About Us
For the past 20 years, the Sawyers’ main priority has been to produce thrifty, maintenance free cattle that can thrive under Nebraska Sandhills range conditions. The cow herd consists of 500 registered Angus cows that run just like cows on other ranch operations in the area.
The cow herd is summered on native grass pastures and wintered on nearby corn-stalk fields. For over 30 years, the A & B cow herd has evolved in this Sandhills ranch environment and are bred to thrive on the forages nature provides.
Calves are not creep fed and cows are not supplemented while on pasture, thus providing the most accurate data on a cow’s individual performance. Any cows that do not wean a big calf consistently or are reproductively inferior are automatically culled. This rigid selection process is reflected in females that are deep-sided and broody and bulls that are thick-made, fast-gaining, and maintenance free.
An annual bull sale markets the top 110 bulls that have survived rigorous culling and performance evaluations and a pen of select bred females is sold annually at the National Western Stock Show. Other marketing includes selling age and source identified steer calves at Bassett Livestock Auction, one of the premier feeder cattle markets in the states. A group of commercial bred females is also marketed annually.
The goal remains in this decade as in the past…to raise moderate-framed cattle with superior early growth and performance while maintaining moderate birth weights and exceptional maternal and carcass traits.
The Sawyer Family
Arlen and Becky Sawyer own and operate A & B Cattle and actively manage the day to day activities at the ranch. Arlen is currently serving on the American Angus Association board of directors and has served as president of the Nebraska Angus Association in 1998 and has also served as president of the Area II Nebraska Cattlemen. Both he and Becky served as advisors to the Nebraska Junior Angus Association. Becky currently serves as county commissioner in Rock County, Nebraska.
Both of the Sawyer children, Jessica and Adam, have been actively involved in the day-to-day ranch operations as well as many Angus activities.
Adam & Jessica
Adam enjoys ranch life immensely and has started his own band of registered Quarter Horses and herd of registered Angus females. Adam is 21 years old and a junior at Texas Tech University at Lubbock, TX majoring in Ag and Applied Economics. Adam is a member of the Texas Tech Rodeo team and participates in collegiate rodeos in the southwest region. He spends summers and vacations helping out on the ranch and participating in Nebraska’s amateur rodeos and team roping events. He is a calf roper, steer wrestler and team roper.
Jessica is a registered nurse at Good Samaritan Hospital in Kearney, Nebraska, and is currently attending graduate school to be a nurse practitioner. She was an active member of the National and Nebraska Junior Angus Associations and a past national board member of the NJAA. She also has a herd of registered Angus cows at Bassett and spends her spare time helping out at the ranch as well. She always attends the annual bull sale and helps with clerking duties.