One More Time ( with a twist-make mine A2 chocolate)
In the late 80's -early 90's two bulls were imported (semen) into the Canadian and American herds. These two bulls were from (1) an experimental outcrossing program (2) the appendix/upgrade/outcross registry in the UK. This is DOCUMENTED fact in the herd books of England. Not heresay so why is should be verboten to discuss truth is beyond me. At the time this took place the breeders in America were NOT advised by their leadership that outcrossed genetics were being introduced into their herd. In some known instances deceit was at play.
Legacy nor I have ever suggested or recommended that polled Dexters be removed from the herdbooks or from the US herd.
Any suggestion I have ever personally made has regarded management in order to protect the existing genetic base in America. I have been wrongly and falsely accused otherwise by enemies who apparently view me as some sort of threat to their "status quo" but that isn't true and there isn't any Dexter breeder who has ever had a personal conversation with me who can say otherwise. Do I detest what has happened and voice it. Absolutely. I detest the irreversible changes to the unique Dexter herd in America, and to the Dexters that have been destroyed that would otherwise still be in the breed pool, and to your average American breeder. Why the last?
The average American breeder was unaware. Their traditional animals fell out of favor by fad while those with means grabbed the opportunity to have something "different". ( Red or polled) Many traditional Dexters were culled - there was a smaller market for them. Those with means to pay the elevated prices for the new "fads" used traditional Dexters in their breeding programs thus eliminating more potential traditional bloodlines from the gene pool. Have any of you EVER considered there IS another side to the story? Many traditional breeders have been seriously, negatively impacted and for sure the Dexter breed is decimated.
Remember: AMERICAN breeders could only import or AI these genetics. They could NOT develop them on their own farms. Even now because America has a CLOSED herd. Is that fair to the little guy?
There IS a crisis of numbers in both traditional Dexter cattle bloodlines and in cattle who wear their traditional horns. The very basic unique identity of our breed has been changed by genes Americans didn't breed. How to work through this crisis? Polled breeders have GOT to work with traditional breeders. If you are a polled breeder building your herd with traditional cows. . . . return them to traditional breed programs so both divisions of the breed benefit by not losing their root stock genetics.
This is what Legacy and I advocate. Education. Knowledge. Awareness. Traditional breeders and traditional Dexters have taken it on the "chin" ( poll actually) - and polled breeders who have been protected and promoted get upset that it is "outed" that there are upgraded genetics in their bloodlines. You simply have to deal with the realities of what has happened to the once rarest genetic herd of Dexters in the world. And it happened in a dark closet because there was never full disclosure or honesty. Why? The animals that are decimating our bloodlines would NOT have been allowed into the herdbooks if the leadership had done their job. Period. You really need to consider the truth of this.
Your fellow non-polled breeders and non-red breeders have been
negatively impacted by animals from a breeding program that US breeders are forbidden to pursue. It is not about "me" or my opinions. It is about what actually happened and what is fact and traditional breeders do NOT have to sit back and pretend a lie or support that lie. They not only have a right to protect their own interests they should!
Rezzful there is nothing nefarious or deceitful taking place with me or the Legacy effort. It is very open. The best interests of the Dexter breed are to preserve the root stock genetics. That works for ALL breeders. Yes, there is a crisis. Please give those numbers some thought. What on earth were members of leadership thinking. There could not have been 2500 living breeding Dexters when polled was introduced. It is simple to deduce in numbers alone what was going to happen. Just give it some thought from a different perspective.
Judy Sponaugle
Legacy herd
Jams Hundred herd
