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Time Out….
There’ll be no blogging for the next 10 days. Wooz and I are taking a break—even from Devon—for a short vacation with our friends in Germany. This is the first “non-Devon” trip we’ve managed in four years. See you in September…here at the Thistle Hill blog and at the joint meeting of the two national Devon associations in North Carolina.
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Mission accomplished….
Traditional Devon’s English bull, Churchill, returns to his Thistle Hill pasture after an extremely successful stay at North American Breeders for collection. The tech there called him “fantastic”…and we agree. In fact, grass fed bulls generally are far more fertile than grain fed. With all the news reports about declining sperm counts in western males, we’ve wondered whether the high level of corn fructose in young diets is partly to blame. Churchill is not yet two. He’s been used in a limited way here at Thistle Hill. His brother, Wellington, will be traveling to South Carolina in another month to be tried on our partners’ Walker Century Farms herd. And…
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Because I can….
….from time to time. And this is one of the times. Nothing to do with grass fed cattle…or healthy eating. Maybe it’s brain candy. https://www.youtube.com/embed/sGF6bOi1NfA?rel=0
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Just when I was thinking of cutting down….
….to a glass a day….they’ve made the decision easier. Thanks to Gisela Volkert in Konigswinter, Germany for the picture. We’re about to travel to Germany for a few days. Good to know they’ve made it more efficient.
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A meeting of the minds….
Photograph by Karen Schumacher (no relation), president of the New Zealand Devon Association. Karen won first price in the Association contest.
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For those who think this blog lacks culture….
….we offer this van Gogh!
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It’s not enough….
….we have to fill out forms, register and track our animals, etc, etc. We also have to keep the place neat. Certainly no bushes growing near the road. A small organic farm in Texas committed that sin but the sheriff just didn’t drop by with a warning….or just a summons. Nope, he sent the SWAT team in! Again, you think I exaggerate. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/15/texas-swat-team-conducts-_n_3764951.html
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If this keeps up….
….soon all beef will be grass fed. ….and chicken will cost as much as beef. ….and we’ll all be eating artificial meat and poultry! Don’t kid yourself; that’s the plan. http://www.nationalreview.com/article/356106/corn-broke-cattlemans-back-jillian-kay-Melchior There are quibbles I could make about the article, but at least the mainstream is beginning to question the government on this, too.
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Some prizes are better than others….
….and the ones that hold a pint are best of all! Here, our Cornwall Devon partner Chris Cleave holds the silver tankard he won for best commercial sheep in a recent show. Pictures do lie. Juliet assures me that the tankard was not used in the celebration after the show!
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End of an era….
….came in a phone call from one of our English partners, Brian Drake, of North Tawton. Brian poses here with the American members of the team: Bill Walker, John Forelle and myself. No one we know has been breeding Devon any longer than Brian. He took over his father’s herd in 1950 and his Essington Park genetics can be found in most of the herds in England. We’re fortunate that we were able to flush his wonderful cow Buttercup and one of her sons is approaching his first birthday here in the States. More are on the way! While he’s leaving the Devon world, he remains a good friend. We…