ON TOUR
Go, arrive, look – be amazed without immediately judging!
Exchange information and insights!
Advise each other and network!
Make friends and look forward to return visits together.
“only those who travel live”
SCOTLAND TOUR 2023
Now that the beautiful impressions of our recently ended trip to Scotland have slowly set in, I would like to let friends and acquaintances share a little bit of our experiences. Not least because a new group trip to the Royal Highland Show from June 19th to 26th, 2024 is already planned and in preparation. Since the participants came from all over Germany, we decided to travel to Edinburgh individually. The two minibuses came to New Castle by ferry from Amsterdam and flights from Hamburg, Frankfurt, Berlin and Munich brought the 16-person tour group to the starting point of the journey together. Visiting the Royal Highland Show was the first big highlight. Between the Canadian, Australian, US and Scottish breeders, we felt like we were at a small, anticipated World Galloway Conference. With the warm welcome and the nice, intensive conversations, both about private and breeding matters, the wonderful Galloways in the show almost became a minor matter. It should not go unmentioned that the entire exhibition with the different breeds of cattle, sheep, horses, goats, etc. and all the agricultural machinery was super interesting for us. But when the perfectly prepared Galloways arrived in the wonderful sunshine, we were all at the show ring and eagerly awaited the judging decisions. Not an easy position for Mr. John Mcllwraith junior from Canada, who took a lot of time to reach the verdict. Catherine MacGregor's not quite 2-year-old bull Moss Chancellor won best Galloway ahead of Princess Marlyn of 3G, a heifer of the same age. Insiders know Catherine MacGregor as a professional photographer at Castle Douglas and other animal shows. Two years ago, out of love and attachment to the Galloway breed, she bought Blackcraig Fay, the mother of the winning bull, for £12,000.00 in Castle Douglas. Behind 3G is a breeding community with Dennis Gall, best known as Mr. Gallway (breeder of our Highland Laddy) and the two Grahams newcomers who manage the Graham Limousin and Graham Dairy Farm. We bought the father of the winning heifer, Strathur Yogi, for Bechtelsberg Galloways in Castle Douglas in 2018. Unfortunately he was unable to come to Germany for health reasons, but was later very successful at breeding in the Romesbeach herd. The Belted Galloways on display, which were then judged by Peter Hunter Blair, were not quite of the usual high standard this year. But they came up trumps with many beautiful animals and once again proved that the Belties are still on the rise. Many thanks to the Society and to Dorothy and her colleagues for the friendly welcome and the good care in the tent. The very shortened conclusion of the second day in Edinburgh: a visit with tasting in the Wisky Museum near the castle is highly recommended! The next day continued with a drive through the Moffat Valley with a stop at Kirkstead and the obligatory walk to the waterfall in the Gray Mares Tail Nature Reserve. On day 4 we visited Duncan Maxwell's Ben Lomond herd, where we particularly liked the Belted young bulls, heifers and cows. Since the weather was typically Scottish, we were very happy and grateful for lunch in the farm's spacious kitchen. We spent days 5 and 6 in the Dumfries and Galloway region. We visited Fingland, Marbrack and Blackcraig, met Andrew and Peter Hunter Blair and Scott McKinnon, the father of the Galloway Society's marketing concept with Aldi. Scott is now retired and helps the Finlays, for example, when he is needed there. Many thanks also to Kerstin and Jimmy for their loving care! The last day of the trip took us to Howside Farm in the Lake District. Deeply impressed by the many beautiful Galloways, the fascinating landscape of Scotland and the extremely warm hospitality of the Galloway family, the visit to Allison and Richard Maxwell was the perfect conclusion to our trip together. In the many good conversations that took place over dinner, during car rides or during whiskey tastings, it became clear that the trip and the encounters triggered interesting reflections. So the two dairy farmers in the group, who also have Galloways at home, began to take an increased interest in breeding. Or concrete plans emerged with regard to herdbook breeding or crossing another breed of cattle on their own farm. Because of the friendly, friendly interaction with each other, meeting and spending time together with the group was a particularly nice experience for me as a tour guide. The tolerance, great understanding for each other, the willingness to help in the group coupled with wit and humor will certainly be remembered fondly by everyone. As a visible thank you, all visiting families receive a cookbook translated into English entitled: Wild About Meat
SYLT
Sylt, a wonderful holiday destination all year round with a wide range of options, not only for those who are active in sports, but also with a lot of cultural offerings. But above all the island is very interesting for nature enthusiasts. The agricultural area today consists almost exclusively of pastureland for cattle, horses and sheep. (GALLOWAYS) There are the well-known Belties at the Kampen lighthouse, which graced a postage stamp a few years ago. Since the 1980s, the Andersen family has also had a very interesting herd that is allowed to graze in the floodplain in the summer. Hay is also harvested there, which is something very special. In the pressed bales you can smell the sea and a fresh, pure, unique quality that can only be found here. The mudflats in front of the floodplain with the bound minerals and emissions from the sea make this special quality. This also affects the quality of the air. Especially in spring you can consciously inhale this and smell it, like a bound “smell”. The country is well supplied with minerals and, because of the salt water, is hardly contaminated with parasites, Sönke explains to me. The “seagrass” is therefore a valuable source of energy for his livestock, which the animals show me very well through their condition. However, this landscape is not suitable for grazing with horses. For Sönke as Sylter, the “Smell” binds a piece of home and down-to-earthness - and for ground-nesting birds such as lapwings, redshanks, avocets, oystercatchers and others, the country has always been an invaluable breeding area. Unfortunately, despite, or perhaps because of, the efforts of nature conservation, who felt they had to actively shape the breeding areas, the number of birds has declined significantly. A pity! Thanks to Maren and Sönke for the valuable insights and good luck and success with the Galloways and the Sylter Landschlachterei. Find out more at: www.sylter-landschlachterei.de
SCOTLAND TOUR 2023
Now that the beautiful impressions of our recently ended trip to Scotland have slowly set in, I would like to let friends and acquaintances share a little bit of our experiences. Not least because a new group trip to the Royal Highland Show from June 19th to 26th, 2024 is already planned and in preparation. Since the participants came from all over Germany, we decided to travel to Edinburgh individually. The two minibuses came to New Castle by ferry from Amsterdam and flights from Hamburg, Frankfurt, Berlin and Munich brought the 16-person tour group to the starting point of the journey together. Visiting the Royal Highland Show was the first big highlight. Between the Canadian, Australian, US and Scottish breeders, we felt like we were at a small, anticipated World Galloway Conference. With the warm welcome and the nice, intensive conversations, both about private and breeding matters, the wonderful Galloways in the show almost became a minor matter. It should not go unmentioned that the entire exhibition with the different breeds of cattle, sheep, horses, goats, etc. and all the agricultural machinery was super interesting for us. But when the perfectly prepared Galloways arrived in the wonderful sunshine, we were all at the show ring and eagerly awaited the judging decisions. Not an easy position for Mr. John Mcllwraith junior from Canada, who took a lot of time to reach the verdict. Catherine MacGregor's not quite 2-year-old bull Moss Chancellor won best Galloway ahead of Princess Marlyn of 3G, a heifer of the same age. Insiders know Catherine MacGregor as a professional photographer at Castle Douglas and other animal shows. Two years ago, out of love and attachment to the Galloway breed, she bought Blackcraig Fay, the mother of the winning bull, for £12,000.00 in Castle Douglas. Behind 3G is a breeding community with Dennis Gall, best known as Mr. Gallway (breeder of our Highland Laddy) and the two Grahams newcomers who manage the Graham Limousin and Graham Dairy Farm. We bought the father of the winning heifer, Strathur Yogi, for Bechtelsberg Galloways in Castle Douglas in 2018. Unfortunately he was unable to come to Germany for health reasons, but was later very successful at breeding in the Romesbeach herd. The Belted Galloways on display, which were then judged by Peter Hunter Blair, were not quite of the usual high standard this year. But they came up trumps with many beautiful animals and once again proved that the Belties are still on the rise. Many thanks to the Society and to Dorothy and her colleagues for the friendly welcome and the good care in the tent. The very shortened conclusion of the second day in Edinburgh: a visit with tasting in the Wisky Museum near the castle is highly recommended! The next day continued with a drive through the Moffat Valley with a stop at Kirkstead and the obligatory walk to the waterfall in the Gray Mares Tail Nature Reserve. On day 4 we visited Duncan Maxwell's Ben Lomond herd, where we particularly liked the Belted young bulls, heifers and cows. Since the weather was typically Scottish, we were very happy and grateful for lunch in the farm's spacious kitchen. We spent days 5 and 6 in the Dumfries and Galloway region. We visited Fingland, Marbrack and Blackcraig, met Andrew and Peter Hunter Blair and Scott McKinnon, the father of the Galloway Society's marketing concept with Aldi. Scott is now retired and helps the Finlays, for example, when he is needed there. Many thanks also to Kerstin and Jimmy for their loving care! The last day of the trip took us to Howside Farm in the Lake District. Deeply impressed by the many beautiful Galloways, the fascinating landscape of Scotland and the extremely warm hospitality of the Galloway family, the visit to Allison and Richard Maxwell was the perfect conclusion to our trip together. In the many good conversations that took place over dinner, during car rides or during whiskey tastings, it became clear that the trip and the encounters triggered interesting reflections. So the two dairy farmers in the group, who also have Galloways at home, began to take an increased interest in breeding. Or concrete plans emerged with regard to herdbook breeding or crossing another breed of cattle on their own farm. Because of the friendly, friendly interaction with each other, meeting and spending time together with the group was a particularly nice experience for me as a tour guide. The tolerance, great understanding for each other, the willingness to help in the group coupled with wit and humor will certainly be remembered fondly by everyone. As a visible thank you, all visiting families receive a cookbook translated into English entitled: Wild About Meat
SYLT
Sylt, a wonderful holiday destination all year round with a wide range of options, not only for those who are active in sports, but also with a lot of cultural offerings. But above all the island is very interesting for nature enthusiasts. The agricultural area today consists almost exclusively of pastureland for cattle, horses and sheep. (GALLOWAYS) There are the well-known Belties at the Kampen lighthouse, which graced a postage stamp a few years ago. Since the 1980s, the Andersen family has also had a very interesting herd that is allowed to graze in the floodplain in the summer. Hay is also harvested there, which is something very special. In the pressed bales you can smell the sea and a fresh, pure, unique quality that can only be found here. The mudflats in front of the floodplain with the bound minerals and emissions from the sea make this special quality. This also affects the quality of the air. Especially in spring you can consciously inhale this and smell it, like a bound “smell”. The country is well supplied with minerals and, because of the salt water, is hardly contaminated with parasites, Sönke explains to me. The “seagrass” is therefore a valuable source of energy for his livestock, which the animals show me very well through their condition. However, this landscape is not suitable for grazing with horses. For Sönke as Sylter, the “Smell” binds a piece of home and down-to-earthness - and for ground-nesting birds such as lapwings, redshanks, avocets, oystercatchers and others, the country has always been an invaluable breeding area. Unfortunately, despite, or perhaps because of, the efforts of nature conservation, who felt they had to actively shape the breeding areas, the number of birds has declined significantly. A pity! Thanks to Maren and Sönke for the valuable insights and good luck and success with the Galloways and the Sylter Landschlachterei. Find out more at: www.sylter-landschlachterei.de
CASTLE DOUGLAS 2023
It all started here for Bechtelsberg Galloways 40 years ago. The first two cows were purchased at the spring auction in Castle Douglas. Faforite of Miltonise and Lisa of Ardoch formed the foundation of our herd. Went there twice before the turn of the millennium and bought animals. Regularly from 2003 onwards, as was the case this year with the great program of the “Great Annual Spring Show and Sale of Pedigree Galloway Cattle”. Thanks to modern media, the highlights, new sales records and all important facts are spread around the entire globe in a very short time. Nevertheless, it is important to me to pass on some information, observations and impressions. Especially for all the friends who would have liked to have been there. - There were fewer spectators both at the ring at the show and in the auction ring this year. We looked in vain for many familiar faces from the older generation. - The Warham judges, who shared the job, did a very good job and the decisions were easy for all of us to understand. - The quality of the Galloways was partly outstanding - The prices for individual top animals climbed to unprecedented record levels in the auction. 26,000 gns (approx. €32,000) for the reserve winner. However, the buyer had recently sold his bull for 20,000 gns (€25,000). - Other good bulls and cattle cost between 4000gns and 10000gns as usual. - Approximately 30% of the Galloways on offer were not sold and rather average animals were available very cheaply if the sellers agreed to the rising price. In the end, the tour group’s conclusion was quite positive! Great program, interesting farm visits before and after the event and, above all, lots of wonderful Galloways in one place.
ON TOUR IN FINLAND
After I took part in their online conference at the beginning of February at the request of some Finnish Galloway breeders and mentioned that I would visit Estonia at the end of the month, I immediately received an invitation asking me to look at your herds and talk to you about the future of the Galloways in Finland . Due to the long distances and limited time, I ended up with 3 companies on my program. It became clear here that all Galloway owners have little to no herdbook animals and try a lot with crossbreeds. Medium to large-framed cows are products from, for example, Hereford, Angus and Belted Galloways. The F2 cattle and oxen, again from a Galloway bull, are meaty and well developed and are readily accepted by the slaughterhouses. Direct marketing is also sometimes attempted, but is very difficult due to the great distance to the centers. General problems such as farm succession and the bad image of agriculture as an environmental destroyer cause problems for farmers, as do the many requirements imposed by the administration. Slaughtering close to the farm, let alone shooting on pasture - unimaginable. We will stay in touch and look forward to a return visit, perhaps to the Galloway Open
SCOTTISH
GALLOWAY JOURNAL
We still have a few current journals here that we brought with us to pass on to interested colleagues. We look forward to your inquiry and will ship while stocks last.