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You’re so vain….
….oh, alright, but hear me out. Several years ago, I was so crippled up I walked bent over like an old man and I hurt all the time. Thanks to a physical therapist and her staff in nearby Warrenton—plus an improved diet and plenty of red wine—I snapped out of it. The therapist’s name is Kendal Blaser and she is not only an exceptionally talented professional, she is one of the most delightful women I’ve ever met. So Kendal was working on her website with a professional photographer and wanted me to pose as one of her success stories. The deal was, I got some of the pictures and this is…
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Tracking Jackpot….
….and he continues on track. From the first, this young bull….now approaching three….has been an eye-catcher. It was Rotokawa’s Ken McDowall who dubbed him “Jackpot“, when he first saw him on our pastures. Jackpot is a “243” son and last winter was introduced to his first group of females. We’ll be seeing the results in a few more months, and that’s what counts. Here are Jackpot’s four remaining classmates…one of them a line-bred 688 son. Thistle Hill may not be the biggest Devon breeder in the country, but we think, pound for pound, we’ll stack up against the rest.
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Mission accomplished….
….we’ve just returned from delivering a load of six females to South Carolina, to Linda Hendrix and her son Dr. John Hendrix. Their farm in Pacolet is rapidly becoming Thistle Hill South. The shipment included four bred heifers, being off-loaded here by our good friend, Glen Covington, who in real life manages our local co-op. For some reason, he enjoys long distance driving as much as I try to avoid it. Included in the load was a lovely young heifer out of Thistle Hill’s “Niner Magic”, who is one of our three lead herd bulls. And this little one keeps intact the record of our “64” cow, who only knows…
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The “proper Devon”…continued….
….is “Lord Wolseley”, the champion bull at the Royal Agricultural Society’s Jubilee Show in 1889. Bred by Viscount Falmouth, himself, and sold to a farm in Devon. Click to enlarge and thanks again to Juliet Cleave.
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The “proper Devon”….
….another picture of Devon in the days of yore. This is Highfield Noble and his picture was published in 1918 in a publication called “Livestock of the Farm”. This is one of a half dozen pictures we’ll be posting of Traditional English Devon. We’re indebted to Juliet Cleave of Cornwall.
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Ready to shave….
…I could swear TDA 001 Churchill, Traditional Devon’s young English bull, seems more grown up. He’s still just 19-months. That’s what happens when you put him in a pasture with some “older women”, I guess. What a difference four weeks makes, but wipe that silly grin off your face! Photo by his care-giver: Lindsay Sagstuen.
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Keeping an eye on his harem….
Thistle Hill U2 is on special assignment…breeding a small group of heifers before shipment to Linda Hendrix and son, John, in South Carolina. All four of the females are Rotokawa 688 line- breds. U2, a son of Watson, who made a major improvement in our herd some years back, is a grandson of Rotokawa 974 and out of one of our best cow lines. The 20 calves he has on the ground now with our main herd make up the most promising class we’ve had so far.
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Just like Dad….and Mom…
….one of two Rotokawa 688 line bred bulls remaining at Thistle Hill. Click the picture to see both ends of him. This two-year old—Wooz named him “Oh My“—is extremely docile, even by Devon standards. He’s in a pasture with five other young bulls and he’s the one who always comes up to the Gator to greet us….and assure us he has everything under control. The other bulls are by “Magic” and Rotokawa 243, 93 and 974.
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On the trail of the “Highwayman”….
….a bit more information on the 1960s British champion, Uggaton Highway 2nd. Our Cornwall lass, Juliet Cleave, came up with the picture and wondered who he was. Wooz added some detail from the old herd books (including the fact that he’s an ancestor of one of the bulls calves we now have on the ground here). In case you missed her comment yesterday, I’ve pulled up the latest information from Juliet: Have just spoken to William Brent (of the now dispersed Clampit Herd): his family bought Uggaton Highwayman 2nd as an 18 month bull at the Devon Society annual sale & worked him “as much as we could” within the…
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Our alumni club….
….we think we treat our animals pretty well here at Thistle Hill, but Regina Tesnow at Tomina Farms in Kentucky puts us to shame. Here she’s grooming a bull we shipped to her not long ago. She calls him “Casino“…a Rotokawa 243 son…who she hopes will replace her famed “Magic” who is also a Thistle Hill alum. Regina apparently pampers all her Devon this way. I suspect she even tucks them in at night with an alfalfa cube.