This New Year Bede's World is celebrating the arrival of two adorable young male Dexter calves. The new calves were chosen because of their similarity in size and appearance to Anglo-Saxon cattle.
Dexters are one of the smallest breeds of cattle and are thought to be the most appropriate for us to use at Bede's World, although they have a reputation for being one of the more difficult breeds to train! The Anglo-Saxons would have used cattle for draught work, whilst horses were kept mainly for riding.
The new arrivals belonged to Mr & Mrs Jackson from Ponteland, who have bred and shown Dexter cattle for a number of years. When the farm manager Christine FitzGerald visited the herd she was convinced to have this pair because of the extremely good temperament of all the cattle, as well as their quality. Mr & Mrs Jackson plan to follow the progress of their two protégés throughout their training and are pleased that they have got a home for life.
The calves will be handled daily and will learn how to walk in a halter and as a pair. Next year they will learn how to wear a yoke (cattle harness), but will not be expected to pull anything until they are big and strong enough. Our older cattle, Edwin and Oswin, will carry on working for now however when the younger pair are ready to work, the older 'boys' will retire to a nearby field, where they will be able to keep a watchful eye on the younger pair, as they carry out jobs such as ploughing, harrowing grass and pulling a cart.
(www.bedesworld.co.uk)
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