Judges Development Day (Stanford Park Farm)
Saturday, 7th October 2023
It was great to see so many new faces, as well as familiar ones, on the day, who embraced the concept of the day to promote confidence in the ring as judges, with good reason giving, with the use of the PA system and microphone: a great investment on the societies behalf.
In between and during classes, we were able discuss many subjects that the attendees wished to raise and this really helped the day flow, along with the leadership of our invited guest Paul Westerway. Paul’s ability to put people at ease and encourage reason giving was very infectious, which made the day a great achievement.
First class of the day was “Bull of any age” and immediately folk were keen to place the cattle. As expected, there was a variety of different placings, but this led to a great and thought-provoking dialogue for those present.
Second class was 4 “Junior bulls”, of 16/17 months all bred differently, again great deliberation really got their judging juices flowing! A big conversation on the Thurl, Pin and Hip placement ensued, this is where Paul’s experience as a dairy farmer really came in to pull away the vail of confusion, regarding this subject.
Third class, “Cow with calf at foot”, most of the calves had not been on a halter, but they obligingly followed along behind their mothers perfectly, free range! Allowing our budding judges to factor the calf into the cow’s performance. Another confusing subject to debate for this class of cows from 1st calver to 9th calver.
Last class “Junior heifers” the Stanford Park team had really done a great job selecting cattle that would challenge the judges and this class really did raise queries as to what to do if presented with such a mixed bag! Use of the microphone became second nature and confidence of our new judges was clearly visible.
This judging day, following on from the one held in the North of England in 2022, showed that this is a great platform for members to share some of their hesitations and qualms about what are we looking for from our breed. Reading their feedback forms, suggests that all found the day brilliant, with no room for improvement, only that they would like more of the same.
That said, next year the Society would need to be taking the judging day to either Ireland or Scotland, so if there is a potential host out there that would like to step forward, that can have the classes of quiet cattle able to be lead around the ring at home, then please do contact the Society Office and we can start putting some dates in the diary.
Thank you to Paul Westaway for acting as master of ceremonies, and to Mark and Hayley Stoneham for kindly hosting this event. Thanks also to all the attendees, that helped with the leading of the cattle, as without you, we could not have led all the cattle out for everyone to judge. Lastly, thanks to Simon Bradley Farmer and his team for all the hard work training the cattle in preparation of this vital Society event.
Tina Russell
Southern Director
“It was a huge honour to be master judge at the Beef Shorthorn Judges Day. It was a brilliant well organised day and huge credence to the society for taking the training of their judges so seriously and in particular the work they are doing for Judges to give reasons; and also to all the delegates on the day, they’re were all outstanding and ensure the future of the Society is in great hands.”
PAUL WESTAWAY
Youth Development Day (Appleton Farm)
Sunday, 10th September 2023
A tremendous day was had by all at the launch of SYD, the Beef Shorthorn Youth Development initiative.
Held at Appleton Mills Farm on the North York Moors, the Gibson family extended a warm welcome to our young people in the most idyllic of settings.
In the sweltering heat, they arrived and were treated to an array of ice-cold drinks and started to get to know each other. All made instant friends with their shared passion for Beef Shorthorns.
The day started with everyone donning their new SYD gillets and headed into the yard for a group photo, to say it was like herding cats was an understatement and that was just the parents/guardians!
Andrew and Kate of KATEM embroidery did a great job of sizing everyone up and they all looked very smart in the new SYD range.
Members were then split into groups and rotated around four workshops during the day. All were hands on activities with the focus on learning by doing.
Halter making run by Robert Grierson was a firm favourite. His demonstration with a few rapid twists and knots looked impossible at first glance. However, under his clear and patient guidance everyone quickly got the hang of it, with confidence growing step by step.
All came away with halters in hand and were keen to get home to make more, with several commenting on how Christmas was sorted, so if you get your own personalised halter under the tree, you will know you have Robert Farmer Christmas to thank!
Drew Hyslop delivered a workshop on clipping with everyone getting to grips with the trimmers, luckily for the Whiterose herd, everyone picked it up quickly and there were no cattle with bald patches heading back towards the fields.
Learning to groom and prepare cattle for the showring saw Mark and Drew take everyone through what products are available and how best to use them. This was followed by leading the now immaculate Shorthorns into the ring to practise displaying them to their best advantage and going over showing etiquette.
Reflecting Beef Shorthorn in their best light was also covered within a Photography module. Alfie Shaw of Agri-images instructed all on how to best position an animal and what to think of from a photographer’s perspective. All learned about lighting conditions, resolution, focus and depth of field in order to tell a story with the images captured. From individual animal photos in the yard, to a walk through the herd in the field, everyone learned how to approach animals safely and attract their attention without disturbing them to get some fantastic natural shots. Everyone was blown away by Mr S’s ability to ‘talk to the animals’ and he was crowned ‘King of Moo’. More importantly everyone grew in confidence and understood better how to use their own phones and cameras to get shots that best reflected their stock in order to promote their own herds. With social media becoming an integral part of everyday life having good photographs will be key to the success of our next generation.
Most people felt that they were not natural artists so the thought of painting a Beef Shorthorn filled most with dread and there was a definite air of apprehension before getting started. Local artist Joyce Buzeman swiftly put all at ease. Starting with a blank canvas no one dared to think that they could imitate the examples on hand, however Joyce stripped back the process to simple steps and coached all on the process of building up a sketch and then water colour painting step by step. The buzz in the room was truly amazing as everyone began to see their portraits appearing before their eyes. All that took part were blown away by what they managed to produce.
Amanda and Joe from Morrisons joined proceedings and after lunch took us through how the Morrisons scheme works and assesses output. Carcass weights and marbling of fat were outlined, and it led to a very productive question and answer session with our breeders of the future soaking up all the information ready to put into practise.
The day ended with a farm walk. This was much needed after the incredible food at lunchtime as more than a few pounds were gained after the delicious spread. Johnny and Hannah took us round their newly established herd and described to everyone how they had started at Appleton Mills. With a variety of stock from bloodlines like Mayfield, Millerston and the original Appleton herd, they have produced some fabulous calves. The animals themselves were incredibly calm and reflected the skill and care that the Gibson’s put into their husbandry.
It was a really enjoyable day. A huge thanks to the Gibson family, all our workshop leaders and volunteers who made the day run smoothly and a great success. Mark Severn is a true thalwart of the breed and his vision has been to engage with our young people and inspire and encourage them. He certainly achieved that… and more, because they all had great fun and can’t wait for the next day. We are really looking forward to hosting similar events in different locations around the UK to allow all to access SYD. These days are being funded by the Beef Shorthorn Development fund which is a legacy from our Bicentenary year of which one of the aims was to invest in the future of the Society and the Breed.
The overwhelming message from the day was ‘Believe and you can achieve’. We have some amazing young people and future breeders within the Society and the future is looking very bright indeed for Beef Shorthorn.
Footnote: All our Development days rely on having skilled and dedicated volunteers so if you have time to spare or a skill that you can pass on to our next generation please contact ellie@beefshorthorn.org as we would love to hear from you.
Scottish Development Day (Balgay Farm)
Saturday, 29th July 2023
By kind invitation of I & S Graham and Iain Wilkinson, the Scottish development day was hosted at Balgay, Inchture,Perth.
This saw a full day of hands on workshops delivered by experienced breeders and industry experts and was open to all members and supporters of the breed.
Thanks to our sponsors Thrums Vets, East of Scotland Farmers Ltd, United Auctions, Harbro, The Cairnsmore herd and the Scottish Beef Shorthorn Club everyone had a most enjoyable day.
Major John Gibb delivered an excellent session on how to Judge which included what to look for within the Beef Shorthorn breed and how to explain the reasoning for selecting your champions.
Scottish Craft Butchers gave an indepth butchery demonstration followed by lunch.
In the afternoon attendees enjoyed a Show Clipping and Preparation demonstration by Drew Hyslop, which led on to Barbara Webster’s session explaining how Estimated Breeding values can be used in determining your breeding programme as well as an Ultrasound Scanning session.
Murray Cochrane then took everyone through the elements of Classification talking through a marvellous selection of Beef Shorthorn put forward by Balgay Farm.
The day was brought to an end by Iain Wilkinson who gave everyone a comprehensive Herd tour and explained how the use Pasture management to maximise production.
With over 80 attendees and multiple herds represented the day was a resounding success with all inspired by what they learned and saw, hoping to take back the lessons learned and apply back at their own farms.
Thank you Scotland!
Photos courtesy of Graham Miller graham@photohonesty.org
A C Farms Development Day
November 2022
Open to all Members and supporters of the breed including young people, this was the chance for Member to gather and learn more about Beef Shorthorn as well as meeting other members. We would like to thank the Langhams team for their hospitality and host Andre Vrona of AC Farms for his excellent farm walk . Co-ordinated by Tina Russell, the day was made up of a series of demonstrations and workshops which included:
A Clipping and Dressing demonstration
Youth Activities
Halter training cattle for showing
Judging seminar
Ring craft and Etiquette
The use of recording and EBV's
Beef Shorthorn - Investing in the Future
Glebe Farm Development Day
October 2022
Beef Shorthorn Youth Development Day Hailed Great Success
Over 100 participants travelled to the Glebefarm Beef Shorthorn herd recently by kind invitation of Alfie & Elaine Shaw and family who are based on the outskirts of Dungannon, Co Tyrone.
In a first of its kind, the Beef Shorthorn Cattle Society partnered up with Glebefarm to host a Youth Development Day with the aim to encourage members of all abilities to get involved with an array of highly educational work stations at the event. These included Ring Craft and Show Etiquette, Animal Preparation and Products, Stock judging, Glenarm Beef Scheme, EBVS and Scanning, Butchery Demonstration and Livestock Photography Tips.
The highlight of the day was the opportunity to walk around the award winning Glebefarm herd of Beef Shorthorn Cattle. The Shaw's have recently been placed Overall Champion Herd in NI for the second year in succession. The afternoon concluded with tasty refreshments kindly provided by the hosts.
The Shaw family would like to thank everyone who helped them in any way, and also those who attended the event. Alfie added "We were delighted to be able to welcome so many Beef Shorthorn enthusiasts to our farm. The aim was to profile a number of key areas which we felt would be both educational and interesting to those present on the day. The level of hands-on participation was excellent right from the youngest visitor to the oldest. The future of Beef Shorthorns looks bright with so much genuine enthusiasm clearly evident."
Photos courtesy of Alfie and Kathryn Shaw, Agri Images agriimages@btinternet.com
Hannington Herd Development Day
September 2022
The Society’s September development day hosted by Society president Charles Horton at Hannington, Wiltshire.
Attended by more than 60 Society members the event included five workshops focussed on key aspects of breeding and herd management.
From a veterinary perspective, members were able to listen to Bella Maine of Larkmead Vets discuss pelvic measurement in heifers and other essential aspects of herd fertility, while Jim Barber demonstrated ultrasound scanning in relation to performance recording and the benefits it brings.
Meanwhile, Mike Deakins gave an explanation of cow classification, enabling members to better understand the usefulness it can lend to management and breeding decisions.
Daniel Slade of Thame Market was also on hand to offer members guidance on cattle selection for slaughter and hitting the right specification, while Harbro’s Michael Richardson talked through feeding and nutrition to maximise growth and development in cattle of all ages.
Beef Shorthorn Society operations manager Clive Brown said the event, one of several organised by the Society this year, had been a huge success with members coming from far and wide to add to their knowledge base.
“These events have been a huge success and enabled members to come together and both learn and socialise with like-minded people from across the country. As ever the camaraderie and shared belief in the breed has shone through and that is sure to stand the breed in good stead going forward.”
Photos courtesy of Alfie and Kathryn Shaw, Agri Images agriimages@btinternet.com
