Queensland Holstein Onfarm Results: Leader Holsteins is true to its name
Oakey Holstein breeders Travis and Melissa Deans capped off a word-perfect year, winning
three of the five classes in Queenslands state final of the Semex-Holstein Australia On-Farm Competition recently.
The couple also finished with a reserve champion in the four-year-old class, which gave them 40% of the 10 champion and reserve titles on offer and 60% of the available champions. Added to their 2009 show campaign, which included winning supreme champion cow titles with three different cows at the Brisbane Royal, the Toowoomba Royal and the Dairy Spectacular and they are starting to look like a runaway train in the sunshine state.
We were pretty thrilled, Travis said. I dont think its been done in Queensland before at state level and to have five cows place in the state final was fantastic.
The achievement was made more notable because Travis and Melissa milk a modest-sized herd of 75 cows, which has a rolling herd average of 10,800 litres, in a challenging milk-making environment on 700 acres. They were part of a Queensland competition that included 302 entries from 38 breeders.
Judge Jenny Grey, from Kiama, in New South Wales, confirmed that one of the most exciting animals she saw was Leader Holsteins two-year-old champion, Leader Damion Cretonne-ET.
She carried an oustanding udder, Jenny said. Her attachments, her seam, her teat placement and height and width of rear udder were stand-outs. She also had a lot of width throughout and a tremendous angle to her rib.
Travis also rates the young cow, saying she is as good a heifer as he has ever put the cups on. She carries a VG88-classified mammary system; she has two full sisters in the herd and she peaked at 38 litres, pushing her projected production out to 10,000 as a junior two-year-old. She has given Travis and Melissa a Lauren heifer, two Braedale Goldwyn embryos and she is short-bred to Goldwyn. She traces her heritage back to her great granddam, Rockwood Park Warden Cretonne-ET VG88 via her dam, Rockwood Park Mtoto Crisp-ET VG89 and granddam, Rockwood Park Leadman Crisp-ET VG89.
She is a very exciting young cow and we think the best of her is still to come, Travis said.
Leaders three-year-old champion Leader DD Satin VG88 is out of the herds best brood cow, Leader Durham Satin EX91 2E (who finished fifth in the mature cow class). DD Satins maternal sister was reserve champion in the four-year-old class. DD Satin is the reigning supreme champion dairy cow from the Dairy Spectacular. She finished her junior two-year-old lactation with 10,900 litres, she recently gave 17 Shottle embryos and she is short-bred to Braedale Goldwyn.
Their mature champion, Gayton Park Leader Bianca EX93-4E, is the reigning Brisbane Royal Shows supreme champion of all breeds. They bought the Semex-sired Comestar Leader daughter eight years ago for $3400 in a local herd dispersal. The 11-year-old (with nine calves) is within striking distance of 100,000 litres lifetime, helped by her most recent completed lactation of more than 12,000 litres. She has been bred to Lauren. The couple has Shottle daughters, a VG two-year-old Duplex and a VG Champion from her. Biancas Fortune granddaughter recently won supreme junior champion at the Toowoomba Royal.
The finishing touch for the couple was the reserve champion three-year-old, a grade heifer sired by HOSupa and owned by Paul Roderick. Hosupa was bred by Leader Holsteins (Durham x Hanoverhill Raider x Conant Acres Broker) before being sold to Semex.
One of the up and coming breeders to be acknowledged was 21-year-old Dan Brown, of Maleny. Dans champion five-year-old, Lynstarr James Debbine VG87, is the first cow he has bought. She cost him $2750 in 2006 at the Champagne Sale. Debbine is a Shoremar James x VG88 Comestar Outside x VG88 To-Mar Blackstar x VG89 HanoverhillStarbuck. With more than 8500 litres as a two-year-old Debinne PIed at 128.
Its pretty good, considering she was the first cow I bought, Dan said. Dan is the assistant herd manager for Errol and Julie Gerber, of Wivenhoe Holsteins. Debbine is housed with Peter Rough.
Judge Jenny was impressed with the depth of the finalists throughout, but she made particular mention of the two and four-year-old classes.
It was a very full and enjoyable week and the typical Queensland hospitality was wonderful, as always, she said.
Clarkdale Holsteins, owned by Allen and Julie Clark, at Caniaba, continue to impress in the Holstein breed. The Guernsey breeders have been successfully working with both breeds for some time now. They won the four-year-old class with Clarkdale Himetro Lily.
The VG85 exponent is backed by a GP81 Dupasquier Windstar x VG86 Lutz-Meadows E Mandel daughter.
Judge: Jenny Grey, Kiama, New South Wales
Hanoverhill Inspiration TWO YEAR OLD class- 1st: Leader Damion Cretonne-ET (T and M Deans, Leader Holsteins, Oakey) 2nd: Barron Bella Finalcut Hero (F and D Cuda, Barron Bella Holsteins, Malanda)
Glenafton Enhancer THREE YEAR OLD class - 1st: Leader DD Satin (T and M Deans, Leader Holsteins, Oakey) - 2nd: Grade 651 (x HOSUPA), (Paul Roderick, Roderick and Partners, Harrisville).
Hanoverhill Raider FOUR YEAR OLD class - 1st: Clarkdale Himetro Lily, Clark Partnership, Clarkdale Holsteins, Caniaba - 2nd: Leader Roy Satin (T and M Deans, Leader Holsteins, Oakey).
Townson Lindy FIVE YEAR OLD class - 1st: Lynstarr James Debbine (D Brown, Obi View Holsteins, Maleny) 2nd: Plana Modest Steph (A and S Barron, Ardylbar Holsteins, Cambooya).
Hanoverhill Starbuck MATURE class - 1st: Gayton Park Leader Bianca (T and M Deans, Leader Holsteins, Oakey) - 2nd: Bevandale Aspen Prima (J and C.Bevan, Bevandale Holsteins, Ravenshoe).
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