Hereford heritage: Family-operated Daniels Hereford Ranch has Hereford in their blood

 Dan and Teresa Daniels, of the Daniels Hereford Ranch located in southeastern Idaho, are continuing the family business raising registered Hereford cattle. The ranch was originally homesteaded in the Malad City, Idaho area around 1878. The ranch has been raising registered Herefords since 1915. 

Dan and Teresa, who are the fourth generation on the ranch, have one son who helps them full time. Their other children all live within one-half mile of the ranch, so they help when they can. The Daniels also have grandchildren who are heavily involved with the Idaho Junior Hereford Association and have participated in National Junior Hereford shows and 4-H shows for the last five years. 

Seedstock focus

The Daniels Hereford Ranch focuses on raising registered Herefords, quality seedstock and their commercial herd. From the seedstock side, Dan and Teresa focus on maternal traits, udder quality, structural soundness and longevity.

For their bull customers, the Daniels Hereford Ranch selects on structural soundness, depth and rib capacity, muscle pattern and overall balance in numbers. 

“We are not looking for the highest carcass expected progeny differences (EPDs) or the highest milk EPDs, but we stick to the middle of the road,” explains Dan. “For where a lot of our customers are, our bulls have to be sound, hold longevity, have good carcass numbers and be able to produce offspring that makes a profit for our customers.” 

“We cover a lot of different bases to make our customers happy, so we don’t go too extreme in any one direction,” Dan continues. 

The Daniels Hereford Ranch sells around half of their bulls and females private treaty, and they consign bulls to three sales across the Intermountain West, including the Red Bluff Bull Sale and Fallon All Breeds Sale. Most of their bull customer base comes from Nevada, in the high sage country. 

Tough country

“Ninety-five percent of the registered herd runs on Forest Service grazing allotments, and the other five percent of the registered herd stays home for the summer on irrigated pasture,” says Dan. “We expect our cows to be able to cover a lot of country.” 

Malad City is located in Idaho’s snow belt, and average rainfall for the area is approximately 14 inches per year. The area is cold and snowy in the winter and hot and dry in the summer, Dan jokes. 

Dan shares he is most proud of the progress he and Teresa have made, especially in the last 20 years. 

“I really enjoy the docility of my cattle, and I have females I would match up against anybody,” Dan notes. 

In addition to their registered herd and the commercial herd, the Daniels Hereford Ranch farms about 1,500 acres. About 1,000 acres are winter or spring wheat in a rotation with oat hay or grass hay. 

The almost 150-year-old ranch has always been family-operated. 

“My father, Rex Daniels, worked with his sons on the ranch,” says Dan. “Now, it is Teresa and I, and our sons.” 

For more information, follow the Daniels Hereford Ranch on Facebook or email danielsherefordranch@yahoo.com.  

Averi Hales is the editor for the Wyoming Livestock Roundup. Send comments on this article to roundup@wylr.net.