The competition is confined to breeders in the club area which caters for breeders with a herd number in Co. Roscommon, Sligo, Mayo and Galway or breeders who were accepted as club members in last years competition. Membership is not being collected this year due to Covid. There are also some individual competitions where the breeder does not have to enter the entire herd. We expect to hold the competition between late August and mid-September.
Neil Vance from the noted Winnington herd in Shropshire has agreed to judge the competition. Neil and his wife Joy farm a herd of 90 pedigree Limousin cows, 10 pedigree Charolais cows and 200 ewes. They have been particularly successful breeding and selling females as foundation cows to other herds. Indeed many of the top UK herds have been based on Winnington females.
Categories will be decided after entries are received and divided into three equal sections based on cow numbers on 23/7/21. Heifer numbers will be used if herds have equal cow numbers. If number is still tied the extra herd will go in the bigger section.
Each category will have a 1st, 2nd and 3rd prize. There will also be an overall herd award and an award for the best novice herd that has not entered the herd’s competition previously. There are also special category awards for
- a) best group of calves (born after 1/9/20)
- b) best group of maiden heifers (born 1/9/19-31/8/20)
- c) Best group of In-calf heifers
- d) best progeny of one sire and
- e) Best cow family (three generations minimum). All herds in the competition are automatically considered for any of the above category prizes.
The last four categories (f, g, h, i) are open to any eligible breeder to enter individually. (i.e. no need to enter the entire herd).
Note: Cattle from herds in the main competition are automatically in these four sections
- f) Best 2020 born heifer
- g) Best Cow
- h) Best 2020 born Bull
- i) Best Bull born before 1/1/2020
Note: The competition will only be run if there is enough interest from breeders and the committee feel that it is allowed within the Covid regulations in September. The health of the breeders and judges will be the primary factor in deciding to proceed.
