History and Philosophy
Leonard Limousin is the oldest active Limousin operation in the state of Iowa. Forty-five years ago, William M. (Bill) Leonard and son Mark W. Leonard purchased the first units of Limousin semen used at Leonard Limousin, putting the family on a course of adventure that continues today. The first Limousin calves out of Angus, Charolais and Hereford cows hit the ground at the Leonard farm in spring 1970. Bill and Gloria Leonard and their children, Billee, Mark and Lori, and now, their children's children, have fed, bred and grown up with Limousin cattle.
During those decades, 10 basic beliefs about raising beef cattle have prevailed. It was Bill's philosophy in 1969 and it is still evident in the breeding decisions the family is making today. It's not fancy, but it sure makes sense. Just like the cattle.
The Leonard family has been in the cattle business for five generations. Before raising purebred Limousins, Bill was also in the purebred hog business. He believed in raising meat-type hogs in the '50s and '60s and applied those proven principles to the cattle business when they started using Limousin sires on Hereford and Angus cows. When you stop by the farm you'll see the results of a lifetime of commitment to performance.
Bill Leonard with great grandson David Leonard Melody
Fullblood Limousins are golden red and they are beautiful on a green pasture. We've gotten away from that some as the popularity of the black-hided cattle grew among the packers and so did the demand for black Limousin. We are happy to see that more and more of our customers who raise feeder calves are insisting on red bulls again because their cattle buyers are demanding it. Either way - black or red - we have both available. We have always maintained some of those lighter, golden red cows and it's not just for aesthetics or nostalgia. One of the greatest performance Limousin bulls of all time was Sooner Jr. and he stamps his progeny with those color markings. So more than likely when you see a golden red cow "wearing tan pants" grazing at the Leonards, you'll know she goes back to Jr. and you'll know she's functional, quiet, dependable and packed full of performance.
Come on out to the farm any time. When you do, you will notice what an unwavering commitment to performance and function can do. As always, the Leonards stand behind everything they sell and take a lot of pride in the breeding program they have developed.
Breeding Program
Herd Bull Prospects
We have yearling and 2-year-old Limousin, Angus and LimFlex bulls for sale private treaty. You'll find red and black polled bulls that have been bred for growth, fertility, structural soundness, and moderate birthweight and frame. These bulls come from some of the best-tested, common-sense, money-making sires in the Limousin and Angus breeds.
Show Heifer Prospects
Show business is not our main business — breeding functional cattle that return a profit is. But we recognize the value of the showring for getting our name out and we advertised our cattle in showrings across the country for 25 years. Come and see some of these fancy heifers and in many cases, their dams, granddams and great-granddams, on the farm.
Purebred Angus Cows
Our Angus females are primarily Traveler, Scotch Cap and Jetliner based with younger females by Neutron, Prompter, GT Max and Yukon. All cows are A.I. bred to herd sires with yearling weight EPDs in excess of +100 lbs. For stacked performance Angus genetics, this is the place to look.
Limousin Foundation Bloodlines: Sooner JR. and JR. Miss
The matriarch of our Limousin herd is Jr. Miss, a 1979 daughter of the unparalleled $150,000 herd sire, Sooner Jr. She was a showring champion many times and as much as we enjoyed showing her, that was not Jr. Miss' true claim to fame. Her ability to raise predictably exceptional calves was what made her great. No single animal has had a more profound impact on the development of the Leonard Limousin cow herd than Jr. Miss.
