![]() She eschews the barbed wire in favor of a New Zealand type of portable electric wire fencing, a temporary arrangement until the Dunlops decide where they want permanent fences.ĭunlop has no fear of walking around among the cows and the bull. Mary Ellen Dunlop makes hay, feeds the cattle and moves the fence around as the cows graze down an area of the fields. "I'm the laborer and she's the manager," he said. She has found she can do all the farm chores herself except for repair work on the old Model 50 John Deere tractor and other machinery, which falls to Robert Dunlop. In addition, Dunlop said the Scotch Highland produce a superior beef that she attributes to their long coats, which she said reduce the need to carry body fat. "I use a vet to tattoo and give some shots, but you don't need a veterinarian constantly on your place," he said. Only once during the last 18 years and 900 births did his farm managers have to call a veterinarian, Anderson said. Anderson has two herds, one in Kentucky and one in central Ohio. Anderson, secretary of the Appalachian Highland Cattle Society. Their self-sufficiency in bearing calves is remarkable, agreed John M. "With a Holstein bull you have to check on the cows at night, but not with the Scotch Highland bull," he said. Dairy farmer Eugene Presgraves has a Highland bull with his Holstein herd near Leesburg, and finds the calving season much easier as a result. Some dairy farmers use a Scotch Highland bull for breeding their large dairy cows because it makes calving simpler. And the smaller size means the cows can generally calve without attention from the veterinarian. They have small calves, but the cows' unusually rich milk enables the calves to gain size quickly, Dunlop said. Perhaps the most useful trait of all, in a breeder's eyes, is their strong maternal instinct and the ease with which they bear their calves. They are known as "the barnless cattle," because their coats (long on the top, with a shorter layer underneath) keep them warm in winter and cool in summer.Ī trait that should endear them to area farmers is their predilection for munching on thistles, although Dunlop said hers are a bit too well-fed to live up to that promise. They require little in the way of grain, fancy hay or even shelter. One such feature, Dunlop said, is the cattle's unusual hardiness. She and other breeders believe the Scotch Highland cattle will become more popular as their distinctive features become better known. The farm is called Dunlaib North Fork Farm.ĭunlop, a member of the American Highland Cattle Breeders Association, has seen an increased interest in the breed since she began building a herd five years ago. Her herd is registered under the name Dunlaib Fold, combining the ancient Scottish spelling of Dunlop with the ancient Scottish term for herd. She concentrates on buying offspring of imported Scottish champions, and has begun selling her cows' calves to other breeders. Since then she has traveled as far as Canada to buy more. From him, Dunlop acquired the first several animals for her herd. Her brother-in-law in New York had a herd and was editor of "The Bagpipe," a publication for breeders of Scotch Highlands. "I read an article about the Highland cattle, and everything I heard made me realize I could manage them," she said. Then Mary Ellen Dunlop, who grew up in Evanston, Ill., looked around to find a use for the land, which lies just west of the north fork of Goose Creek. Shortly after, they built their passive solar house on a hilltop. The Dunlops bought their 69-acre farm in 1981 after Robert Dunlop's job as an executive with Xerox Corp. My business is raising breeding stock to sell." ![]() but that's not really the emphasis of my business. ![]() "I'm not like a hobby farmer, and we will sell some beef. They are smart, gentle and easy to manage, she said.ĭunlop points out that although the cattle may look exotic, they are serious business. "They have a lively look, sort of a courageous look," said Dunlop, 59. With short legs, long, curved horns and very long hair, her herd of 20 - cows, calves and one bull - doesn't look like most Virginia bovines. Mary Ellen Dunlop's cattle are Scotch Highland, a centuries-old breed from the rugged highlands of Scotland that she raises for beef and to sell as breeding stock. Until five years ago, about the only connections Mary Ellen Dunlop had to farming were relatives who farmed in the Midwest, and a great-uncle, Joseph Glidden, who invented barbed wire fencing in 1874.īut a herd of the strangest-looking cattle in Loudoun County, where Dunlop and her husband Robert live near the village of North Fork, has changed all that for good. ![]()
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