This fall we begin our 4th year operating under the Cavender Ranches banner. It’s a perfect time to pause, reflect on our progress, and look ahead with confidence and excitement.
Over the past several years we have intentionally strengthened our foundation:
• Built a top-tier team by blending seasoned veterans with talented new additions who bring fresh expertise across both our commercial and registered operations.
• Grown a diversified, nationwide customer base that values the variety and quality of our genetics — whether they’re selecting registered bulls and females or commercial cattle tailored to their specific needs.
• Remained deeply committed to growing the Texas Brangus market. We’ve helped many new customers launch successfully, and it’s incredibly rewarding to watch them become avid Brangus breeders who are now poised for long-term success. Their confidence in our genetics means everything to us.
At Cavender Ranches, helping our customers succeed isn’t just talk — it’s the foundation of everything we do. When our customers win, we all win.
LEADERSHIP THROUGH GENETICS AND SCALE
We are pushing the accelerator on our genetic vision in the registered herd. By combining elite Angus cow lines with our proven Brangus genetics and advancing many into UB2 and new first- and second-generation Brangus — while preserving thickness, moderation, ample bone, marbling, sheath design, and overall attractiveness — we are producing a truly unique product in the industry with leading performance. Attention to detail and uncompromising standards remain the hallmark of the Cavender brand.
The results speak for themselves: exceptional uniformity and consistency across generations that gives us — and our customers — high confidence in the predictability and performance of our newest bulls and females. We’re seeing strong real-world success stories from both registered and commercial buyers, along with consistent positive feedback.
In 2025 we made the bittersweet decision to sell our Charolais herd. This has freed up significant land and resources to expand our Commercial Female program, positioning Cavender Ranches to become the largest and most reliable supplier of high-quality replacement females in the country.
This spring we artificially inseminated nearly 1,200 females to some of the very best Cavender Brangus bulls in the
breed. These elite females will be offered at our three major sales and through additional marketing channels going forward. Our goal is clear: deliver young females that will power your cow herd for the next decade and beyond — whether you market them as high-dollar replacement heifers, feed out steers that excel on value-based grids, or retain ownership for premium returns.
We continue to grow our registered herd in both size and quality through an aggressive Embryo Transfer program We are mating our very best cows — including the newest generation of young donors — with our top young herd sires and proven industry leaders, then offering embryos at reasonable prices to loyal cooperators, supporters, and new customers who want to accelerate genetic progress in their programs.
We also support our commercial customers through additional value-added programs:
• Assisting with marketing truckload lots of steers to feedlots.
• Buying commercial heifers from our customers, developing and breeding them, then offering them back as bred replacements or retaining them in our own commercial cow herd.
MARKET OUTLOOK REMAINS STRONG
With national cattle numbers declining and beef demand at historic highs — driven by improved genetics and consistently tender, high-quality beef — the outlook for progressive producers is excellent for the next several years.
PROUDLY LEADING THE BRANGUS BREED Cavender Ranches leads the Brangus breed in marketing’s. In the last 12 months alone we have sold over 500 bulls, 330 registered cows and calves, and 1,350 commercial females. Our production sales have gained national attention for both the depth of quality and the strong sale averages achieved over the last three years.
While the industry sees continued consolidation and multi-breeder partnerships, we proudly operate as a single,
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EXCITING GENETICS IN OUR FUTURE
It has been a great Spring! Cattle prices continue at a record pace. Recent rains have been timely and much needed. Most importantly, we thank you for your confidence in Cavender Brangus. Your purchases of cattle, semen, embryos have been greatly appreciated and we look forward to seeing these genetics working in your herd.
As exciting as the spring has been, we are even more excited about the young bull and heifer calves we have weaned and all the happenings at Cavender Ranches. In addition to a great set of coming two-year-old bulls that will be featured in the Fall, we weaned off a tremendous set of Fall born bulls, many of which will be features in our November 20th and 21st sale as yearlings. We are excited to get them on gain test and see how they perform. Some of the exciting young herd sires represented in the offering will include True Balance, Never Before, Silencer, Rawhide, Dialed In and Undisputed as well as proven herd sire producers such as Ace, Ledger, New Standard, Modelo, Oracle, Masterpiece, Empower, and Freightliner.
Dustin and Louis have been busy getting the commercial females AI’d and we can’t wait to see those calves on the ground for the Fall Sale.
We continue to push the envelope in our registered herd. Every animal has DNA recorded and we depend greatly on the genetically enhanced EPDs we are able to produce as a result.
Every spring calving female has been AI’d and then cleaned up with the powerful herd bull battery walking the pastures here at Cavenders, already preparing for next spring’s calf crop. We put a lot of embryos in our commercial cows this spring as we continue to multiply the very best females in the herd. Several young donors emerge as
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unified ranch under the Cavender name. This structure allows us to deliver the highest level of personalized customer service, backed by our deep Texas roots and hands-on approach.
We are also seeing more bulls and females from other breeders topping sales across the country that trace directly to genetics purchased at our events — powerful proof that progressive producers nationwide trust and seek out Cavender genetics. We continue to see our semen sales grow, another strong validation of our position at the top of the breed.
OUR DEDICATED TEAM
• Dustin Kennedy, General Manager – Oversees our entire cattle operation (Registered and Commercial).
• Luis Guerrero – Commercial Cow and Replacement Female Herd Manager.
• Aubrey McClure – Purebred Herd Manager.
• Dane Bennett – Neches River Ranch Commercial Heifer Manager.
superstars each year as we evaluate their progeny to multiple herd sires. We are continuing to sample cutting edge genetics in the herd sires we use in our AI and ET programs and to multiply the genetics of the very best.
We take pride in producing real world cattle that work in the pasture and on the rail. We produce calving ease bulls in an easy fleshing, moderate package with as much power and growth as we can pack in them. We want cattle that can compete on the rail with anyone and any breed, we continue to select for marbling and muscle while not loosing sight of structure and eye appeal.
We do all this while maintaining enough milk and udder quality to make the cows last. We also demand that they are fertile and we use all the tools available to weigh in our selection decisions. With enough discipline in our breeding decisions; our customers can truly have it all.
We will feature an elite set of open and bred heifers packing a ton of performance and the bred in calving ease, structure and fertility we strive for. As always, this fall, we will be selling the spring calving 6-year-old cows and their calves at side. This group will include some of the superstar donors we have identified as well as bull producing herd cows, the kind that keep us in business.
We invite you to join us for our Fall Production Sale at Cavenders Neches River Ranch November 20th and 21st. We also encourage you to schedule a visit to Cavender Ranches between now and then, we would love to show you our continued progress and talk good cattle. Give Mark, Todd, Dustin, Luis or Joe Cavender a call, all would be happy to discuss the sale or our program at Cavenders.
• Todd Harvey – Marketing and Cattle Sales for the Southeast.
IN CLOSING
We are deeply grateful for the trust you place in Cavender Ranches. Whether you are a longtime customer or considering us for the first time, our commitment remains unchanged: to be the most progressive, reliable, and customer-focused Brangus seedstock provider in the industry.
We look forward to seeing many of you at our upcoming sales and events. Please reach out anytime — we’re always happy to visit about your specific needs and goals. Here’s to a strong summer and an even stronger fall breeding season.
Sincerely,
Joe Cavender Owner, Cavender
Brangus
A Word about Herd Health
At Cavender Ranches we take our commitment to herd health seriously. We work closely with Dr. Steve Schultz in all health work. We are aware of the screwworm threat in Texas and the preventative measures taken by TAHC and USDA to combat its spread. We will be proactive in closely monitoring our herds both commercial and registered, reporting if needed and taking all necessary precautions and preventative measures recommended to assist in containing the threat presented. In addition, we have implemented a comprehensive Johnnes testing program. Every Bull sold this fall will have negative Johnnes test prior to the sale.
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Thank You
We appreciate each of our customers, friends and cooperators who entrusted us with the products of their program and who purchased Cavender Seedstock both commercial females and registered bulls and females. We will continue to earn your business and build more profitable beef cattle.
MEET THE MANAGEMENT TEAM AT CAVENDER’S
We are proud to focus on our revamped management team here at Cavender’s. Every great cattle program is built on a unique combination of superior genetics and superior leadership dedicated to optimizing the genetic potential of the cattle involved.
At Cavender Ranches leadership starts at the top with a clear vision. Joe Cavender emphasizes, “We are a performance oriented commercially driven seedstock supplier. Our goal is not to sell a few high dollar bulls and females each year but rather to have a lot of successful cattlemen that count on us year after year to continually improve our seedstock and to improve their cowherds and their bottom lines.”
Dustin Kennedy is the Cattle Operations Manager. Dustin brings an abundance of real-world experience to his position. He managed CX Cattle Co in Rusk, a 750 head commercial cow calf operation beginning in 2004. Starting in 2009 he worked with Justin Matejka at the Neches River division and as Bull Development Manager. In 2013 he took an opportunity to manage White Oak Ranch in Alto, a 1000 head commercial cow calf operation where they preconditioned all their calves and either sold or retained ownership as market conditions dictated. In 2021 Dustin returned to Cavender Ranches
to manage the Registered Cow Herd. “Pushing the envelope with our registered herd of females while never loosing sight of their ability to work in the real world is an exciting part of what we do. Building cattle that work and building the trust of our customers is the most rewarding aspect of my job,” says Dustin. Dustin is married to Chasity and they have three children active in all aspects of youth sports and at the ranch
In 2025 Dustin took over responsibility for Cattle Operations at Cavender Ranches and began molding a management team capable of driving the cowherd both commercial and registered forward consistent with the vision shared by Joe Cavender.
Luis Guerrero is the Commercial Cattle Manager. Luis grew up in the Del Rio area. He was on scholarship at Southwest Texas College in Uvalde where he earned associates degrees in both General Studies and Business while competing on the rodeo team. He then moved to Sul Ross University in Alpine where he also competed on the rodeo team and earned his Bachelors degree. He was assistant manager at Two Rivers Cattle Co, a commercial and stocker operation and was manager of LF Ranches, a Registered Akaushi producer. There he oversaw
DUSTIN
the registered cowherd, commercial cattle, yearling stockers and a feed lot operation. He is engaged to Kayla Cook and will be married in October. They will reside at the Neches River location.
Aubrey McClure is the recently promoted Purebred Cattle Manager. Aubrey grew up in the registered and commercial Brangus business at Camp Cooley Ranch. He graduated from Concord high school in Arkansas and after graduation worked on a cow calf operation in Russellville. From there he worked at Chimney Rock and in 2021 joined Cavender Ranches. He worked his way up to assistant Purebred Cattle Manager and is now in charge of all registered cattle operations. He and his wife Madelyn live on the Troup Ranch.
Dane Benett is the Assistant Commercial Cattle Manger and the manager of Neches River Ranch. He grew up in Grapeland, TX and after graduating high school and began his career day working and training colts. He was employed at Cavender Ranches from 2019 to 2023 on the registered division and returned in 2025. Also, in 2025 he earned a promotion to the commercial cattle division and Neches River.
Johnnie Rivera is the Bull Development Manager at Cavender Ranches. He has been involved in agriculture his entire life and out of high school he
worked for Dekalb Animal Hospital in Dekalb, Texas for 6 years. Beginning in 2010 he managed James Cavender’s East Texas Ranches in Mount Pleasant and Pittsburg where he oversaw approximately 800 commercial Brangus and crossbred cows. On the side from age 17 to 29, Johnnie rode and fought bucking bulls professionally as well as having a small herd of cows producing bucking bulls. From 2014 to 2017 he worked for CSX Railroad.
However, the draw to agriculture remained strong and in 2017 Johnnie rejoined Cavender Ranches in his current position. Johnnie is married to wife Autumn since 2008 and has one son currently serving in the Air Force.
According to Cattle Operations Manager Dustin Kennedy, “I am excited about the chance to work with these managers as we continue to push Cavender Ranches to new heights. They are a great group of guys who really care about what they do and how the cattle are taken care of. They have the discipline, and share the vision to succeed.” He adds, “Every one of these managers are high character people who care and really fit our culture at Cavender.s.”
