HR Rosette will pass her superior horn-growing genetics on to her offspring, who could bring a windfall of their own at auction. For them, a $700,000 cow is an investment. HR Rosette was sold to the owners of Clark’s Ranch in Oregon, which breeds longhorns and hosts weddings.

It’s like a mix between buying a piece fine art and a racehorse. They’re not bred for their meat, but their looks: straight backs, healthy hooves, crazy colors, and of course, the longest possible horns. The market for longhorns is different from other types of cattle. “Sandy – my wife and I – talked about it extensively and we finally said ‘We’re getting older, and we’ve sold a lot of cows but we haven’t really sold any of our top cows.’ And it’s time we start selling our very top cows.” “It was tough to make that decision,” Harrell said. She’s the finest animal the Harrells have ever raised. She’s a gentle cow, white with brown blotches, and a set of horns that stretch more than 100 inches tip to tip.

HR Rosette was five years old at the time of the sale. It was the most ever paid for a single longhorn at auction, topping a $380,000 sale from 2017. The cow’s name is HR Rosette, and she was sold at the Legends Longhorn Auction in September. I just sold one two months ago for $700,000,” said Harrell. The other rancher boasted that he had just sold a cow for $2,000. he says ‘Oh I’m sorry.’ And I said why are you sorry? and he says ‘Well there’s no money to be made in Texas longhorns.’ And I couldn’t help myself,” Harrell said. “He said, ‘What do you got?’ I said well I raise Texas longhorns. Not long ago, Kent was at a livestock auction, where he got to talking with another rancher. So there was a time when longhorns were persona non grata in the cattle world.

But they don’t make a steak like an angus or a Hereford. They’re beautiful animals, with their big horns and colorful hides. The Harrells and folks like them love longhorns. Kent Harrell and his wife Sandy own a ranch south of Tulsa, Oklahoma, where they’ve raised Texas longhorns for more than four decades.

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