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.  In the first instance you can contact your regional co-ordinator and they will try and help. 

If you have any further queries please contact the web administrator.

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 two thirds Dexter and one third another breed. The Sire must be a registered pure bred and the Dam is a Grade 1.

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

Grade 4 - comprises 92% Dexter and 8% other breed.  The Sire must be a registered pure bred 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.

Tail hair samples are no longer accepted - tissue samples are only accepted from now on.

The basic reason for the change in policy is based on cost and labour. Tail hair samples were very labour intensive, requiring the tail hairs to be cut 90 times for one test plate. Tissue samples require very little preparation for processing. The reliability and matching of DNA samples taken from tissue samples is much higher than that taken from tail hair samples.

The cost of profiling from a tissue sample is cheaper than what was being charged for a tail hair sample.

Costs are as follows:-

Tissue Punch Kit - $20.00 (pack of 10).

Applicator - $34.00

Profiling cost - $15 per animal. - was $25 for tail hair DNA profile.

GST to be added to all prices.

A loan applicator is available from GeneMark and can be ordered when ordering the punch kit.

The punch kits will also fit some ZEE Tag applicators, so if you have one of these it may save you the inconvenience or expense of acquiring a special applicator.

GeneMark can be contacted on 0800-436-362.

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.

The paperwork generated by the Herd Registrar is important as it provides proof of your cattles 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 breeder's integrity. 

The Herd Registrar requires an AHB tag number on a registration form, so that the animal can be registered correctly and 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.