| 59 nzdairy Bob’s Ayrshires have great vigour Bob Lawson has been involved in Ayrshire cattle for 60 years. The photo that received praise at the Tararua District Council photo awards. Bob Lawson has been involved in Ayrshire cattle for 60 years, it’s a breed he has great passion for. “They have great vigour and are super-efficient at converting pasture into milk. I don’t think there’s a better breed out there and my herd families trace back many generations,” says Bob. Bob’s farm is situated near Woodville, 25km east of Palmerston North. This is the third time in almost as many years that NZ Dairy has had the opportunity to speak with Bob and the conversation of course turns to how his prize pedigree cows have performed at shows. Horowhenua show results January 2024 “Our two yearling heifers, Sunshine Tuxedo Gin & Sunshine Ole Ole Ole got 1st and 2nd in their class, then got junior champion & reserve champion Ayrshire. They also won the pair of yearlings in the allbreeds class.” Heifer calves Sunshine Dollar A Lai came 2nd & Sunshine Dollar Dale came 4th in their class. Three-year-old Sunshine TSB Popcorn placed first in her class and 2nd in the allbreeds and honourable mention in the Ayrshire championship. Sunshine Tuxedo Gin was Supreme All Breeds Junior Champion And it’s not only taking great care of his herd that keeps Bob busy these days. He’s also an aspiring photographer, taking photos on his phone almost every day, highlighting the different atmospheres. “I took a photo last year of the cows going into the yard and it had a lovely bright pinkish/bluish sky that I entered in the 2023 Tararua District Council Photography Competition, titled “The View from The Office” it got 3rd in the Adult Section, CE’s Favourite and won People’s Choice Award, at the Tararua Arts Award, so I was really happy with that.” Bob also had good results in the 2024 Ayrshire NZ Agriseed photo competition: Sunshine Tuxedo Gin placed 1 t in the yearling heifer haltered class. “I got 1st in the herd scene photo and 1st, 2nd and 4th in the unhaltered class.” Sunshine Burdette Dale won the World Ayrshire Federation Photo Competition in the 6 & 7- year-old in milk class while her full sister, Sunshine Burdette Debbe, got 2nd runner up in the 5- year-old in milk class. “That’s pretty amazing at that level.” Showing cattle runs in the family too with Bob’s son Craig and daughter Hannah having gone into partnership together under the stud name Nova Genetics. Both their red Holstein 2 year old and senior yearling placed first and honourable mention in their respective classes at the last Dairy Event held in Feilding in January this year. Bob is looking forward to the next generation of pedigree Ayrshire calves born this season and says it is always an exciting time to see what traits and characteristics DAIRY PEOPLE » Bob Lawson Sue Russell GreatworkBob! WOODVILLE SERVICE CENTRE Lower McLean St - Woodville | 06 376 5232 | Alister - 027 248 3282 W.O.F, Engineering Tractors & Parts, Mowers Diesels, FarmMachinery & Parts have come through.“I think that’s the thing that keeps me going, even though I’m 68 years old, you never breed the perfect animal. Breeding is all about incremental gain and when I think back through my time, the herd has made tremendous gain generation on generation. That’s really safisfying for me.” Bob is looking forward to the next generation of pedigree Ayrshire calves born this season and says it is always an exciting time to see what traits and characteristics have come through. “I think that’s the thing that keeps me going, even though I’m 68 years old, you never breed the perfect animal. Breeding is all about incremental gain and when I think back through my time, the herd has made tremendous gain generation on generation. That’s really safisfying for me.”
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