The Amazing Irish Dexters

(Page 3 of 3)

March/April 1980
 
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The first piece of bad news, then, for potential Dexter caretakers is that such farmers will lose a percentage (probably around 5-10%, but conceivably closer to 25%) of their calf crop. Established Dexter owners, though, don't find this part of "doing business" with the breed to be a prohibitive drawback.

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Prospective "mini-cow" raisers will have to face one more—quite serious—problem, however: scarcity. There are only 500 or 600 Irish Dexters in the entire United States, so it can be danged hard to find an animal that's up for sale. Folks sometimes have to search for years to locate an owner who's willing to part with even one healthy, productive cow.

You can learn the whereabouts of Irish Dexters in the U.S. by contacting either the American Dexter Cattle Association, 707 West Water Street, Decorah, Iowa 52101 . . . or James Johnson (the organization's president), 4092 Broadview Road, Richfield, Ohio 44286. [EDITOR'S NOTE: Be sure to send a couple of dollars along with any requests for information, to help compensate these folks for their mailing expenses and completely voluntary assistance.] But be patient while you're waiting for a reply. The Dexter Association people have—at times in the past—been deluged with information requests. They eventually (and kindly) answer all their mail . . . but they might understandably not "cotton to" insistent queries from people who are too anxious.

So if you want to raise Irish Dexters, you first have to accept the fact that it will take time—and persistence—to discover a source of the economical animals. On the other hand, though, folks who eventually do get these "dream" farmstead livestock most often find that the rewards are worth the wait.

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  • E. Hans 10/18/2008 10:01:14 AM

    Oppps! Guess I should have waited to read the entire article before I made that last comment! I didn't think MEN would have such a gross inaccuracy as the mis-statement about chondrodysplaysia. I have never seen a bulldog calf, nor have most Dexter breeders. The cause of the deformity is known & the way to avoid it is known. It is caused by a recesive gene. You can usually tell the carriers, so you just don't mate carriers if you want to be guarenteed not to get a bull dog! I do mate carriers, by bull is a carrier & I chose him because of his being a carrier. I also have carrier cows. Yet, I've never seen a bulldog calf. Why is that? As MEN says, the chances of conception of a bulldog calf is 25% ONLY when both parents are carriers (as mine are.) But, the calves are so nonviable that they slip early in the pregnancy. This means only that she might have a slight delay in giving me a calf. But, their fertility more than makes up for this.
    They also have a very long reproductive life! Many calves are weaned because they become orphans, their mothers dying after living a long & fruitful life into their 20's. Yes, she'll still give me a calf every year, starting at 18 months & going till she's in her 20's!
    And they are very docile & friendly. I can't go into my pasture w/out everyone coming up to see what's going on. They are careful w/ their horns, I would never deprive them of their horns. They protect their babies from predators very well, we had coyotes on the farm until we got Dexters, now we never see any.
    Dexters are also plentiful. There are several Dexter Yahoo groups where you can find out lots of info & can find people who have Dexters for sale at prices as good as you're going to find anywhere. I will tell you that these little boxes of gold are not dirt cheap. You won't get them for the same price as a used up dairy cow or a dairy steer. But then, you're not get

  • E. Hans 10/18/2008 9:42:17 AM

    Why is it that everybody wants to shove grain at Dexters? They do NOT need it! I got them because I wanted to raise grass fed & (more importantly) finished beef! My herd does wonderfully on pasture alone! The only time they see a peice of 'grain' is if it's in the pasture on a grass plant & then they avoid it! Grain is NOT a natural feed for herbavores! It's the USDAs way of selling off the grain crop of BigAg.

    PLEASE don't ruin your wonderful Dexter meat & milk by giving them a food that is not natural to them!

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