So helpful, as its always nice to know the judges reasons for placements both as an exhibitor or a spectator.

All the spectators had been given sheets so that they could place the animals themselves and then see how well they had judged the animals.

After the classes had been judged our judge and our chairlady took to the ring with some animals to explain the main points to look for when choosing cattle for showing. Many of these points are also relevant when choosing animals for breeding. We had an excellent display of raffle prizes so even if you didn’t win a rosette you had a chance of a nice raffle prize.

Overall, a very enjoyable day.

We did not have an official photographer however I gave my camera to a member who very kindly took the photo’s below. Thank you Pauline.
This year we had several youngsters showing calves.

The results for the classes are as follows

Class I Under 6mths

1st Nuttall’s Jordeth Honey
2nd Myhill’s Steer calf
3rd Nuttall’s Jordeth Ireen
4th Nuttall’s Jordeth Joe
5th Sykes Steer calf
6th Nuttall’s Jordeth Mandy

HEIFER OVER 2 UNDER 4 YRS OLD

1ST Plane Tree Iris (Mrs K Darnbrook)
2nd Plane Tree Penelope (Mrs K Darnbrook)
3rd Washingpool Windflower (Mr Cambridge)
4th Honeycombe Diamond (Mr Cambridge)

HEIFER OVER 1 UNDER 2 YRS OLD

1ST Plane Tree Galatea (Mrs K Darnbrook)
2ND Buryhill Anna Lucia (Miss Z Cambridge)
3rd Hill Grove Janine (Miss S Sykes)
4th Toadhole Candy (Miss S Sykes)

CALF UNDER 1 YR OLD

1st Cadwgan Rhubarb (Miss Z Cambridge)
2nd Plane Tree Eros (Mrs K Darnbrook)
3rd Buryhill Amelia (Miss Z Cambridge)

BULL OVER 1 YR OLD

1st Saltaire Pigment (Miss Z Cambridge)
2nd Plane Tree Talos (Mrs K Darnbrook)
3rd Buryhill Rory (Miss Z Cambridge)

CHAMPION PLANE TREE IRIS

RESERVE SALTAIRE PIGMENT

GROUP OF 3 ANIMALS

1st Miss S Sykes
2nd Mrs K Darnbrook
3rd Miss Z Cambridge

On 22 August a group of about 20 of us from the Northern Dexter Group visited the Langthorne Buffalo Farm near Northallerton. It was a glorious sunny day and I for one was beginning to regret that I had forgotten my sunglasses and hat. Hard to imagine that now we are in the middle of a grey autumn in North Yorkshire! I needn’t have worried as the trailer for the tour was benched and covered so we were going to travel in some style compared to the open cart and straw bales I was expecting.

Once we were all loaded on the trailer our first stop was a paddock occupied by Pere David deer, emus and guanacos. The latter are ancestors to the domestic llama.

The highlight though was at the gate at the other side of the paddock. The sturdy gate was framed by a tall metal stanchion reminiscent of Jurassic park. Through the gate we could see several magnificent bison.

Once we were off again we turned a corner in the field to be faced with a seemingly enormous herd of buffalo! They were very calm with a similar temperament to Dexters. It was fascinating to see them close up and to also spy the odd Dexter amongst them. There were several wallows around which interestingly the buffalos had created themselves where feed had been put down.

The new field housed a very large herd of red deer. These were naturally shy but some came up to the feed thrown out of the back of the trailer. Paul explained that, to reduce stress, rather than herd them to the slaughter house he shot them individually at feeding time in the presence of a vet. The other deer seemed unperturbed by this and would carry on feeding regardless!

The next large herd was an equally fascinating group of wapiti, or elk, an American deer species. Paul keeps these as they have a slightly less strong or gamey flavour than the red deer. Some of these would come up and be fed by hand.

Finally we passed a flock of soay sheep and then went through a last field before completing a full circle. This last field housed Yaks and Dexters and a wonderful herd of miscellaneous and iron age pigs. These roamed free with their piglets with very little evidence of rooting due to the large area.

Once back at the farmhouse we were treated to really meaty buffalo burgers or iron age pork sausages before a tour of the abbatoir. This was very interesting and in a way quite reassuring. Paul said that he would slaughter and butcher an average Dexter steer for £275. Slaughter days are Tuesdays. For further information, contact Langthorne Buffalo Farm on 01609 776937

Pip Le Cornu

(A full version of the visit will be in the Autumn newsletter.)

After lunch we had a very informative discussion on ‘Milk Makes Meat’ and on ‘What to Look for in a Good Bull’, with live examples. In the first session, with one of Carolann’s lovely short cows as the model, we learnt about the importance of a good udder with illustrations of the following points:
• Rear udder height: a high rear udder attachment is thought to be an indicator of more udder capacity
• Rear udder width: also an indicator of udder capacity
• Udder depth: this is the most important physical trait of the udder – higher udder are related with less mastitis, less udder injury, and greater longevity
• Udder cleft: a deep cleft is an indicator or a strong suspensory ligament, which provides 60% of the udder’s support
• Teat placement: this is the second most important physical trait of the udder – teats should be centrally placed on each quarter
• Fore udder attachment: this is the third most important physical trait of the udder and a good strong fore attachment indicates greater longevity

We learnt that a good udder is important, not just for showing purposes, but is also extremely important for Dexter beef producers because a good udder producing a good amount of milk gives the calf the best start in life and produces the fantastic meat that Dexters are renowned for.

The next model to be brought out was Carolann’s non-short bull. We learnt that in order for cows to breed on a regular yearly cycle, the bull needs to be in top shape and condition. Using the live model, who was very accommodating, Carolann took us through the following vital points:
• Legs and feet
It is important that he has good legs and feet as before he performs his duty he has to constantly be able to keep up with the cows and check to see if they are ready to mate. It is very important that his legs and feet are correct as they will take all the weight when serving the cow. If the legs are too straight (‘posty’) it makes him predisposed to stifle problems, if they are bent too far underneath (‘sickle hocks’) it makes him predisposed to slipping.
• Back and loins
Must be strong to enable him to stay on top of the cow when serving
• Testicles and teats
Testicles must be a good size – small testicles produce less sperm – and both the same size – uneven testicles could mean deformed sperm. Teats must be of equal size and evenly spaced as this will affect the teats of his offspring.
• Changes in fertility
It is important to watch for changes as the bull gets older as these could mean fertility problems, including:
• Hair on head and neck growing longer and getting softer, and also hair sticking up on the poll
• Hair growing on testicles
• Spine sticking up proud of hips

Everybody we spoke to felt the day had been very worthwhile – it was an excellent combination of a social gathering and a great learning experience by combining the herd visit with the discussions afterwards. We would like to thank Carolann and Andrew Raybould very much for their kind hospitality, for sharing their knowledge, and for keeping us very well fed!

Caroline Littler and Richard Knott
Ferryboat Dexters
Thorganby, near York