Blayney Show Wrap Up (and a bit about Canberra too)

Pickles getting a drink from mum immediately after the Champion Female AOB class.

Whoopsie - I'm back at uni and that's taken over my life a bit but no stress, here is the Blayney Show wrap up!

I'll also jot a few lines about Canberra - i didn't go this year, meaning I (the website/social media/administration/marketing/full time university student) forgot to publish a recount. It was a hot show again, not helped by being crammed into a shed with too many animals and not enough space. The organisation of the show was also yet again pretty useless, leaving the Australian Lowline Cattle Association with no choice but to complain about the way the competitors and their cattle were treated. We were exhibiting a cow and calf - you normally tie the calf up so they cannot drink for a few hours before the class, so that the cow's udder is nice and full. Given we were expecting to parade at 1pm, the calf was tied up at 7am. Normally, even on a relatively hot day with a fairly young calf, this wouldn't have been a drama. Instead, due to numerous planning errors by the Committee, we were not judged until 3pm. This left us with the rather awkward position of allowing the calf to drink, and potentially being marked down as a result - when you've paid $600 in entry fees, you do get the sense that it isn't good enough. But the animal welfare is paramount, and our opinion is that the Committee should've worked out a position or at least communicated with competitors better, because having cattle ready to be shown at 1pm who then have to wait until 4 is not good enough. 

Magnolia, Zoom Zoom, and a very tired Pickles on their arrival at Canberra.

Zoom Zoom was shown as a Senior Cow this year for a third place. Magnolia didn't travel well and was not a happy camper at all, and her condition reflected this. We beaten by some excellent examples of the breed, and it is exciting to see the quality being produced by Lowline breeders around the country!

Blayney is a great little show that we have been attending with either horses or cattle for a few years now. It is just down the road from us, a nice easy distance that acts as a bit of a breather after Canberra. We took Zoom Zoom and Pickles, and Magnolia, aware that we would be judged against bigger breeds which is always a bit tricky. This year was no exception; we were Any Other breed and got judged against some Simmentals and Maine Anjous! It was a funny picture watching them all walk around the ring.

Again, Magnolia didn't travel well and refused to eat or drink at the show. It is a shame that she has become such a stresshead, as she was very promising as a Junior Heifer and did incredibly well at Orange Show last year. Zoom Zoom paraded like the queen she knows she is, impressing everyone with her pride and snobbiness (Small Woman Syndrome!). She was very narrowly beaten by the Simmental for Champion AOB Female.

Pickles was the star of the show (again), winning many fans and even getting himself published in the local paper! Him and his mum will both be at Bathurst Show in April, the rest of our team will be confirmed closer to the day.

The team all set up before judging at Blayney.