C Miles McKee 2103 ET, who was sold for $600,000 in Idaho Source: Supplied
THIS single bull is worth more than half a million dollars. Really. No bull.
Miles McKee, a Hereford bull from Idaho, was sold on Monday for a whopping $600,000, almost doubling the previous world record price of $301,000 for a cattle sale.
Guy Colyer, who runs the Colyer Hereford and Angus ranch and is now the bull's former owner, says the secret is in the bull's genes. And his, erm, balls.
"His mother sold close to a million dollars of progeny," Mr Colyer said.
"He’s a known commodity. People know he comes from good stock."
It isn’t all about genetics though. Miles has all the ideal physical characteristics for a Hereford bull.
"He has a moderate frame with a lot of muscle in him. It’s exactly the phenotype that buyers are looking for," Mr Colyer said.
Miles will now be put to work as a stud in Iowa. It’ll be his job to breed more cattle – lucky boy – and his offspring could be worth tens of thousands of dollars each. So the bull’s new owners should have little trouble recouping the truly stratospheric price they paid for him.
Before Monday, Mr Colyer’s highest sale was for a price tag of $238,000 back in 1984. The previous world record of $301,000 had stood since 1980.
Miles is special then, and the Colyers know it. He was named after a Kansas State University professor and legendary livestock judge whose name carries special significance in the industry.
"Miles McKee has been a kind of icon in the cattle industry for 40 years," Mr Colyer said.
"Both of my kids graduated from Kansas State. They thought very highly of him." With this in mind, Mr Colyer and his family decided to name their top bull after the professor.
Appropriately, Miles the bull was purchased by a syndicate called the Miles McKee Group, so he should feel right at home.