wandoan ticks boxes

Mr Hopkins said he and Melissa had always dreamed of owning cattle country, and the dream was realised 12 years ago.

The couple initially bought their home property Ekullem, and they have since added neighbouring Buralla and Terra Firma.

This gives them about 2226 hectares of highly productive brigalow scrub country running to black soil alluvial creek flats.

Pastures include buffel Gatton panic bambasti and creeping blue and native blue grass, allowing 1200 to 1500 steers to be grown out and backgrounded annually.

With the help of a contract buyer, the Hopkins buy steers in the 250 to 300 kilogram weight range, aged between 10 and 14 months.

"We tend to favour Roma, Dalby and Toowoomba saleyards," Mr Hopkins said.

The buying in period is usually late autumn and winter, and the couple favours the 'flat-back' breeds.

Once these steers hit the 400 to 450kg weight range they sell them on to a number of feedlots targeting the MSA or 100-day Japanese market on the Darling Downs.

"This year we are expecting cattle will be a lot more difficult to source and therefore dearer to buy, but we hope to maintain the margin when selling," Mr Hopkins said.

"It's been a difficult time for producers with breeders over the past few years, with drought conditions and depressed prices, so we don't begrudge the current premiums on offer."

When the Hopkins buy a line of steers, their first priority is to process the cattle, including administering a five-in-one vaccine, drench for internal and external parasites, cross brand and ear tag.

Mrs Hopkins, with the help of working dogs, then handles the cattle for the next three to four days as part of the education process.

The steers are then placed on pasture and leucaena and re-mustered four weeks later and given a follow-up five-in-one shot vaccine.

At this point the couple may administer hormone growth promotant if there is sufficient feed to carry the cattle through.

Mr Hopkins said they also had the option to finish their own steers if seasonal opportunities allowed.

The couple has developed and planted about 400ha of leucaena, and each year they plant 400ha to grazing oats.

The cattle are placed on the oats crop during July and September, which allows them to keep going in forward condition through a traditionally low-protein period.

If the oats crop is finished, a molasses-based lick is used to feed out until the summer storms arrive.

Prior to buying Ekullen, Mr Hopkins was a well known auctioneer with Landmark, an occupation he still maintains today.

During the selling season he can be heard on the rails at the TopX Eidsvold store sales as well as a few bull sales.

"I really enjoy keeping my hand in, even though it was very challenging last year with such a hard market due to lack of buyers and the drought," he said.

Meanwhile, Mrs Hopkins also works one day a week off-farm at the Westpac bank in the Taroom Pharmacy building.