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Higland cattle originated in the Scottish Highlands and Western Isles . They were originally black, but since Victorian times the fashion has been for the now familiar reddish brown colour (which makes them much better subjects for photographs!!). Highlanders are known as a hardy breed that thrive in a windy and wet climate. They both graze and browse and eat plants many other cattle avoid. The meat tends to be leaner than most beef, as Highlands get most of their insulation from their thick shaggy hair rather than subcutaneous fat. The coat also makes them a good breed for cold northern climates.
The Highland cattle registry ("herd book") was established in 1885. Although groups of cattle are generally called herds, a group of Highlanders is known as a fold. They were also known as kyloes in Scots. |
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| These are the first two Highland bullocks arriving at Shorefield. |
Shorefield is the name we give to a strip of land on the shore side of the road stretching from the fence that runs down to the sea almost opposite Shorefield House in Bruichladdich to the wall at the War Memorial at Port Ban.
The Jackson family have kindly given permission for James Brown of Octomore to graze a small number of Highland cattle on the ground, which, although it has previously been grazed, has not had livestock on it for a number of years. As a result, the vegetation has become quite rank and overgrown. Running Highlanders on it should have a positive effect on the already rich biodiversity of the area.
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| The cattle are already having an effect on the grazing as can be seen in this picture. This was all quite tall rank grasses before the beasts were introduced. |
We hope to follow the progress of the work being undertaken to make the land fit for the Highlanders, which essentially involves making some of the fencing and walling stockproof. We will also be following the various agricultural tasks associated with acquiring, introducing and looking after the cattle.
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| James and Dolly plugged gaps in the old dry stone walls (or dykes as they are often called on Islay) using stobs and wooden rails - which looks a lot nicer than wire. Most of the holes in the wall have been caused by cars hitting it over the years... Re-building the walls is difficult, time-consuming and expensive. Dry stane dyking is a skilled occupation... |
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| Roe Deer at Shorefield |
While all this is going on, we will undertake some informal monitoring of the plants and wildlife of Shorefield, and hopefully see what effect, if any, the livestock has on them.
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| Shortly after their arrival, the bullocks were 'dosed' for fluke and worm - which is done as a precaution. This involved moving them to the shed at Octomore, putting them into a 'crush', and then applying the dose along the spine. Very like applying 'Spot-On' as an anti-tick preparation for dogs - only on an industrial scale..! |
The cattle are being raised for beef, which will be sold, mostly to local people, although there is no reason why it should not be 'exported'!
If you are interested, please contact me at
carl@reavey.com
Traditionally, Islay cattle are raised as 'stores', and sold on to mainland dealers for fattening prior to slaughter. However, it is intended to 'finish' the Shorefield cattle here. They will then be taken to be slaughtered at the Islay abattoir at Avonvogie, and sold as 'quarter beasts' to customers. Four customers for each beast will receive their meat vacuum packed and freezer ready as steaks, mince, sausage, joints, beefburgers etc. Each customer will therefore receive exactly the same amount of meat.
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| The bullocks have settled down well and their grazing has already made a real impression on the landscape. George has been feeding them small amounts of cattle cake every couple of days, the main advantage of which will be that they are 'controllable' and will come to hand easily. You do have to be quick when feeding them though as those horns would hurt should they give you a bump in their enthusiasm to get to the cake. |
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| There are a number of different micro-habitats contained within Shorefield. This is an area of extremely boggy ground - it is literally little more than liquid mud and any attempt to cross it is likely to result in a wellington full of water. It is currently being used by a small group of wild Grey-lag geese. In Spring it will become a mass of wildflowers - particularly Kingcups, or marsh marigolds as they are sometimes known. Or at least it has been in previous years - it will be interesting to see if the cattle have any effect on that... |
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| The Shorefield beasts will be slaughtered at the Avonvoggie abattoir on Islay, which has been built and is operated by Dunlossit Estate. This is a brand new facility, built to the very latest standards and is specifically designed to handle Highland cattle, which require special consideration because of their horns. The animals will be butchered by Neil Campbell Butchers of Port Ellen, and the meat vacuum packed into convenient freezer-sized portions of steaks, roasts, casserole, mince, sausages etc. The whole is then split into four, which means that each customer receives a quarter of a beast. |
