Q&A

Anyone with an interest in Dexter Cattle can join the Society.  Please contact our Membership Secretary or see the 'How to join' page for more information.

There are a number of ways of developing your own herd or buying one or two cattle.  A selection of cattle are listed in the "Market Place" on this website.  Secondly, you can contact your Area Representative and they will try and help.  If you have any further queries please contact the webmaster.

You need to ensure that the person you are buying from is a current member of the NZ Dexter Cattle Society, that you join the Society and that the animals that you are purchasing are registered. 

All cattle must be registered by the breeder.  You cannot buy unregistered cattle and register them later.

There are 5 grades of Dexter Cattle.

Grade 1 - is half Dexter and half another breed of cattle.

Grade 2 - comprises 75% Dexter and 25% another breed. The Sire must be a registered pure bred Dexter and the Dam is a Grade 1.

Grade 3 - comprises 83% Dexter and 17% another breed.  The Sire must be a registered pure bred Dexter and the Dam a grade 2.

Grade 4 - comprises 92% Dexter and 8% another breed.  The Sire must be a registered pure bred Dexter and the Dam a grade 3. Grade 4 cows (females) are registered as pure bred cattle.  Bulls must be classified as Grade 5 to be registerable and must have a certified DNA Certificate.

Grade 5 - is a pure bred animal.

From a grade 3 heifer you can produce a pure bred heifer.  From a grade 4/pure bred heifer you can produce a bull.

The purity of the bloodline can be improved by breeding with pure bred animals.

All Bulls must be registered and DNA profiled. If buying a bull, it is the purchaser's responsibility to ensure that all the correct paperwork is in order.  The vendor must register the bull and have it DNA profiled.  This cannot be done by the purchaser.

Currently there is no mandatory requirement  for heifers to be DNA profiled.  The bloodline of the heifer is taken on the good word of the breeder,  Prospective purchasers of cattle cannot always verify the bloodline of the Dam and hence cannot register cattle that they haven't bred. 

A reputable vendor will have no problems or issues with registering cattle that they wish to sell, as they will want to maintain their reputation.  All NZ Dexter Society Members will be prepared to follow these requirements.

Also known as the "Bulldog" gene, this is quite a complex subject, so we have made it into a PDF file.  Click here to download.

The paperwork generated by the Herd Registrar is important as it provides proof of your cattle's status.  For example, if you have a bull and it dies, the Herd Registrar needs the original green Registration Certificate to be returned in order to certify that the bull is dead.  This protects breeders' integrity.

The Herd Registrar requires an AHB tag number on a registration form, so that the animal can be registered correctly, and so that the NZDCS registration number correlates with the AHB tag number.  Cattle can lose tags and therefore by recording both numbers the authenticity of the animals registered can be maintained.

All Transfers, whether to members or non-members, are to be paid for, and submitted by, the Seller who must be a financial member at the time of sale. The Transfer must also be signed by the Buyer.

Within 30 days of sale the cost is $15.  Over 30 days after sale the cost is $30.

You need to write on the top of the registration form whether the animal was culled or died, and an approximate date. Then post to the Herd Registrar as per the details here:

http://www.dexter-cattle.co.nz/contacts

The animal's entry in the herd book will then be updated to reflect the new status i.e. de-registered.

If a registered animal is being sold to a non-member (e.g. as a house cow), the registration can also be put on hold.  This will enable the animal's registration to later be re-activated by a new owner, should they wish to breed from it.  Re-activation of a registration can only be done by a financial member of DCSNZ.

Dexter Judges

North Island
Carl Botha
4 Makepeace Pl
Flagstaff
Hamilton 3210
PH 07 8543136

David Clow
153 Crawford Rd
RD 8
Hamilton
PH 07 8297864

Marty Crafar
PO Box 121
Taihape 4742
PH 06 3881998

Errol Clark
57 Trigg Rd South
Waihi 3681
PH 07 8637748

Jan Dudding
33 Kingsley Rd
Waihi
PH 07 8633585

Nancy Edge
Takahiwai Rd
RD 1
Ruakaka
PH 09 4327079

Allan Hayward
Norwegian Rd
RD 3
Cambridge
PH 07 8271847

Derek Hayward
409 Fencourt Rd
Cambridge 3493
PH 07 8235608

John Hayward
187 Judge Rd
Puahue
Te Awamutu 3879
PH 07 8721995

Barry McAlley
423 Monument Rd
Clevedon
Auckland 2582
PH 09 2928652

Alec Meades
Puhipuhi Rd
RD 2
Hikurangi
Northland
PH 09 4339962

Noel Smith
PO Box 38
Ngaruawahia
Waikato
PH 07 8248300

Judy Smyth
171 Belk Rd
RD 1
Tauriko
Tauranga
PH 07 5430925

Donna Bexley
Grassways Charolais
Highway 2
RD 1
Waipukurau
PH: 06 8558556
EMAIL: cbulls@grassways.co.nz

 

Dexter Judges

South Island

Rob Hall
Halland Down
RD 5
Gore
PH 03 2073706

Roger Hayward
207 Mt Nessing Rd
Albury 7984
PH 03 6855989

Susan Hayward
207 Mt Nessing Rd
Albury 7984
PH 03 6855989

Barry MacDonald
Oreti
RD 3
Winton
PH 03 2362736

Bruce Robertson
Duncraigen Stud
RD 2
Wyndham
PH 03 2064894

Neil Sanderson
RD 5c
Oamaru
PH 03 4324093

Hints for Training and Showing

There are 3 basic things you need to train your Dexter to do:
1. Tie up
2. Walk
3. Stand

There are different ways to achieve this, but here are some suggestions:

1. Tie up

Put a halter and lead on your Dexter. The halter shouldn’t be too loose or too tight (you should be able to fit a finger comfortably underneath it). Tie up for approx 15mins at a time to begin with. Make sure you tie the animal up where it can’t get its head stuck in a fence or hurt itself. The lead rope should be tied quite short.

Stay with the animal, rub your hands over it and talk to it so that it gets used to your voice. There’s no set age to begin training your Dexter, but the general rule is the younger the better. You can put the cow on the other side of the fence to reduce stress on mother and calf, if you wish. Your animal will resist being tied up to begin with but once it gets used to standing without pulling, it’s time to progress to the next stage.

2. Walk

Rule No 1: You are in charge! It’s very important the animal doesn’t get away from you.

You should stand on the left-hand side beside the shoulder, with a firm grip on the lead (don’t wind it around your hand and don’t hold onto the clasp as you may accidentally undo it). There are a number of strategies to encourage your animal to walk forward as it will probably be reluctant to do what you want at first.

Some suggestions:

• Wrap a separate rope around behind the animal and hold both ends in your right hand, above it’s shoulder. While also holding the lead rope in your left hand, walk slowly forward pulling on the rope in your right hand. Pinch the base of the animal’s tail or hold the end of the tail in the right hand and the lead rope in the left and pull forward. A slap on the rump can work wonders too!
• Avoid pulling the animal from in front as it will almost always pull in the opposite direction, which is not helpful!
• Talk to your Dexter while you are training it. You can use a ‘walk’ command, if you wish.
• Then…walk…..and walk….and walk….daily at least - preferably twice daily. Once the animal walks comfortably beside you, you are ready to teach it to stand.

3. Stand

It’s a good idea to purchase a proper stick to train your Dexter to stand. The aim is to have it standing with all 4 feet evenly spaced, but standing naturally. Press the end of the stick between the clove of the hoof to encourage the animal to move its foot; you can use commands at the same time or you can teach it just by the pressure of the stick. Most animals like a scratch behind the front leg when they’re standing. Your Dexter should have a straight back-line. You can stand beside or in front of your animal in the show ring.

Other hints

If you put a cover on your Dexter several weeks before a show, it will rub a lot of the loose hair out, thus reducing the amount of grooming required.

If you plan to show a calf on its own, it’s a good idea to separate it from the cow during the day for about a week before the show so that it gets used to being away from its mother and is less stressed on the day.

If you shampoo your Dexter 4-5 days before a show it allows the natural oils time to give the coat a sheen (it’s advisable to use animal shampoo). Alternatively you can do this the day before or the morning of the show. It’s important to put the cover back on the animal after washing if you decide to do this prior to show day. Leaving the cover on while in transit will help your Dexter to stay clean, so that there’s minimal last-minute grooming to do when you arrive at the show.

Just before entering the show-ring you can spray the animal’s coat with a ‘show shine’ product, then wipe it down with your hand or a dry cloth to give a final sheen to the coat.

Show Ring Etiquette

In the show-ring it’s advisable to keep an eye on the judge at all times (this can be difficult if your Dexter plays up!) The judge may indicate an instruction and you need to be ready to respond promptly.

It’s a good idea to walk your animal in a small circle (on the spot) if it plays up. This signals to the animal that you’re in charge and also limits invasion of other competitors’ space.

Your Dexter should be standing still while the judge is looking at it, with all 4 feet standing square. If it’s not standing perfectly, you’re best to leave it rather than move it around as this makes it difficult for the judge to do his/her job.

Walk a little way behind the animal ahead of you, and leave space between you and the next competitor when you stop.

Answer the judge’s questions but do not engage in a long conversation.

Do not converse with other competitors while in the ring.

Dress tidily (this shows respect for the judge).
No gumboots. No stud logos.