that is agriculture Editor Katherine Kunan sits down with Ryan Gibbons, 28, of Glengora Sailors for this week’s Sackler Focus.
“I run Glengora Sailors in Oughterard, County Galway, with my father, Martin Gibbons.
I am a 4th generation dairy farmer and farming has always been a focus when filling out the Certificate of Retirement CAO form.
There were no other qualifications to apply, just national agriculture. I am currently working as a manager in the agricultural industry.
We own a total of 22 ha of farmland, including owned land and leased land. The family farm has been passed down from father to son since my great-grandfather’s time.
Seller
I currently run a commercial Salah herd of 20-25 pedigrees. The one I have on the farm has at least a touch of salar flavor.
Spring births occur between January and February, and autumn births occur between August and September.
At this point, I’m 100% AI, but I used to give everything to an AI salesperson once and clean it up with a Charolais stock bull when needed.
Until this year, all weanlings were sold at eight or nine months of age, with a small number of heifers and bulls of odd pedigrees being kept for breeding.
This year my pedigree has produced all but two heifer calves, so these will be kept as breeding stock.
Why are you a salesperson?
I chose the Salah for a number of reasons, but in a nutshell, I chose it for its simplicity: it does very well what a dairy cow should do.
The biggest feature that made me choose them was their fertility and fertility.
Going forward, my plan is to stay 100% AI, phase out commercial cattle from the herd as it ages, and focus on pedigree breeding.
The biggest challenge I would have faced before joining Sailors, much like any part-time farmer, was working off the farm.
Both my father and I work outside the farm, and in the spring we manage our work while preparing for difficult births, observing cows in heat, and arranging AI technicians at night during non-running hours. I’m trying to
Since we moved completely to Salesers, this is no longer an issue. The cows are like clockwork, the calving jacks are retired, and you can’t guess when they’re going into heat.
In the past, we have used other varieties such as Charolais, Belgian Blue and Limousin. The calves are not disturbed by this and the resulting calves are successfully weaned.
You can see that Sailor ticks all the boxes. Whether you want to use it for commercial or pedigree breeding, you are sure to get what you want.
Golden egg
Commercially, the “golden egg” (CH X SA) baby food tends to be a market leaflet. Guaranteed hairy, golden weanlings with age-appropriate weight and excellent growth potential.
Breeding with Limousin produces heifers that combine style and fertility with milk.
Sailor bulls are a great value in the herd because they are easy to give birth and give birth to healthy calves within minutes.
I recently watched a video of the Irish Sailors. Facebook It is a page of a herd using Sailor bulls for Charolais heifers, and the quality of the calves was top class.
Agricultural show and social media
I have started showing cows at shows this year and hope to win some awards in the ring this summer. everything is going well.
From the shows I’ve attended so far, I think there is great value in having stock on display. You can learn a lot from talking to judges and other breeders.
Being second or third in the lineup is worth more than winning. It gives you an opportunity to see where you can improve.
Besides, I have social media accounts (Facebook and Instagram) for the sake of the flock, I try to post regularly to show how I found the breed and promote the breed’s characteristics as much as possible.
It’s easy to write and talk about how good something is, but nothing beats visual evidence to promote something.
My focus at the moment is building a herd with more bloodlines. Pedigree and commerciality are now almost 50/50.
I value quality over quantity, so I have no plans to increase the number of cows or acres.
From now on, my focus will be on genetics and breeding good and correct strains with the Glengora prefix foreground for breeding or for sale.
future of agriculture
The need for agriculture has always existed, and so has the need for high quality dairy cows.
I believe Salah cows are the ultimate dairy cow. A few years ago, I decided to try something new, working on pedigree breeding to adapt to changing markets.
Staying at a modest, sustainable level and not pushing everything to the brink, I believe, will create a place for everything in the future.
For me, there is no greater lifestyle than the Irish countryside and agricultural background.
Agriculture is often portrayed in a negative light, but if it’s something you’re passionate about and want to do well, surround yourself with the right people to listen and evaluate before you make decisions. , you can’t go too far wrong.
I’ve heard this before, but it goes something like this: “Even the smartest person in the room isn’t as smart as everyone in the room.”
i like to stick with it. We all put our heads down and beat ourselves up at times, but if you embrace the opinions and experiences of others, it will help you in the future.
reflection
Pedigree breeding was dizzying. Back in October 2019, I founded Glengora Sailors by purchasing my first pedigreed heifer at the Irish Sailors annual heifer sale.
In August 2020, Glengora Salars started off as a heifer with the birth of its first pedigree calf.
And on St. Stephen’s Day 2022, that first heifer gave birth without anyone’s help and started giving birth to his own heifers.
That trip really kicked up a gear and now I’m building my own story with my stock. It just keeps you going.
My advice to my younger self is to stick with it and take the plunge sooner rather than later. ”
Send us an email to share your story – [email protected]
