Dewch i weld sut y caiff gwartheg eu godro yng Ngŵyl Wanwyn y Sioe Frenhinol
Pedigree Jersey cattle, Gwenlas Flirtation and Gwenlas Hop, from Stephen
and Mair Cavanagh’s herd at Abergwenlais Farm, Cilycwm, Llandovery.
It is a matter of concern that Wales’ national dairy herd is in decline. Dairy cow numbers have fallen by around 20 per cent in the past decade and by the end of last year there were less than 2000 milk producers left in Wales.
Among these are Stephen and Mair Cavanagh who run a herd of 140 pedigree Jersey cattle at Abergwenlais Farm, near Cilycwm, Llandovery. One of their cows, Gwenlas Sultan Brown Louise, and her calf will be on show at the Royal Welsh Spring Festival on the showground at Llanelwedd, Builth Wells, on May 21 - 22. Visitors will be able to watch the cow being milked in the dairy demonstration area in the showground’s Dyfed/Carmarthen building at 1pm and 4pm on Saturday and 10am and 1.45pm on Sunday.
The demonstration area will be shared with DairyCo and the Dairy Development Centre based at Gelli Aur, Carmarthenshire, and will include a DVD all about dairy farming. Flavoured milk shakes will be handed out free of charge to some lucky members of the public after each milking.
“We are looking forward to showing how our cows are milked as the more people who understand the links between the land, livestock and food the better,” said Stephen Cavanagh, who has developed a dairy to produce butter and cream on the farm using traditional methods.
The Head of Dairy Development Wales, Delyth Davies, said DairyCo, The Dairy Development Centre and Welsh Assembly Government are pleased to be working with the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society to educate visitors on where their milk and dairy products come from.
“As well as the live milking demonstration the stand will include general information and facts on dairy farming with something for everyone,” she said.
Another demonstration related to dairy – and beef – cattle will also be staged at the Festival. Maintaining healthy feet is essential to the well-being of the animals and a demonstration of cattle foot trimming will be given at 2.15pm on Saturday and 12.30pm and 2.45pm on Sunday, also in the Carmarthen/Dyfed building, by Stephen Bradbury, a qualified Dutch foot trimming instructor, of Trefwynt Farm, Bethesda, Narberth, Pembrokeshire.
“A preventative foot health programme substantially reduces the level of lameness in a herd. Lameness impacts on cattle performance in terms of milk yield and fertility in dairy cows, weight gain in beef cattle and the ability to rear a calf in suckler herds,” he said.
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