Nissen Angus - About Us

The Ranch & Farm

The ranch, which is located sixteen miles south of Chinook, MT, was homesteaded by Patty's grandparents in the 1880's. Hereford cattle and sheep were a mainstay on the ranch until it was handed down from Patty's parents. Patty still has a small number of Suffolk/Hampshire ewes and raises club lambs for kids' 4-H projects. However, the change in management brought about the shift to Angus cattle in 1990 and Nissen Angus was established. In 1996 we became charter members of what is now the North Central Montana Angus Association and marketed bulls through that consignment sale until we decided to go independent in the spring of 2000.

Our hay base is on the farm in Harlem operated by Mike (Jeff's brother),Jeff, and their uncle Jim. The farm in Harlem was started by Larry's parents (Mike & Jeff's grandparents) and expanded by Larry throughout the years to reach its current size. Started mainly as a sheep operation, the farm is now used to raise alfalfa and grass hay, barley, and oats by flood irrigation. A labor intensive operation, the farm produces all feed stuffs for the cattle and markets quality hay to outside clients.

Jeff stepped into the Larry's role of managing Nissen Angus and co-operating the farm in Harlem. Jeff's wife, Christie, works for Blaine County and is actively involved with the operation. Patty, Jeff's step-mother, lives on the place and continues to be involved, managing cattle records and more. Jeff and Christie have a daughter, Charley, who tries to help out any chance she gets.

We also operate a small custom fitting business called Nissen Cattle Care. We offer services such as fitting, clipping, halter breaking, and photographing cattle for other registered breeders. The majority of cattle that we take in are for the NILE in Billings, MT and the National Western Stock Show in Denver, CO. For a complete list of services and photos of past events, visit the Nissen Cattle Care website at www.nissencattlecare.com

Larry Nissen

Patty

Larry passed away in the fall of 2010. We are continuing on with the operations he built and take comfort in knowing he is upstairs guiding us everyday.

Jeff, Christie & Charley