Dexter Cattle For Sale Discussion Board

Posted: **Sun Apr 03, 2005 11:28 am**

Has anyone sold any cattle from the cattle for sale web page? so far I have had no enquires concerning the heifers I have put on the board. I have 6 heifers for sale, out of Moomin/Knotting breeding. Two are red and the others are black. Three are about 20 months old and are ready to go to bull, and the other three are about 10 months old. All are non short and will make cracking breeding heifers. Now at last I am breeding heifers, I can't keep them all, so regretably I am having to sell some.

Posted: **Sun Apr 03, 2005 4:16 pm**

Which are yours & where are you in the country?

I tend not to look at the ones without pictures, but when I had a bull on there I got some enquiries, but all were from down South & I decided to keep him in the end anyway, as he is Outlaw sired, which is a line I like & has a nice influence on the members of the herd I can use him on.

Posted: **Sun Apr 03, 2005 5:37 pm**

Brilliant web site. Sold a heifer last week, first enquiry within 24 hours of her appearing on the list and was sold within a few days. Never had any problems when using the "for sale" site before either, we have always sold animals quickly. Thanks to Mark for providing the facility.

Andy

Posted: **Sun Apr 03, 2005 8:52 pm**

I have not had too many problems with female sales.
I recently suggested to the DCS that it would be a nice addition if we had a bi-monthly sales/wants lists posted to interested parties as not eveyone had access to the internet. As I had suggested it I also offered to run it for the Society. I was thanked for my offer but reluctantly had to be declined at the present time.
Good luck with your sales.

Posted: **Mon Apr 04, 2005 4:14 pm**

Thank you all for your comments - guess that perhaps I haven't got the breeding that people want? Unless photos look halfway decent, they can put people off if they don't do justice to the animal. It's always better to see.I will keep my fingers crossed.By the way, I saw some Outlaw heifers in Australia which were put to my Elmwood Robson bull and they were really lovely animals, good depth and conformation. Yes, what would we do without Mark - you are allowed to blush a bit!!

Posted: **Mon Apr 04, 2005 11:30 pm**

Oh, Devon, I see that is why I discounted those heifers- however, the herd name 'Paxton' did draw my attention- it sounds nice name for a herd

Posted: **Mon Apr 04, 2005 11:40 pm**

I really believe the society and individual members should lobby the NFU, DEFRA, candidates for Parliament etc. about the TB problem. From the previous comment distance could be the main reason Rob R didn't contact re heifers but Devon is a hot spot and we all have received a map with worrying red areas - no one froma 'green' area will buy from the red areas unless impossible to do anything else ... even then?
Sorry to be so depressing....I have a pretty heifer sired by Elmwood Robson too!

Jo

Posted: **Tue Apr 05, 2005 10:10 am**

I agree with all the above comments, but definitely recommend that if a picture is not possible, then a guide price is a must. Otherwise we just assume that it is high!!

Posted: **Tue Apr 05, 2005 5:08 pm**

With Digital cameras as cheap as £25 I cannot see why anyone would not post a picture on the web with an add.
I only started my herd last year, the bulls I looked at all came from the site and I discounted any without a picture or price. I Purchased a bull that was 150 miles from home, making a 300 mile round trip. Since then of course DEFRA have issued the regional TB test map. I am in an area that is tested every four years, I don't think I will be purchasing from a red area unless it is really something special and I can isolate from the rest of my herd for quite a while.
My advice for using the site for sales is, use all means available ie. picture, price range, comments etc. and if you have what someone wants, I am sure it will sell.
Martin

Posted: **Tue Apr 05, 2005 9:56 pm**

I am positive pictures sell animals, as has been proven.
But they have to be good pictures, i must admit to not publishing photos that people have sent with their sales particulars if the picture is a real turn off.
Some of the pictures are dreadfull, so to those that sent them, i am sorry, but im sure you would have stood a better chance of selling without the accompanying photo.
Having said that no one has complained,yet!!!!!!
Mark

Posted: **Tue Apr 05, 2005 10:37 pm**

They do say a picture is worth a thousand words, and some animals may be lovely animals, but you could end up travelling hundreds of miles & finding that they are not of the type you are looking for in your herd. I think the internet is a wonderful way of advertising stock for sale, but without making full use of what it has to offer, you are not going to gain the full benefits.

Posted: **Wed Apr 06, 2005 8:19 am**

I don't think you should ever overestimate the ability of your readership to do clever things with their computers like sending photos, but there really is no excuse for failing to put a price on adverts.

Posted: **Wed Apr 06, 2005 1:46 pm**

I think it would be a good idea if there was a prompt when entering details on the for sale page to enter wether the animals are horned, de-horned or naturally polled. This would be even more important when pics are not available. However I must say, as some one who has bought quite a few heifers via the website, that a picture makes all the difference. Unless the pedigree is stunning I dont think I would bother to travel very far without seeing a photo first. I would also say that as someone who breeds other types of livestock, I think the dexter site is a fantastic asset to anyone involved in the breed.

Posted: **Wed Apr 06, 2005 7:55 pm**

Can I 'second' Graeme's suggestion. I am only interested in horned stock it and it gets boring phoning the advertisers to raise the query on horns,

Peter

Posted: **Mon Apr 18, 2005 3:46 pm**

Goodness what have I started! I'm one of those people that do not have a digital camera, and as yet no good at putting pictures on computers - the people I do know that have them, say that they never get round to printing them! No excuses though, my animals are not outside yet - nearly all Dexters have to be housed in the winter in Devon, as they ruin the fields with all the rain, and so I have nothing up to the minute in the way of photos. Incidently I have another TB test here tomorrow, fingers crossed, and we are all tested yearly down here, and I think with all the worry, that it is good. We have badgers on the farm, but provided we pass our test, then we are happy to leave them alone, the hope is if you have clean badgers then with a bit of luck you won't get sick badgers. If the badgers are culled, then you are inviting in more badgers, and you don't know what state of health they are in. Incidently, I have had a couple of enquiries for my dexter heifers, from my local smallholder magazine (DASH) and viewing starts soon!