Saturday the 27th July was a tremendous show case of all things Brown Swiss, as members and guests gathered from 10am in the morning at the Kedar open day, Beyond the Burn, Mouswald, Dumfries by kind permission of the Lochhead family.
Starting of the day 31 judges participated in the Judging School in the morning and all the stops were pulled out with three brilliant classes of six, first a class of maidens judged in the collecting yard undercover from a short sharp shower that broke just as they were starting outside, before returning to sunny skies to judge a very close class of Junior cows and an equally challenging class of senior cows. Comments were repeatedly passed on the quality of the animals put on display, that would rival any show in the UK, and what a credit both the cows and heifers were to the team at Kedar, all of which were presented immaculately as judges gave their reasons on each class, with some engaging discussions following. Thanks go to our two Master Judges for the Judging school, Brian Weatherup Jnr and Stuart Williams, who did an excellent job and also thanks to Brent Crothers for stewarding and Anne Crothers for scoring to ensure everything ran smoothly.
Following a delicious lunch and a short presentation by HerdVision (main Society sponsor alongside GGI Spermex/Viking), it was time to get out and explore the milking herd. A second judging competition was held with a chance to pick 6 from 30 in one paddock before going on to look through the rest of the herd and the dry cows. The group grazing out on the lane side were full of milk and on tremendous form causing a challenge to pick the best, Stephen Innes (Newmeadows) was Master Judge for this element and congratulations to Jack Baynes who came out in top spot picking 5 out of 6 the same and winning the £25 Semex voucher for first prize.
It was a hugely successful day on farm, and a great credit to the whole team at Kedar who put a tremendous amount of effort into bringing the day to fruition. Members then made their way to the Cairndale Hotel in Dumfries, for the Society AGM and the days proceedings concluded with a Celebration dinner and presentation of the award winners from both the 2023 All Britain Photographic Competition and Society Production Awards.
To all those who were involved in the event – Thank you -from hosts, to sponsors and all who attended and made the day a memorable one in the Brown Swiss calendar for 2024
