IN A first for the Marlborough Show; dairy goat judging was on the agenda at the weekend.
The Supreme Champion was taken out by Glendowen Splendour, owned by Lesley and Tom McDowell, Rivendell, Gin Gin.
The McDowells moved to Gin Gin only last year from Narrabri in New South Wales – bringing a selection of their dairy goats and commercial cattle herd with them.
Sitting on 200 hectares, Mrs McDowell said the couple were adjusting to life with much smaller numbers than they have had previously.
Alongside the goats is an Angus and Santa Getrudis-based herd, which Mr and Mrs McDowell have recently introduced to a Gyr bull.
She said the decision to put the Gyr in was a necessity to have Bos Indicus genetics in Gin Gin to combat tick and fly issues.
The McDowells have been selling their cattle as steers to the feedlot market since moving to Queensland, and have been thrilled to be making between 350c/kg and 380c/kg for 300kg-350kg beasts.
After having dairy goats for 25 years, she said they are not a hobby – but a business.
The McDowell’s use the milk from the goats for cheese, soap, and ice-creams, and sell the kids.
“All our kids are sold - we won’t be keeping any this year at all,” Mrs McDowell said.
“Other dairy goat breeders buy them, and there’s export markets if you can hang onto them until six months, but I like them to go very young.
“I like to sell kids at a couple of weeks of age when they’re born with no faults; we bottle raise so as soon as they’re gone the better.
“We sell our kids for $500 plus GST, that’s if they go straight away. They get dearer if they don’t go straight away.”
Splendour, a British Alpine, has won the Supreme Champion at the Ekka two years in a row, and Mrs McDowell said it was great to see dairy goat judging making an appearance at more smaller regional shows.
It has not been smooth sailing since the move to Gin Gin, after cutting down their dairy goat herd from 70 head to 25, the McDowells found themselves struggling with wild dogs.
”It’s a very different climate in Narrabri; it’s flat and there’s no wild dogs.
“We’ve bene tormented by wild dogs since moving, and with buffalo fly for the goats and the cattle; but we’ve been doing a lot of learning.
“We’ve got a couple of Maremma (dogs) to run with the goats and protect them. We didn’t know the wild dogs were going to be so bad.”