Hi June. I'm afraid Winter in New Zealand can be just as beautiful as the other seasons of the year. You should see the Southern Alps when they're covered with snow, they're a sight to behold.
But farming-wise, you're right, the land can get rather wet under foot in some areas during Winter. But we don't have to house our animals indoors, which makes less work. There's still the feeding out of hay though.
You really must stop this thread on New Zealand or even the Canadians will be tempted! I do envy your farmers' skill at pasturing. I use the electric mesh fences and read the right books, but the grass still gets ahead of me and I end up making a hash of it all
I was at a Farm Day last week at which about 50 people attended. Amongst them were two guys on our forage committee. When one of them asked the group if anyone could identify a particular grass, no one (except the guy asking) but me knew it was Kentucky Bluegrass. That is a very common grass around here! :p
Anyways, would love to meet with some of those keen NZ graziers someday (or any knowledgeable grazier for that matter :D )
Now that's a wonderful idea Ann. I'd love to attend a World Dexter Conference in New Zealand. I missed out on the one held in Australia, as I couldn't get away from responsibilities here.
It would be a lot of fun to be invaded by overseas Dexter owners. Now that we've cleared the land at the top of our farm, we could put a huge marquee up there and you could all gaze at the panoramic views when you got bored listening to the speaker. We could feed you on barbecues, salad and pavlova and house you in tents or campervans. You could even be serenaded at night by Kiwi calling out, (birds that is). :D There is even a stream and a 40 foot waterfall in among the native bush, in the valley below. Although you'd need your hiking boots, as it's pretty steep down that side of the hill. (Just remember to scrub your boots before you fly to NZ as our customs officials are very strong on clean boots! Especially if they've been used on farms overseas).
All I have to do now is clear it with the NZ Dexter Assoc and all the other Associations around the world, and we'd be away. :;): Still it was a nice idea Ann.
Reverting to the original topic - can you explain the NZ 'grading' system - the NZ DCS site talks about 'full bloods' - I assume Grade 1 is better than Grade 2? What are the criteria for the grades and for showing etc?
Alternately could you all come to Wales -just wondered as I have a New Zealander in the barn at the moment (I'm just taking a short break) shearing my alpacas. I'll ask him if our panoramic views are anything like his, could manage the barbeque (possibly), only a mini waterfall, but a bit stuck about the kiwi chorus. Might manage an owl to keep you awake, though. On second thoughts Inger's options sound better. Back to shearing.
About the grading system we use in NZ - "Grade 1" is a first cross (50% Dexter/50% something else), "Grade 2" is a second cross (75% Dexter) etc. through to Grade 4 for cows and Grade 5 for bulls which are then called "Purebred". Grading up started in NZ in the early 1980s with semen imported from the UK. Until relatively recently, this has been the only way to breed Dexters here.
Regarding "fullbloods" - the NZ Dexter Cattle Society website (www.dexter-cattle.co.nz) explains them as follows: In recent years a number of "full-blood" animals have been imported, either live or as embryos. "Full-blood" is an informal term used by breeders to describe pure-bred cattle which are not the result of grading up but are derived from original Dexter stock without the introduction of outside genes. It is not officially recognized in the Herd Book where all animals above grade level are described as pure-bred.
Breeders interested in Dexters as a rare breed and as an historical breed etc. tend to place a high value on "fullbloods". Other breeders, more interested in an affordable and functional smallholding breed, for example, are quite happy with graded Dexters. We have both kinds in our herd.
Its usually a matter of which pedigree of animals a person can afford. Most of us started out with Graded up animals, because that's all we can afford. I managed to buy a non-graded up bull (pureblood), because he was selling for a reasonable price.
Actually, the prices of G4 and pureblood Dexters have been dropping over the last year or so because of market resistance. Its the usual case of increased supply meaning decreasing prices. At least Dexters aren't rare in NZ any more. :laugh:
JohnP, can you answer JohnO's question about showing rules regarding graded Dexters in NZ. I don't know the answer to that one.
My last Dexters went out the gate this morning - very sad - I am now a (temporary I hope) sheep farmer. Having seen the prices for 'full bloods' in NZ I may have to go Dexter X on arrival.
Hi Peter,
sorry for you being Dexterless. Would like to say that when you get to New Zealand another contact would be Nancy Edge, we just had her judge our ADCA show in the USA, fantastic lady, great judge and her knowledge about cows in general was a treat.
Have you subscribed to 'Dial-a-Dexter' yet? There are a number of Grade 2s for sale ($750) at the moment, a Grade 3 ($900) and 5 Purebred cows. The PBs range in price from $1500 + GST for a young heifer, up to $3500 for a 7yr old cow Sired by Braco Shoeshine. There are a number of bulls for sale between $1000 and $2000. But there are bound to be more stock available over the rest of the season, as people work out what they can afford to keep, grasswise.
You could possibly buy PB calves or heifers. That might be a cheaper option for you and give you a bit of a breather, while you're waiting for them to mature, before putting them to a bull. You could buy a bull calf as well. Much cheaper than buying an older bull. So whatever you need, there'll be someone who can supply it.
The beauty about NZ, is that the distances between breeders isn't so far, that it makes it too hard to collect animals that you want to buy. We have some reliable animal transport companies as well.
Are you selling the sheep with the property? Or do they have to go as well?
Just to get it in perspective - I just sold a nice 15 month PB red heifer for $450 and a good 8 yr old PB black cow with heifer calf for $950. Yep - have to start again with a couple of in-calf PB cows.
Sheep are pre-sold to a local farmer - just twitching waiting for contracts to be signed next month.
You should see the Southern Alps when they're covered with snow, they're a sight to behold.
