After what seemed like many weeks of waiting with far too much time spent examining the back-end of a cow, our second Dexter calf arrived on Thursday morning (18 Feb). On reflection we were a little over zealous in trying spot signs of the imminent arrival especially as the first calf arrived with relatively little fuss.
It’s a second bull calf that we have named ELVIS and after just 48 hours he seems to be settling in very well. The tense moments over the first 24 hours are all in the past now, he has suckled well and is getting much steadier on his legs every day.
Mother and calf on a frosty first morning
At the start there was a little rather rough play from Oscar, who is 9 weeks old already, and it’s not easy to learn to walk while an energetic calf is jumping all over you! However the new mother (Daisy) was very quick to see this and soon put a stop to that sort of behaviour.
After a few head butts from Daisy I think that Oscar has finally got the message because he went looking for fun elsewhere. I’m sure there’ll be plenty of time for the two calves to cause havoc around the place but for now peace has been restored.
Oscar investigating chickens instead
Everything with the cows can return to normal now – the next day it was time for another silage delivery from the neighbouring farmer. This has proved to be one of the most successful aspects because they take around 3 or 4 weeks to get through each bale and when we need a new one I just need to prepare the space ready for the tractor delivery!
Having had a remarkably problem-free first calving for the first of the Dexters, we are now nearing the time for the next calf to arrive. Both cows were checked by a vet just before arriving with us in May 2015 and the prediction at that time was about 7 weeks between the two calving dates.
I’m not sure how accurate a vet can be when estimating that a cow is only 5 weeks in-calf but that’s the only information we have to go on for now. The first calf – Oscar – made an appearance on Dec 15 which was a few days early based on the predictions but adding the 7 weeks to that date would mean the next calf should arrive by Tuesday of next week (Feb 2).
Oscar at just over 6 weeks
From what I’ve heard and read in recent months it’s not an exact science anyway but I’m hoping that I can spot some signs ahead of time based on what I can remember from the arrival of the first calf
Over the last week I thought that calving was slowly getting nearer as I could see a little sign of udder development but perhaps I’ve imagined that. The photos below were taken almost a week apart and when I took the second one I thought the difference was clear. However when I look at the pictures again now I’m not so sure so I’ll be looking out for more changes in the next few days!
It’s been a little while since my last update on the progress of the 2 Tamworth gilts that we have kept for breeding. There has been much to learn particularly about feeding and land management because this is the first time we’ve taken on animals all year round.
Even though I’d expected the new pens in the woods to get a bit beaten up, I’d somehow not fully appreciated that they aren’t going to recover until next Spring (at the earliest). It looks like I left it a little too long before moving the pigs to some new ground.
Winter wet weather and a worn out pen
These 2 gilts are the start of our breeding herd and as such will be almost pets because we hope they will be with us for quite some time. The permanent pens that were put up in the woods have been excellent but as noted above it didn’t take long for them to suffer too much wear and tear. As a result I had to subdivide the remaining much larger pen using electric fencing so that the pigs can be moved around a little to rest the ground through the winter.
After looking into the idea of sending the two pigs off to a boar, in the end it made more sense for this first time if we handled everything ourselves. Not least because it reduces the risks associated with mixing our 2 pigs with other pigs elsewhere although the same would have applied if we’d hosted a boar on our land.
Sissy and Esther enjoying breakfast
Sissy was the first to suffer the indignity of A.I. and after waiting 3 weeks for the natural cycle it became clear that my efforts had been successful.With one of them now in-pig that meant I could turn my attention on Esther next. Following that was another interminable 3 week wait but that’s just finished with all signs indicating a second success.
Fingers crossed now for their farrowing around the end of February and also in March with planning already underway in case the weather is bad at that point and they need to farrow inside. If all goes well then we hope to have pedigree Tamworth weaners for sale around April or May 2016
Last Tuesday and a little ahead of schedule, the first Dexter (Nellie) started showing what looked to be signs of impending calving – she kept herself separate in a far corner of the field and was walking a bit like John Wayne or Gary Cooper in those old westerns.
There was little change or progress by the time it got dark but after our evening meal it was decided that a final check was definitely in order. This time I was greeted by a welcome sight through the dark and rainy night when I saw an extra pair of eyes reflecting in the torch-light from the back of the field – this new pair were considerably nearer the ground than the two larger pair of eyes.
Mother and calf
Over the next 2-3 days much time was spent getting used to the new arrival and dealing with all the necessary government officialdom which comes with owning cattle. Finally I got myself organised and grabbed the calf into our small trailer so that I could check it over and apply the required ear tags.
Oscar complete with his new ear rings
On closer inspection while he was in the trailer (even to my untrained eye) it was clear that this is a bull calf and he seems to be really healthy. For the record, his name is OSCAR and even over this short period he has become much more mobile and active as well as very inquisitive.
Mother and son investigating chickens
One major task for the coming months is to make sure that, like his mother, he gets used to people being around so that the routine work can be handled safely and easily. Unfortunately the next big event on his calendar will be castration and disbudding but these are essential for the safety of both us and all the cattle.
These are full pedigree Dexter cattle so I still have to complete the registration with the breed society but that is just a matter of some online form filling and sending in some paperwork. Although the Dexter is no longer officially a rare breed, I like the fact that as with our pedigree Tamworth pigs, they are properly registered and in addition we can always get the support of the breed society.
In the meantime I mustn’t forget that the second cow (Daisy) is still to calf, currently expected to be around the end of January. She’s already showing some good signs for motherhood by helping to protect the new youngster when any strangers turn up. However when it’s just me around then she’s a proper softy with a real fondness for licking the pig feed residue off my gloves!
Daisy getting friendly
Luckily the winter feeding for the cattle shouldn’t be a problem as a neighbouring farmer takes the contents of our meadows each year and was quite happy to bring over a bale on request. Dexters are a small, hardy native breed so they don’t eat as much as the larger continental breeds of cattle but even better they certainly don’t need extra veterinary care, medicines or growth hormones. All they need is a good supply of grass (in any form) with water freely available and they seem really happy.
The first bale of silage took them almost 4 weeks to get through and the second bale has only just been delivered so the cupboard is now stocked through into January – not much of a Christmas meal in my opinion but they seem to like it a lot!
As luck would have it, a windy hill-top is a better bet than many other places when some stormy weather comes through. There has been some dramatic news coverage on the TV and the local newspaper website from places further to the west of us which puts everything into perspective.
It turns out that I’ve drawn the short straw when it comes to looking after the livestock though, whatever the weather. However it’s all a matter of wearing the right clothing to suit the conditions and I’d worry about them if I didn’t check so I really don’t mind. Many others have much bigger things to worry about right now with flooding so I remind myself to be grateful that I just have to deal with some wind, rain and mud.
The heavy rain over the last 24 hours or so means that the field drainage has being tested a little beyond its limits but in the grand scheme of things I think we’re getting off very lightly. Yesterday the water was coming on to our land faster that the drains could take it away but the balance is shifting this morning and the water levels are slowly falling again now.
Field drainage overwhelmed
Surprisingly enough given that the wind was supposedly gusting at 70mph or more yesterday, there has been relatively little damage on our little patch. The majority of the problems have been a range of small(ish) branches blown down and in places these have inflicted very minor damage to some permanent fences.
Minor fencing damage
Even the fairly new electric fencing I put has been a bit battered but it was easily fixed this morning and the pigs have already learned to be wary of it so they didn’t notice that a section was completely out of action overnight.
Planning ahead makes all the difference though and, having moved the cows into the most sheltered field in advance of the bad weather, there was no danger to anyone when a 50-60ft tree came down in another field and took out a small section of the dry stone wall.
Free firewood and stone walling practice
I just need to get the chainsaw sharpened and enjoy a quiet, rain-free day by making a start on the free firewood for next winter. Repairing the stone wall will have to be done before the cows can return to this field but I’ll take my time and try to do a good job!
At long last the work to subdivide the larger, stock-fenced enclosure in the woods using electric fencing has been completed. The delays were solely down to my dithering because it’s all completely new to me and I didn’t want to get it wrong on my first attempt.
In the end I had to simply get on with the job and the pigs will have to put up with the fact that the end results don’t look very professional. Most importantly it works which is the main thing and I have yet to get a blast from it but that may only be a question of time.
The real push for this was because the weather has been unreasonably wet lately which meant that the pigs were close to needing water wings at times. What had started out as a beautiful pen on a gently sloping, grassy bank in the woods has now become a quagmire in need of a few days of better weather before it can even start to dry out.
Original Pen
Even the next door pen which was regularly used as a daytime play area was beginning to suffer from the wear and tear. There really wasn’t any alternative if I wanted to keep them fit and healthy so the electric fencing jumped to the top of the priority jobs list.
Luckily I was able to rig up a short length in this day pen so that I could get them used to the idea because they’ve never seen it before so I wanted to ease them in gently at first. As it turned out they’re fairly quick learners and it only took a few zaps before they started to give the fencing a wide berth.
Electric fence training for pigs
They are now happily ensconced in their new home with fresh straw in the ark and plenty of grass to root up in their spare time between feeds. They seem to be very well settled now and have electric fencing on two sides with a dry stone wall and some stock fencing on the other two sides.
New enclosure
Another significant plus should be that future litters can be familiar with electric fencing before we sell them on to others as weaners for fattening up. This will definitely helps the new owners because smaller pigs can easily panic and push through (or damage) an electric fence when first encountering it.
The months have flown by since we got the 4 Tamworths at the end of February, the 2 “eaters” were sent off on schedule in August and the 2 “keepers” (Sissy and Esther) have done well since then. However the intervening time hasn’t been wasted as I’ve read up on pig breeding and making plans for farrowing early next year which could be outside or inside depending on the weather.
Sissy and Esther
The main focus has been on AI because with only 2 gilts here at the moment it’s just not worth having our own boar. I eventually decided to use AI for one pig but could still choose to send the other one off to visit a boar. There is an element of concern when mixing with other pigs as that creates an opportunity for passing diseases but if correctly managed that the risks should be fairly low.
After checking the back ends of our pigs on a regular basis – probably far more often than is healthy – it looks like I have timed everything correctly. This morning had been noted in the calendar as the day to place the order for fresh AI and after a quick final check earlier this has now been done. The next day delivery service is impressive but also crucial given that the whole event is particularly time sensitive.
To spare their blushes I don’t think I’ll post pictures of the actual AI activities on the blog but also I expect that I’ll be too busy with a sizeable gilt that may not be so keen on the whole business…
They’ve made good progress with eating all the grass in the three paddocks they’ve been moved through and are better behaved now. They are still a little flighty if more than one person approaches but at least it looks like they know this is home now.
For the last few weeks it’s been possible to hand feed them a little straw from time to time which helps both us and them to get better acquainted. This regular contact has also meant that I’m getting more attached to them than I had expected.
Daisy the Dexter
We still need to get them a little more docile and manageable because they are due to calve in December and January. Although they’ve both calved before and there shouldn’t be any problems, it would be nice to know that we (or in an emergency a vet) can get close enough to help if needed.
The next stage more recently has been working up to touching them and, while she might not like it all the time, it looks like Daisy is happy enough to be stroked if there is some sort of treat involved. Unfortunately Nellie is more cautious and just not interested in physical contact yet but I’m hoping it’s just a matter of time.
After the calving our next big concern will be how the paddocks hold up over winter with so many feet trampling over them. Although Dexter’s are fine to stay out all winter, depending how the winter weather develops if the fields are getting too much damage we don’t have a lot of options to house them. However if the situation ever gets really bad then there’s no choice and they’ll have to go into our old tin barn.
After a busy weekend which culminated in the delivery of the 2 pigs to the abattoir on Sunday morning, it was a pleasant distraction to see that the promised article about our set-up actually made it into the paper.
There was a nice article in the Sunday Sun – a sister paper to the Newcastle Chronicle and Journal – and I thought that overall they really captured the essence of our adventure. Any inaccuracies in there were probably more as a result of my garbled explanations if I’m honest.
Article about Small Plot Big Ideas
I’m now waiting for the phone to ring endlessly with other media enquiries and wondering whether I should get an agent for the book deals that are bound to come along in due course!
Life continues though and the 2 remaining pigs are slowly adjusting to the quieter surroundings in their pen. Mealtimes are certainly much more relaxed when there’s only 2 faces in the trough!
We will have some fresh outdoor-reared, rare breed Tamworth pork available for sale over the weekend of Sat 22/Sun 23 August. This can be collected in person (by prior arrangement) or could be delivered if you live within the Allen Valleys area.
This meat is from our pedigree Tamworth pigs that are raised outdoors in a natural, stress free woodland environment. Click here to read the blog updates about our pigs if you’d like to find out more about them.
Most standard cuts will be available including roasting joints, chops, steaks, sausages among others with everything vacuum packed and labelled by the butchers before we collect it. As a rough guide, we expect to have a selection of 1.5kg and 2kg roasting joints available as well as chops, sausages, etc in packs weighing around 350-500g.
Pre-orders are recommended to avoid disappointment, particularly if you want something specific as we will only have a limited amount on this occasion.
Please complete the form below to let us know what you would like or find out more information and we’ll be in touch.
