Having worked with 21 different breeds of sheep and cattle, Allan Jackson has found that the Beef Shorthorn is the one that best suits his system at Woodyett Farm, Kirkfieldbank, Lanark.
“The main reason being their easy calving ability –they can graze well on older, harsher ground, which is what is here, with two fields not being ploughed since the 1960s. Their versatility, longevity and easy fleshing abilities make them complement the continental well, being a duo-purpose breed,” said Allan.
“I look for a well-balanced animal with good locomotion, breed character, and they must be stylish for the show ring. I have a lot of respect for all breeds – they all have their place in different systems. My saying is always it is not what they are, it is what you do with them.”
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Allan changed his policy, having previously run a large flock of Beltex ewes along with a small herd of British Blue cattle. Making ends meet, Allan also did some landscaping and gardening when he first moved.
“Pedigree sheep were clashing with what we were trying to do with the livery, and we couldn’t be here to lamb the ewes and be at the bull sales,” said Allan.
“And with the livery, we are away at shows and sales quite often so we couldn’t manage the British Blue cattle the way we wanted. We really could not justify the costs behind them on a small farm, from feed costs and vet fees – it just didn’t add up for us.
“There is only so much you can ask folk to do,” added Allan, who says he wouldn’t be where he is today without a good team of workers around him. Stuart Baxter looks after the farm when Allan is away, while Emma McAlister, James Wightman and Natalie Hynd are great helpers all year round.
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Having purchased Woodyett Farm 17 years ago along with his partner Senga, who is the backbone of the business undertaking behind the scene necessary tasks, there have been several improvements.
Three sheds have been installed since Allan and Senga moved to Woodyett to suit the livery business, Headlind Livestock Services, that they run. Two of them have individual pens for bulls but have the added value of being equipped for stables if the next person inline required.
When bringing in different animals always is a risk of infection. However, the sheds are built so that animals can quarantine until they have had the required tests, in order to keep Headlind’s high health status.
“We also can’t have clients’ bulls fighting, so the system works well for us being able to break bulls or heifers in, and we know we are safe. The other main reason is I know exactly what each animal is eating,” said Allan, who feeds all the cattle LS Smellie and Sons’ Crowhill mix, which he has stuck by for the last 20 years.
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Everything is fed the same mix, just different amounts depending on how hard they are needing to be pushed. Occasionally animals will be supplemented with Natural Stockcare products to keep their stomachs right.
Additionally, cattle will be fed silage of which Allan uses some of his own as well as buying some in.
“We have enough silage to feed our own cattle but when we are on full livery, we need extra bales to feed these,” said Allan, who outwinters all of the cows all year round with access to a shed during the winter, bar from the four weeks at calving time in which they will be housed inside for easier management.
If that doesn’t keep Allan busy enough, all the cattle will be halter-trained on farm, with bulls for sale being washed twice a week.
“The sheds were built in the steading so that bulls can be walked in between them, so it simplifies things for them. There is also a long passage in the new sheds so that if the weather is bad, they can be walked inside,” added Allan, who can hold a maximum of 25 bulls in his livery.
Of his own, however, Allan runs a herd of 20 Beef Shorthorns which began in 2013 with the purchase of seven cows from the Baillies of Roadway herd in Penrith, as well as some from Liz McGowan from Fingask.
To start with, Allan hired Tofts Atlas from James Playfair, which bred extremely well for him, and the majority of heifers now still go back to these lines. Atlas was the last Beef Shorthorn bull to win the Royal Show and did so as a two-year-old, and has since bred various show winners himself.
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The next sire to make a real stamp on the herd was Burnside Elite, followed by Dunsyre Horatio, which won the Royal Highland Show and the Great Yorkshire Show, and the following year was beaten by Allan’s own bull Headlind Nobunaga at the Royal Welsh.
Showing is a huge part to Allan’s Headlind business and he has had championships over the years in various different breeds.
“Whether it is my own cattle or someone else’s, we get just the same buzz out of winning. The day I really thought I had made it in the show world was standing third in the Scotch Mule class at the Royal Highland Show in 1997, knowing I was standing first and second to Robin Thomson. I had. and do. have so much respect for that man – he is the top of the game for stockmen,” said Allan, who also learned a lot in his young farmer days from Ian Anderson.
Now more involved in the cattle world, he had a phenomenal 32 cattle beasts to look after at last year’s show, where he gained six tickets with his own cattle and 27 tickets in the total line-up, including Beef Shorthorn junior female champion for Messrs Baird and Park’s heifer, and reserve male junior champion for Natalie Hynd.
Allan said: “It is not what they are – it is what you do with them, not just on the day but the preparation behind the show and sale cattle that people don’t realise is where you can really make a difference. When we are buying any animal, we are looking for a frame to build on – I am not wanting something fancy that is going to be melted once the flesh is off.
“All females are picked on top lines, deep spring of rib, and a strong frame,” said Allan, who has managed to build his herd up to a stage of selling some heifers last year for the first time.
Last year, Allan sold two heifers down at Skipton but tends to retain more of his heifers to keep fresh bloodlines coming into the herd, getting rid of older cows.
“If something is not good enough for breeding for myself it will go to the store ring,” said Allan, with six of his cows being Ex classified.
“Classifying my herd is purely used as a tool for myself. I don’t like to get too deep with them but it allows me to keep on top of what I am trying to do.
“Just like figures I use them as a guide, but I need to see the animal in front of me before I will look at any pedigree or paperwork –the eye is the tool, which is something I think we all need to be cautious of in today’s world.
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“The farmer/buyer should dictate what we breed, not a bit of paper. Likewise, with the double myostatin which should be used as a tool as opposed to being banned from a sale – we have never had an issue with it in the last 100 years,” said Allan.
As of January 2021, any Beef Shorthorn bull carrying a double deletion of any myostatin variant, or single elections of two distinct variants, is now ineligible for a Society-recognised show class, or a Society-recognised or supported sale.
“We nearly lost the Beef Shorthorn breed and we managed to bring it back without looking at genes and myostatin but purely through bloodlines, and the way things are going it is going to ruin the breed again for the commercial buyer,” he said. “I look at today’s fashions rather than past fashions and work on the difference focusing on pedigrees but keeping my eye on the physicality of an animal as opposed to reading the books.
“Everyone has their own idea of what they are looking for. I don’t follow fashion – it’s better to try to create it,” concluded Allan.
Farm Facts
Involvement: Allan Jackson along with his partner, Senga and additional helpers throughout the year
History: Moved to Woodyett Farm 17 years ago
Acreage: 49 acres
Livestock: 30 Beef Shorthorn under the Headlind prefix
On the spot questions
Biggest achievement: Last year’s February Stirling Bull Sales when he won: Senior champion, intermediate champion, overall champion, champion group of three, champion female, two firsts, four seconds, a forth, and a fifth.
Best investment: Senga.
Top tips for bringing out a show animal: Don’t tell anybody.
Most important piece of kit in the showbox: Ice machine for the gin.
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