Iyana Dexter Stud

23/08/2023

This is such a cute heifer. She is our only heifer so far this year, with another two bull calves born over the past two weeks. At least another five cows are close to calving, so here’s holding thumbs for more heifers.

28/06/2023

Our herd bull is Amadeus Gunner. He is an amazing Dexter bull and last month was the Supreme Dexter champion at the Bloem Show and third in the interbreed. He has such a wonderful composition and a gentle temperament. I have high hopes for him next year at the same show. The competition will be fierce as next year will be the South African Dexter nationals at the Bloem Show.

14/05/2023

https://www.netwerk24.com/netwerk24/nuus/aktueel/klein-bul-met-groot-hart-wil-grotes-vir-goue-beker-op-bloemskou-skrum-20230504

Enige van die super-bulle wat Vrydag die Goue Beker vir die kampioen-vleisbees op die Bloemskou in Bloemfontein wil wen, sal eers die buksie van ’n bulletjie Amadeus Gunner moet klop.

07/05/2023

Gunner was a star this past week at the BloemShow. He was the Senior bull, Grand Champion bull and Supreme Champion Dexter at the show and he came third in the interbreed Supreme Champions male. The judges were Maarten Syffert and Christopher Havenga. Thank you to Alexander for his help during the show.

03/01/2023

The sound of munching, with a beautiful herd bull to the left. I cannot wait to see how he develops. He is only three now, so over the next two years he is going to develop further. He has added over 100kg’s since May. He has amazing depth, length and width. His calves will start arriving next month. February should be a prosperous month. Show prep for the end of April and the beginning of May is the priority for me beginning 1/2/2023. All the stops are going to be pulled, nothing but my best will do.

03/01/2023

Today was a long day. Many cattle farmers know these days. Some can be short, but some can be long. I often get the odd comment passed, Oh!! How is it going with your hobby! I was up and over the kraal on numerous occasions. My day started at 5am and finished at 7pm. Lots of physical activity, to such a degree that my helper, when I asked how old I was, mentioned that I was 25 years old. I trust he was being honest, but was most likely trying to be nice. He was shattered, I was shattered by the end of the day. However the cattle are in their new pasture , which looks amazing. They have been dosed with their vitamins and minerals and have also been treated for liver fluke. They are all in amazing condition. During the afternoon I had to lead the bull by his nose ring into the race, for a bit of clipping, in preparation for showing at the end of April. The day had everything, lots of physical activity, lots of hard work and lots of risky situations I had to manage. It was all successfully completed and now I can have a well deserved rest. Now that is what I am looking forward to.

30/12/2022

This 1month old Dozer bull calf shows great potential. He has wonderful conformation at his age and I am looking forward to see how he grows over the next few months. I am looking forward to sending him for phase c testing at Elsenburg in June 2023.

15/11/2022

The new addition to the herd. A polled red Dexter calf. Let’s hope he grows up to be similar to his dad and then we can use him as a clean up bull from following phase c growth testing.

11/11/2022

Happy lines make me happy. I noticed that my bull has happy lines at present. A really good sign of healthy rumen function.

What are happy lines and what can they tell you about a cow? A closer look at this cow signal.

04/11/2022

Nice to see our bull at Elsenburg today. After the losses this week it is nice to see him and how he is growing. I really like his inner thigh development and his width from his shoulders to his hindquarters. His first week has not been great, and could have been better. The growth should really accelerate from the sixth week, so let’s see what happens.

28/10/2022

The magic of using a hot wire to affect grazing with Dexter cattle high up on the Outeniqua mountains. I use mine to bring about change in pastures that are wild and have not been grazed for a number of years. The change is always slow, but rewards perseverance and hard work.

15/10/2022

What a lesson for my eyes. Such beautiful animals on auction at Milagro farm. Thank you to Andrew for the invite. All the animals are in such good condition. When you need to learn, learning from one of the best is such a pleasure.

14/10/2022

It is so nice to have a Dexter bull in top condition. Just two weeks of optimal feeding and then he is back in the herd. The cows will be happy.

09/10/2022

It has been such a learning process with the Iyana Dexter herd. They are in a new pasture that I have not used before. The grass Is very dry, but it has stimulated their rumens and all the herd has shown an improvement in condition. They also have a protein lick, but no longer have a production lick.

07/10/2022

Eventually finished work at 21h00 tonight. The cows needed water, so water it was. They were so high up, I needed to use low range first to get the trailer to them.

05/10/2022

How do you know when your bull is in the right condition for showing? This is a difficult decision and over the past 3 months I have gained so much understanding. Looking at tail fat deposits, the fat deposition in the brisket, the flank fat deposits and the fattiness of the pasterns are all good indicators of conditioning, together with walking of the animal on a daily basis will all aid in conditioning. Next year Gunmer will be an adult bull as he will just be over three years of age. At the end of the month he will be pulled from his rations and placed in the herd for the next two months after which he will be pulled away for four months in preparation for the Bloem Show. I will be giving this bull every opportunity to gain success in the show ring.

04/10/2022

‘The big difference is the muscle fibres. If you’ve got a huge beast like an Aberdeen Angus, you’ve got the same number of muscle fibres but they’re much, much bigger. Because the Dexter is smaller you get very fine graining, which will help keep the flavour. It’s just more intense – it’s like a good wine.’
- Charlie Larkin, Chef - The Marquis

03/10/2022

This is just so nice to see. My first bull calf that has started his Phase C performance testing at The bull test station at Elsenburg agricultural college. The results are going to be interesting to view every week as he starts his growth phase following weaning. Thank you to Tinus and Willie for your support.

03/10/2022

The cows are now in some new grazing against the Outeniqua mountains. Literally!! They have plenty of grazing and the pasture will undergo plenty of change over the next couple of weeks while the grazing lower down has time to rest.

29/09/2022

These hindquarters make me very chuffed. Nearly where he needs to be. Great looking animals are just so nice to look at.

25/09/2022

And off he goes to Elsenburg for phase C performance testing. It has been a bit noisy over the past two nights, but this bull calf will look very different by the time he returns in the middle of January 2023. Weaning percentage of dam 62.5% .

19/09/2022

Nothing like chasing a heifer into her pasture at night. It was not fun. It was great exercise and on the positive side it was the realisation she is a cracking good heifer that I will be showing next year. Halter training starts on Friday.

15/09/2022

Waiting for his food. It is always nice to see Gunner waiting for his food. He is putting on good condition and will be allowed to grow out over the next two months before he goes back to the herd.

30/08/2022

One of the worst feelings I have experienced, I have just felt. Yesterday I filled a 2500l water tank, just to find it now empty!!!! I just cannot believe it. Water theft, there is nothing worse. Normally that would last 10 days, if not longer. It takes an incredible amount of will power not to use a 100 expletives .

28/08/2022

There is nothing like the feeling you get when leading a bull on the halter after he has been weighed and he knows he is on his way to his feed. It felt a bit like being on a merry go round as he bucked, kicked and ran around me this evening on more than one occasion. Plenty of feed still to feed to get him to where I need him to be. His hindquarters are improving and with an additional 70kg’s I will be happy.

25/08/2022

Gunners condition is improving. He will continue with his conditioning and growth over the next two months and then he will be working for another two before he is pulled for his BloemShow conditioning phase. I want him at is best for Bloem next year.

22/08/2022

I will be clipping the backs of our cattle as we move from winter into spring. Show cattle are also clipped to emphasise their good points and to camouflage their less favourable aspects. I would like to thank Alan from ACE grinding in Cape Town for his help in sending me a super blocking blade to fit my Heiniger clipper, the Blue running blade. Now I still need a T-84 and an HT5/8 blade set to complete what is necessary to ensure the best for our Dexters.

18/08/2022

Waiting in the kraal to check the TB scratch test. Recent vaccinations completed together with TB, Brucellosis and foot and mouth examinations. Unfortunately the George Show has been cancelled for cattle showing, which is a disappointment, but I would rather see the foot and mouth outbreak under control.

10/08/2022

Prepping for the George Show. It is such a fine balance between just enough and too much. At present I am looking for tail fat accumulation on either side of the tail. On the first image it has not yet formed and the hindquarters are looking really good. One has to watch the quantity of feed and the ratio of energy to protein. Too much energy in the feed can lead to increased fat accumulation on either side of the tail which will have an affect on fertility.

07/08/2022

This bull calf is the best I have yet had. He has wonderful hindquarters with great width and good inner thigh development . The width extends from his shoulders to his hindquarters. Besides the width he has a great topline and incredible depth at this stage in his development. He is a Wingman calf out of the Toetsie family line. He will be heading off to Elsenberg for phase C testing towards the end of September.

30/07/2022

Carbon fibre show sticks have arrived from the USA. Yippee, I have been waiting for them for ages. Show time coming up for Iyana Dexter stud at the end of August.

30/07/2022

The Southern Dexter Club had a meeting this morning at Iyana Dexter Stud. It was a wonderful experience meeting Dexter lovers and sharing my experience and knowledge. We had visitors from as Far East as Kareedouw and to the west from Vergenoegd Estate near Faure/ Somerset West. I hope that those that attended had a pleasant experience and learned a few facts about the Dexter breed. You all have made an excellent choice.

23/07/2022

Does anyone know that feeling when the cows get into the bale store? I suppose it is the same as children getting hold of the cookie jar and enjoying themselves.

15/07/2022

Since Gunner started for his show prep he has put on 1.8kg’s per day. 38kg’s in 21 days. He stands at 532 kg’s at present.

03/07/2022

A few recent images from Iyana Dexter Stud. With over 5000 likes and followers the following is growing. Iyana Dexter Stud is doing well and is moving from strength to strength. Thank you for all the support and new posts will follow. Exciting times lie ahead.

29/06/2022

Amadeus Gunner in the early stages of show prep for the George Show. He has his own complete feed and it is nice to see how he has put on muscle in less than a week. Show sticks have been ordered from the USA and I am trying all the stops I can do so that I do not limit the potential of this Dexter bull. If I can achieve want I would like, I will be very chuffed.

24/06/2022

After 11/2 months with the ladies, Amadeus Gunner has been placed in his own camp with a young Dexter ox. He has been placed on a specially prepared ration for the George Show and should put on 1- 1.2 kg’s per day until the show. It was so nice to place the halter on Gunner and take him on a walk to his new pasture. Pictures Will follow tomorrow .

21/06/2022

All heads buried in the lucerne silage. The Dexters’ just love silage and all thirty have their heads buried in it. Even the calves were trying their luck.

21/06/2022

When I picked up the silage this morning, Sarel looked at me in amazement when I said that I would remove both bails myself from the trailer. I regard these as my fitness and strength challenges. Both bails of lucerne silage weigh 900kg’s each. The Dexters’ are over the moon.