Record $161k Angus bull settling into new home in Wairarapa

Tangihau U418 sold for $161,000 to Oregon Angus in Masterton. New owner Keith Higgins says he's thrilled with his Angus bull.

By Penny Miles of RNZ

The bidder who smashed a national price record at the recent Angus bull sales is showing no signs of buyer’s remorse.

Elite bull Tangihau U418 is getting settled into his new surroundings in rural Wairarapa and is busy having artificial insemination collection at the local breeding centre.

The “totally happy” owner, Keith Higgins of Oregon Angus near Masterton, paid a massive $161,000 for the prized bull, setting a new national price record in the process.

And while the price for Lot 16 at the Tangihau Angus sale in Rere set the recent East Coast Angus sales alight, Higgins said there was no hint of regret creeping in.

The purchase was worth every cent because it lifted the stud’s genetics to the next level, according to the proud owner.

And what were the characteristics that underpinned this exceptional bull?

“The day of the sale was the first time I saw him,” Higgins said.

“Just one of those bulls that hits you when you walk past the pen.

“Tremendous muscle, tremendous top line, phenomenal nature, very structurally sound and correct when he walks, beautifully put together.

“I had to think to myself, ‘this bull might suit us’ and he’s very much to the mould of what our cattle are.

“And I think he will fit in very well.”

The bull came from Tangihau Angus near Gisborne, with a long line of cows in the paddock at Oregon Angus east of Masterton waiting to be bred.

On the long drive back home from the North Island’s East Coast last month, Higgins said he felt extremely satisfied with the purchase and remained that way to this day.

“The bull has come home and he’s having some tests done to head up to the Tararua Breeding Centre for AI [artificial insemination] collection,” he said.

“Hopefully, a fair bit of that will be going into Australia.

“Then he’ll be used in the paddock with a big line of cows.

“We might even do a bit of AI.

“We want to utilise him as much as we can in that first season.

“We possibly won’t sell any semen into New Zealand in the first year.”

You’d expect the highest bidder setting a record price to be feeling the heat during the auction or its aftermath.

Was that the case?

“I had no problem with what I did,” Higgins said with a chuckle.

“I was totally relaxed during the auction system and totally happy with the bull that I’ve got at this end.”

– RNZ