Cow Families
Photo: Rising 2 year old in-calf heifers March 2007
The purchase of cows from the Matahaia herd (through the Wairata Stud dispersal) proved to be a fortuitous decision.When the first calf crop arrived the females were named after their Matahaia families.There are still representatives of every family purchased at Woodlands and it has been interesting to see the strenghths and weaknesses of each develop.
The Angelas.
The purchase of cows from the Matahaia herd (through the Wairata Stud dispersal) proved to be a fortuitous decision.When the first calf crop arrived the females were named after their Matahaia families.There are still representatives of every family purchased at Woodlands and it has been interesting to see the strenghths and weaknesses of each develop.
The most successful family in every way has been the Angelas.Two Angelas were purchased,Matahaia Angela 15th and Matahaia Angela 8th and it has been the latter who has excelled through her daughters Wairata Angela 46 and Woodlands Angela 2nd, both by Rotokawa 464. Wairata Angela 46 was the dam of the exceptional cow Woodlands Angela 5th (by Woodlands 47) who is currently producing exceptional progeny. Two of her sons by Brightley Diamond 6th are currently being used in the herd,Woodlands Ashway and Woodlands Dunkery, and she has several exceptional daughters who are also breeding on.
Woodlands Angela 2nd ,daughter of Matahaia Angela 8th.
The Helens
The Helen family have also been top producers of females and several bulls of this line have also been used such as Woodlands Crowcombe and Woodlands Feltwell.The original Helen was Wairata 9/92, a daughter of Matahaia Helen 3rd and Tapu Masterpiece.The Thorndale Baron daughter of Wairata 9/92, Woodlands Helen 1st, is the dam of these two bulls.Wairata 9/92 produced an excellent line of daughters by Rotokawa 464.
Other families purchased from that sale are the Delilahs, Apricots ,Dainty's,Nicola and Joys (recently re-introduced through Hau Hiwi 54.
Another small but succesful female family are the Thistles descending from Triscombe 58 who was purchased prior to the Wairata dispersal from Northland.Incidentally Triscombe 58 was the dam of Woodlands 47 (by Ferns 72), who is the sire of the exceptional cow Woodlands Angela 5th mentioned earlier.
Some females were purchased from the Rotokawa herd and were given their own family names...the Clovers and the Foxgloves are the only ones that remain.
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