Hello again everyone.
Back again trying to pick your brains. I have been asking around about importing Dexters from the UK to Ireland and the responses are somewhat mixed from nightmares to a liittle formality.
The reason I am asking is that i do not think we will get what we want over here, ie a dairy line.
I have not rang the Department (of Agriculture) as yet, but this may well be the best place to start ???
I know that a lady called Sylvia sent the bulk of her herd over to Ireland a couple of years ago on a lorry but I don't know what the arrangments were.
If you are importing a reasonable number then if you get in touch with the right professional livestock transport company, they should do everything for you, all the forms etc. At least they do if you export to other parts of Europe. Normally they have big and smaller lorries and obviously the cost changes a lot with numbers! Not done it myself but that is what I am told.
Both Governments North and South continue to advise against the import of animals from UK due to Blue tongue threat. Under European Law they cannot ban the movements but would if they could. One of the threats is that if you import Blue tongue and it spreads you will be held responsible for the losses.
Should you defy the authorities it is the usual TB and Brucellosis pre movement and vaccinated against Blue tounge.animals cannot be imported if they are pregnant. They must be guaranteed empty of calf as a calf at foot can be vaccinated. Something like that and an import licence must be obtained. Imports to the South must come via the North as none of the ferry companies in the south carry live animals (except horses of course-being Irish). Check with the Department for accurate import regulations before you go any further. Good luck
Ian
Joan and Ian Simpson
Pennielea Farm
Glenavy
Co Antrim
If you can find the cattle you want in UK, do not despair of importing to Eire. The regulations take a bit of understanding, find out from your government vets and get the seller in UK to get all the info from our Animal Health export dept - all handled from an office in Carlisle now. I cannot remember exact details from last consignment (Highland Cattle, not Dexters) I did the certification for, but the main thing is to get the up to date details from the authorities, and follow it to the letter. You need to do a bit of homework to be sure everything is done at the right time and in the right order. There is likely to be a constant stream of cattle going, not all dexters of course, but it helps make up loads. Some groups go to "collection centres" to make up loads and some transporters get approval for multiple uplifts to do it.
As far as I remember you will have to have CERTIFIED vaccination against blue tongue, certified that they are not pregnant, with a gap after the vaccination to allow antibodies to develop, and Tuberculin tested within 28 days of leaving UK. They may have to be isolated from other cattle during this process.
Whatever you do don't be like one importer of cattle to Eire who thought for some strange reason that in the "Vector Free" period for blue tongue he did not need any paperwork at all, and got the animals to Larne just to be told to take them back again to Scotland. Fortunately for him the seller agreed to take them back - if they had been mine I would have refused. They eventually left a couple of months later with full documentation.
The real difficulty may be identifying individual cows with high milk yields and high protein and butterfat - it is so long since any were recorded, and it does not follow that the daughter of a high yielder with herself be a high yielder.
There are quite a number of dexter already in Ireland, I would look through their pedigrees on the online herd book before you start looking in UK and you may well find quite a bit of breeding from herds which were recorded in the past - as I said not foolproof but probably the best you can do.
Duncan
Duncan MacIntyre
Burnside Dexters 00316
Burnside
Ascog
Isle of Bute
Larry, What has been done in other countries is that people who want to buy cattle have got together and organised it between them using a pro. Not easy, but it has been done. Maybe there are other people who wish to import Dexters as well if you can find them? I think the pro company we looked at had a min quantity of about 15 which was a small lorry.
There are dairy types out there, we've got some I think I would classify like that, loads of milk and great for beef with the right bull. Given the choice all my herd would be dairy type females, they calve extremely easily.
Larry,
I hope to bring in aload in the spring.I priced a lorry from |British midland to Kerry for E3000 and thought it a bit strong.Lorries frequently return empty through the U.K. but to make it economical you would need a load.
You are probably in a hurry to get going but if not pm me and we'll stay in touch
What about the lorries that bring horses from Gorsebridge Market over to Britain, do they come over empty, would any consider small well behaved, perhaps even halter trained cows?
I bought a couple of horses there 10 years ago and it was about £300 to £400 each to travel each and that was tied in a stall in a state of the art lorry.
I was wondering Larry - what sort of people come to you for B+B? If any are farmers they may be persuaded for a fat discount to bring a trailor, as 2 or 3 weaned heifers would probably fit in a big sheep trailor wouldn't they but then you would need to do the paperwork yourself.
I bumped into a haulier friend this afternoon and asked about prices for hauling to Southern Ireland. He says there is a haulier that brings sheep regularly from Northern Ireland to British mainland who is always looking for a back load. He himself can never beat him on price as he cannot get the same ferry prices, as the Northern Ireland bloke has a regular slot. My friend says that if the cattle were to be delivered in the South he would go back via Pembroke.
I can PM the name and mobile number of this Northern Ireland haulier to anyone else interested.
:p Hi Guys
Many thanks for all the suggestions there are indeed more ways than one to skin a cat (apologies to you cat lovers!)
Yes ,Pudser I will PM you and give me your number too and I will keep in touch. No we are not in a mad rush just yet, we cannot do anything till around April next year, but we have a lot to get done in the mean time. I would agree 3,000 is way to strong for us.
Stephiane, thanks for the PM, I will be contqcting the Dept of Ag here next week to get the offical line (as suggested by Duncan) so will hopefully have a better idea next week. I will be a better position to talk the haulier then. By the way the B&B is not up and running yet but we could accomadate a few if necessary are ye intrested!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D
Have to say all the same a great idea, this forum, wll done to all involved.
Hi Larry,
we imported a bull from the mainland 18 mths ago and had nothing but trouble from our department. The blue tongue jags had to be given in England and then there was a time limit to get him over. We also had a B.V.D. done before he came plus current Tb neg.. When he did come he had to be isolated for 28 days and the isolation area was checked by the department. They also took blood for blue tongue. That was the easy part. We were then persecuted by the department for bringing stock in to the extent that they were going to name and shame in the farming press. We did have official letters from the department stating that persons had asked under the freedom of information act for our name and address. When I quoted the data protection act the tone altered. We would not import again.
If you do decide to import people in N.I. use Seamus Black. Ballycastle. He knows the ropes and will keep you right.
Howard Hilton. N.I.
