The waiting game…

…seems to be a subtitle for much of the year at Thistle Hill.  Right now we’ve confirmed the pregnancy of the cows we artificially inseminated(AI).

A2a is one of the AI recipients.  She’s one of two carrying calves by Grantland Granite of John Forelle’s Folly Farm.  That herd was dispersed several years ago.

Grantland was the name of  Bob Grant’s herd and Bob was an important figure and treasurer of the American Devon Association.  Gearld Fry bought his herd and Granite wound up with John Forelle.

I saw him at Folly Farm in about 2005 at the very first meeting of the North American Devon Association in Albany, New York.  Welcome to Thistle Hill.

Other recipients have been confirmed in calf by the famed Rotokawa 688 who probably more than any other bull launched the resurgence of Devon.  He was the grand sire of the outstanding English cow Cashtiller…perhaps the prettiest Devon ever.  He also sired our Thistle Hill Hope…another beauty that was the dam of more Thistle Hill calves than any other thanks to many flushes.

We also have confirmed pregnancies by Rotokawa 663 and the superb English bull Cutcombe Jaunty who has been key in our herd’s development.

That rounds out the AI recipients who’ll be calving in October.  But there are six calves coming from our companion embryo transfer work…calves by Champson Defender and the famous Potheridge President.

How will our pastures contain all these big egos!

David