The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Cattle => Topic started by: Rosemary on December 30, 2012, 08:56:26 pm
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We've been debating how to get the three cows in calf next year - AI, hire or buy. Well, yesterday I saw a Shetland bull calf for sale, contacted the owner and I'll be posting the deposit tomorrow :excited:
He's only four months so it will be a couple of months before I get him. He doesn't have a name yet but the breeder says we can name him, with her herd prefix, of course.
Here he is.
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Great news - look forward to reading about him - he looks very handsome :thumbsup:
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Mmm can't wait to see him when he's fully grown x
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Wow, he's lovely, and the first animal I've seen in a long time which isn't caked in mud!
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He looks lovely .... and seems to be in a field that is not under three feet of water! It doesn't even look muddy or wet! Where in the UK is this dry and :sunshine: place?.... Just joking...and xposted with Mammyshaz.
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I'm guessing the picture was taken earlier in the year? I'm sure I can recall the sun shining once............no, actually I can't :(
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He looks to be a good length :thumbsup: and very nicely marked, too.
I think I have an inkling which county he is in ;) - so that is definitely not a recent pic! :roflanim:
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Wow, he's lovely, and the first animal I've seen in a long time which isn't caked in mud!
It's an old photo ;D
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He looks lovely :thumbsup:
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Excellent - he's a bonny little fella :thumbsup:
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Ooh, what a pretty boy...
What are you going to do with him if your new June calves are heifers?
We've wondered about getting a bull, but we're sticking with hiring at the moment as we don't have a separate shed for keeping the bull apart from the younger females.
Sue
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What are you going to do with him if your new June calves are heifers?
Well, we've got some grazing up at Muirdrum, about 4-5 miles away, so the plan is for him to cover Breeze, Blizzard and Annie in August. If we have 2013 heifers, they can all run together for a few months then Storm and George can form a batchelor group (Henry will be away by then) probably up the road. The cows and calves will come in in December.
Storm can cover three, four or five cows in 2014, then off he goes.
He's not perfect genetically - he has one Boris and one Rasmie in five generations but he's not related to any of mine other than B/R. He's by one of Barry's bulls - Windgates Toby. It will be interesting to see what I get in 2013 since both cows had dun and white calves to black bulls this year then we'll see what red over dun does.