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Posted: Tue Aug 07, 2007 11:31 pm
by Colin
Hi, I'm the current latest member and I thought I'd introduce myself. I live in the New Forest National Park in the UK with my wife and two young children. In January this year, my friend Tom and I, after much preparation, bought our first two Dexters, a pair of 18 month old heifers. We followed this a month later with a couple of pregnant cows (oldest being 6 and now the herd boss) and a 12 month old bull who is certified chondro free. Having a spread of ages has worked really well, with the dominant cow helping to keep the young bull in his place.
Our first 6 months has been a very rewarding and enjoyable time, the experience has certainly lived up to expectations. We've learnt a great deal and all the Dexter breeders we've spoken to have been great, really friendly and helpful. The main highlights so far have been the birth of two healthy bull calves and confirmation that our breeding bull has done his job well. He's proved he doesn't fire blanks, as all 4 females are now in calf.
Not too many mistakes made so far. My main one was assuming all pairs of ear tags were made to standard sizes and I inadvertently bulk bought one of the biggest ear tags on the market. The first calf looked like a Christmas tree.
I very much enjoy the Discussion board and find the information invaluable. I hope to contribute as often as I can.
Below are some photos, including our first day in Jan and more recent ones, snatched on a rare occasion when the sun shone for once.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 7:57 am
by Martin
Welcome Colin,
your first post now completed, I look forward to many more.
Martin. Medway Valley Dexters.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 7:58 am
by Mark Bowles
Well done Colin, a fine start by the looks of things.
Mark
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 8:34 am
by Sylvia
Hello Colin, good pictures and looking forward to hearing more about your new venture.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 8:56 am
by Saffy
Very well done, it is lovely hearing you sound justifiably pleased with your achievements and lovely to hear of a new herd.
I am actually a little jealous as having considered it for many years I have bought my first dexters, I left them with their breeder until I had been on holiday and came back late last Friday night to discover that they would have to stay exactly where they are for the duration! 
It isn't even a good idea for me to go and visit them I suppose, so I am a little peeved although they are of course in very good hands.
Lovely to see your photographs, we are seeing more pics on the site lately and I think it makes it more interesting and informative for the rest of us but it is also just nice to see pics of dexters !!!
Keep up the good work :D
Stephanie
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 11:20 am
by Inger
I prefer the large eartags, as it makes it easier to see the number through binoculars, from across a valley.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 11:35 am
by Anna
Welcome and thanks for sharing the pictures! This forum is really a gold mine for discussion, information and advice. Invaluable for us beginners, but also valuable for the experienced who are so generous with their wisdom I hope. I enjoy it so much it has become a daily routine to check it out.
Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2007 11:41 pm
by Colin
Thank you for your warm welcome and kind sentiments. I will update on progress and more than happy to share lessons learned, however embarrassing, for the benefit of other beginners.
One of my shorter term ambitions is to work on my young bull to get him halter trained, if at all possible. I'd welcome some advice on the best techniques. He's now 17 months old and when I got him in late Feb, he was a little flighty, liked to bark at me, but he's not aggressive. Since then I've persevered with him and he's quietened down a lot. I can now approach him confidently in the field and stroke him. When he's laying down he loves having his neck scratched. In my enclosure I can get a rope halter around his neck, but he resists getting it on his head. I could wrestle with him to get it on, but he's very strong. I have a leather head collar and one option would be to get him in the crush and put that on him. I'd welcome any tips.
Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 7:23 am
by Woodmagic
Congratulations Colin on entering the Dexter fraternity, and giving us such a good introduction. If you can keep us posted on problems it will certainly help others who are just starting. I enjoyed seeing pictures of your little herd and wish you every success with it
Posted: Thu Aug 09, 2007 8:21 am
by Sylvia
We don't halter train, Colin, so can't help with that advice (I'm sure someone else will) but I would say please don't try and use force when trying to get a halter on him. As you have found he is very strong and frankly the last thing you want to do is prove to him that he is stronger than you. It is something he doesn't need to know if you are to be a long term contributor to this site. Putting him in the crush sounds a better option.