Highland cattle are for hard work, not for pretty looks

THERE was advice aplenty yesterday at the Highland Cattle Gathering in Glasgow with Jacquelyn Becker Chotkowski, the president of the American Highland Cattle Association, setting a few of the 150 or so delegates from all corners of the world thinking with a number of strong statements.

Referring to the husbandry of Highland cattle, her advice was firm: "Do not be too kind to them. Allow them to graze and to browse. Use their hardiness to your advantage and keep them on extensive grazing."

If the breed lost its hardiness then the breed would be in trouble, she warned. She also warned that it was too easy to keep stock because they looked good.

"If they have bad udders, get rid of them. If they are prone to lameness, get rid of them and if they have bad temperaments, get rid of them," was her unequivocal attitude.

In a similar fashion to projects in this country, where the breed is used to help environmental projects through its unique grazing and browsing style, she said Highlanders were being used in oak savannahs where prairie grass is grazed. "These are some of our most fragile environments and the cattle are doing their bit."

Her own 100 strong fold plus another 50 or 60 Highland cross Aberdeen Angus is very much based on commercial lines. The cattle graze on her farm in upstate New York on land which she described as hilly with poor soil.

From this she sells whole carcases to specialist restaurants and also attends local farmers' market where there is a premium paid for the meat.

Chotkowski said that the demand was encouraging other cattle breeders to take up the breed. Currently there are about 1,400 producers in the States with Highland cattle and this number is increasing.

While she was not too keen on Highlanders being kept in the Southern states because of the extremely hot weather, she said there were breeders right across America.

Many of them were quite small scale but particularly in the western side of the country, there were some very big folds with 400 to 500 head of cattle.

"We have never had as many Highland cattle in the USA," she stated, adding that she was picking up a similar expansive message from delegates from other countries.

However, she believed there was a great danger that newcomers would come into the breed because of the looks of the cattle: "The problem is they look pretty whereas we want them to be valued for their commercial ability."

She stated that when she was looking for breeding stock, she never bought cattle that had been on the show circuit. "That is a third-rate way of evaluating livestock. It is only one person's opinion. Cattle that have been shown over a number of years often have a number of problems when they come into a breeding unit.Showing is not what the breed is about."

The gathering continues today with a number of prominent producers in the breed tackling the issue of how to breed the right cattle as well as visiting a couple of famous folds, Killochries Fold based at Kilmacolm in Renfrewshire courtesy of Iain and Sheena Graham and the Woodneuk Fold at Barrhead belonging to the Thomson family.

Tomorrow, the delegates travel to Glamis where David Soutar, farms director of Strathmore Farming Company, will guide visitors round some of the suckler cross Simmental herd and the Glamis Castle Highland fold.

The gathering culminates at the City of Glasgow International Highland Cattle Show at Pollok Park - with a potential entry of 150 animals, one of the UK's largest shows of Highland cattle - judged by Dr Stephan Janz from Germany.

All roads then lead to Oban for the 113th autumn show and sale of Highland cattle on Sunday 10 and Monday 11 October..