Our guest blogger series contines with Raffaele Di Ciommo as he takes us on a trip to the All-European Show.
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As many probably already know, this past weekend was the All-European Holstein Championship in Fribourg-CH. I travelled there to support my country and to look at the best European show cows. When I got there, I found a very different show than what I was used to. As soon as I stepped inside I found myself in the cow barn, right in front
of the main entrance, almost no commercial booths, cows were 100% of the main focus for every visitor of the show.

I honestly admit I was a bit disoriented at first, but with time
passing on I liked more and more this layout solution. Our daily job
is focused on cows and even if those were the top European show cows, they still eat, rest and milk as any other cow. Probably we need to give more attention to our cows at home as it looks those show cows repay their breeders and owners doing exactly what they ask them to do. If you treat her properly she will just do the same to you.

I enjoyed watching these cows and their fitters working together as a
team, and also seeing their breeders working and helping each other.
But what we still need to improve is the time after the show is over,
when every light is turned off, when there are no visitors and when
every breeder stands alone, we are facing hard time and we need to
join together. I hate the mood the empty showring puts me in; I hate the taste of failure when you are left alone. Thank God I live in a
big, strong family, but some breeders might be just outside your door
looking for some help while in the dark. What can we do for them?
Always leave a light turned on outside your barn, it will light the
way to others.

Italian Cow Team resting before the Show

We have thoroughly enjoyed our trip through Europe this month as guest blogger Terri Packard chronicled the group’s journey to scenic towns, incredible farms and the All-European Show. Following is the last report from their fabulous European vacation!

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We visited two well-known Swiss farms on February 28th and then went to Friebourg.

First stop – Hellender Holsteins owned by Anton, Thomas and Andreas Ender. This is the home of Hellender Juror Jurgolin EX92 6E, nominated for Global Cow of the Year in 2011. Jurgolin is a proven brood cow with three high-scoring Champion daughters – Calanda EX95 3E, Corina EX94 3E (pictured below) and Cortina EX94 2E. Calanda and Corina placed 1st & 3rd in the production class at 2013 Swiss Expo. We also saw a younger Champion daughter just fresh that looks like she could live-up to the excitement created by her older sisters.

We saw a promising young Goldwyn daughter of Vangogh Durham Treasure 2E95 Reserve All-American Aged Cow 2011, the result of embryos purchased from the Ducketts.

As we drove from Hellender to GS Alliance it felt like we were in a National Park – there was incredible scenery around every turn and you could see signs of spring!

This picture was taken in Buerglen less than half a mile from GS Alliance. It gives you an idea how steep the area was with farms built on the sides of mountains. You can barely see the snow-covered roofs of some barns high on the mountain side. The cows will be grazing in these pastures once the snow is gone – it was hard for us to imagine!

GS Alliance is owned by Valo Gisler & Edwin Steiner. The barn, built in 1996, was designed with cattle care in mind and is home to outstanding cows from three breeds – Brown Swiss, Red & White and Black & White Holsteins. These five were ready to sell in the Swiss Mountain High Sale that evening.

Fradon-WL SS Jodie-Red EX94 is a September Storm daughter of Fradon Encounter Jodie EX94.

Boxstalls at GS Alliance

The traditional design of the farmhouse at GS is impressive – along with their collection of cow bells! It is not unusual to see bells hanging outside a barn, waiting to be put on the cows as they head to pasture in the spring. But these bells are different. The shows in Switzerland have a tradition of awarding the champion cows with a large cow bell and this lineup represents several championships. GS Alliance added to their collection at the All-European Show two days after our visit – they exhibited the Senior & Grand Champion, Decrausaz Iron O’Kalibra, in partnership with Pat Conroy.

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Thanks to Terri, Ernie and the group for allowing HolsteinWorld readers to travel with them!

Next stop for our European band of adventurers are two small Swiss towns with big Swiss reputations! Terri Packard continues this guest series blog for HolsteinWorld…

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The last sights we took in before heading to the All-European Show included a tram ride to the top of Moleson Mountain. After the descent from Moleson, we drove five minutes into Gruyere. The farmers here are selling their milk to make gruyere cheese. This quaint little town was so authentically Swiss!

The oldest part of the town sits below the Castle of Gruyere, built as a fortress in the 1200s. We had our first fondue experience at an old chalet.

What an incredible meal! They brought us bread, meat and potatoes to dip in the fondue, which was a blend of 3 cheeses.

We walked through the Castle, which showed eight centuries of architecture, history and culture. Some of the paintings were amazing and the views from the towers and balconies were great.

We moved to Luzern next. We had hoped to take a train into The Alps, but it wasn’t clear enough to see the mountains well. So we went into town to explore the city – another one located by a beautiful lake.

This is a great city with tons of shopping – boutiques, multi-level mall, high-end watch & jewelry stores.

We walked across the longest wooden bridge in Europe – built in 1300s. It connects over a river lined with beautiful buildings.

The next stop for HolsteinWorld’s field reporter Terri Packard and her group is the All-European Show. To say this global event is well attended seems to be an understatement. Its popularity and quality are extremely high. But let’s hear from someone who was actually there! We continue now with Terri’s report, in her own words.

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Seventeen countries participated in the 2013 All-European Show held in Switzerland this weekend. There are a few differences in this show compared to what we’re used to in the United States. For example, only cows are shown – no heifers; and each country has their own criteria for selecting their “team” of cows. Countries can bring a maximum of 15 cows per breed (Red & White and Black & White). This year, there were 163 cows shown.

The classes are different than what we have in North America. There are three age classes:
Junior – cows that have had one calf and are up to 32 months old on their calving date
Intermediate – cows that have had two calves and are up to 60 months old
Senior – cows that have calved 3 or more times

Once the cattle are checked-in at the show, they tally up the number in each class. Then they divide them into three “sub-classes”. For example – if there are 39 cows in the Junior class, they show three classes of thirteen each. Then the first and second place cows from each class compete for the Championship of the age class.

The winners!
Junior Champion – C.M.E. Goldwyn Vanity (Goldwyn x Damion)
Owned by Errera Holsteins, Agriber, Al.Be. Ro, and M.E.DAL – ITALY
Reserve Junior Champion – Southland Alex. Carola 11 (Alexander x Damion)
Owned by Southland Holsteins – NETHERLANDS

Intermediate Champion – Huddlesford Duplex Medora (Duplex x Goldwyn)
Owned by Ponderosa Holsteins – SPAIN
Reserve Intermediate Champion – FG Ice (Jasper x Boss Iron)
Owned by Egon Strudthoff – DENMARK

Senior Champion – Decrausaz Iron O’Kalibra (Boss Iron x Integrity)
Owned by GS Alliance & Pat Conroy – SWITZERLAND
Reserve Senior Champion – Ashlynvray Goldwyn (Goldwyn x LHeros)
Owned by Ponderosa Holsteins – SPAIN

Grand Champion – Decrausaz Iron O’Kalibra (Boss Iron x Integrity)
Owned by GS Alliance & Pat Conroy – SWITZERLAND

This gives you a little idea of just how big the arena was – and how full it was!

The Duplex daughter from Ponderosa that was selected Intermediate Champion

O’Kalibra, the Senior & Grand Champion, is presented by one of her owners, Pat Conroy

Ashlynvray Goldwyn, owned by Ponderosa, was the Reserve Senior Champion

This beautiful Goldwyn 5-year-old from Spain, Llera Ariel Goldwyn (Goldwyn x Champion) won her ‘sub-class’ but competed against O’Kalibra & Ashlynvray for the championship.

The show ends with a great display of color and pagentry – the Country Group Championship. Thirteen countries brought their best 4 cows into the ring, led by their flag. Each country had a judge that ranked all the other groups. And when the votes were totaled, Spain was the champion with Switzerland finishing second. It was quite impressive to see all the groups together in the ring and the crowd stayed until the end to hear who would take home the title.

Take in the “postcard scenary” of France and Switzerland as our HolsteinWorld field reporter Terri Packard continues blogging their journey on the way to the All-European Championship Show!

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It was a 700km drive through France to Geneva, Switzerland where we were joined by Jackie Florent & Sherry Siemers.

We spent a cold afternoon in Annecy, France – often referred to as the ‘Venice of France’ because of the canals that run through the town.

This town is set on the edge of a lake and surrounded by mountains. There were farmer’s markets set-up in the streets and some kind of ‘carnival’ festival going on that brought a large crowd. Annecy must be beautiful in the summer!

Next stop – Lausanne, Switzerland. This city hosts the Swiss Expo show every January and is also home to the International Olympic Committee. Lausanne is built on the side of a mountain with steep, winding streets similar to San Francisco. There is great architecture and shopping here.

As we drove from Lausanne to Moleson/Gruyere, we passed hundreds of acres of terraced vineyards that seemed to be hanging off the side of the mountains. They ran all the way to the lake below.

When we arrived at Moleson mountain, we went up to the 2002m summit (6500ft) on a cable car with the skiiers. David wished he had brought his boots! The higher we went, the more the horizon moved away, exposing more mountain ranges. The panoramic view at the top was incredible. We were so blessed to have a clear day all the way to the top. Quim said this was a small mountain but it certainly didn’t seem like it as we traveled up and down!

Coming up – visits to Gruyere, Luzern and two farm visits!

We continue traveling through Europe on the way to the Championship Show in Switzerland with our guest blogger and good friend Terri Packard. Today’s journey also includes Quim & James Serrabassa, Ernie Kueffner, Shannon Dwyer and David Dyment.

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We traveled through the southern range of the Pyrenees and into the fertile valley between the ranges.

Cal Marquet – Quim Serrabassa & his brother James keep some good cattle at the farm of Miguel Eroles, called Cal Marquet in the Pyrenees. Mijaqui Dorita Jasper is pictured above less than 30 days fresh. She was Intermediate Champion & Reserve Grand Champion as a 2-year-old at the Spanish National Show last September. Cows live in an open freestall environment with high quality forages.

Ponderosa Holsteins – After lunch with Agustin Celis Romero and Pepe Ahedo, owners of Ponderosa Holsteins, we arrived at Ponderosa Holsteins. An old village in the Pyrenees Mountains was purchased as the location for the farm. Two of the original homes and the chapel were restored beautifully

This was originally a commercial farm milking 900 cows, then the focus changed to quality registered cows for show and genetics. The long-range plan involves great cattle, education and research with the possibility of developing their own dairy product line. The cattle facilities are completely finished and everything is immaculate. The whole complex was built with accessibility in mind – a large viewing area at the parlor, barn entrance paths flat for wheelchair access, paving between barns, etc.

Barns have great ventilation with walls made of screens that can open.

The 32-cow rotary parlor is spotless. They are using technology that mixes specific feed for each individual cow as she enters the parlor from 6 different concentrates.

Most heifers live in group pens with a few special heifers living in their own pens. The heifer pictured below is an Atwood fall yearling that was Junior Champion at the Swiss Expo in Lausanne in January. All cows live in freestalls bedded deeply with straw, including the show herd.

Our final stop at Ponderosa was an impressive viewing room in the ‘show cow’ barn. They assembled their best young cows in 9 well-lit tie stalls and 2 pens. The cow in the center is Negundo Dali (sire is Negundo, a French bull), a 4-year-old that will compete at the All-European Show. The cow to her right is a Duplex that competes in the same class. And the second cow from the right is an Atlas who will compete in the 4-year-old class as well.

Stay tuned for more as the group gets closer to the show!

Making the trek from the U.S. to the European Championship Show are a group of high spirited adventurers looking for great cows, great sights and great experiences! Travel with them as we take a mini-European vacation for the next week or so with Ernie Kueffner, Terri Packard, Shannon Dwyer and the rest of their troup and see a bit of Europe from the comforts of your own home! (Terri Packard serving as HolsteinWorld’s official foreign correspondent!)

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Shannon, Ernie & I were in Barcelona (population 5 million) with Quim Serrabassa and his wife Silvia, and Quim’s brother James as our guides.

The beachfront in Barcelona – I was surprised to see palm trees around the waterfront and palms in the landscaping throughout the city. But they explained that it never goes below freezing there because of the wind off the sea (Mediterranean). This beach area was prepared before the summer Olympics were held in Barcelona in 1992.

Cathedral of Barcelona – This was a beautiful old structure in the heart of the city where Catholic mass is still held daily. The columns were impressive and there was amazing woodcarving in some areas.

The scene from the viewing area of Sagrada Familia.

Sagrada Familia – Construction of this stone cathedral started in 1882 and is estimated to finish in 2026 – yes, that is 144 years later! The architect, Antoni Gaudi, is very famous in Barcelona and used a Golthic style. His design work was greatly inspired by nature and it is obvious when you see some examples of his work throughout the city. A viewing area in one of the towers (560 ft) overlooks the city. The carvings on the outside of this structure are extremely detailed and the structure is so massive that you cannot fit it into one photo!

Mercat de la Boqueria (Boqueria Market) – 6 days a week, opens at 5am. Open to all – very popular with chefs. I have never seen so much color and variety at a market. The major emphasis is on presentation and bringing your attention to their products. There were stands selling the obvious – fruit, vegetables, fish – and then others selling chocolate, nuts, olives, ham, fruit juices, etc. There are also several places that serve tapas-type meals using products from the market. A great stop!

Barcelona is a vibrant city full of great architecture, food, fashion and art. We all agree that it is a city we should spend more time in! But we met-up with David Dyment and headed west an hour to stay in Quim’s area so we were ready for the drive to the Pyrenees and Ponderosa the next day.

Stay tuned for the next leg of our European Vacation coming soon!

Welcome back to A Day in the Life with Raffaele di Ciommo of Posal Farms in Lavello, Italy. This week we’re talking cheese!

“What’s new in farming today? Is milk the only product dairy farms
produce? Not at Posal Farms. Since the beginning our family produced milk and typical Italian cheese they sold directly to customers. Nowadays market rules have changed so our work had to change as well.
We currently produce high quality fresh milk and typical Italian
cheese like Mozzarella, Burrata and Caciocavallo Silano DOP. Since 2006 we have added a new and different product – electric power!”

“We get up at 4 a.m. to have fresh cheese packed and delivered to
customers (markets, supermarkets, hotels and restaurants) on a daily
basis, after that we are back to the barn for breeding. I am involved in the quality checks on cheese production and marketing cheese as well as being the Information Technology manager.”

Raff also noted that he’s heavily involved with the genetics program and makes many decisions about breeding and flushing. They are currently flushing Denmire Shottle Marie and Posal Sanchez Olimpia. “Speaking about breeding we are currently using bulls like Bolton, Shottle, Goldwyn, Damion, Planet and Atwood to breed with. We are also in the process of genotyping the whole herd through the Holstein USA service as we enjoy travelling each year to Madison for World Dairy Expo and we trust the North American Breeding programs and results.”

“We are also getting ready in the next few days to attend the European Holstein Championship which will take place in Freiburg (CH) at the beginning of March for which we have one cow going.”

Heading to the European Championship Show…

Caciocavallo Silano DOP cheese in the underground curing cellar

Biogas digestors

The Indiana Holstein Association met January 28, 2012 in Indianapolis, IN. Along with presenting many exciting awards, and crowning their 2012 Holstein Princess, the association is busy planning the 2013 National Holstien Convention which is set for Indianapolis next summer!

Hailing from Adams County, Macy Jo Mudd was recently selected as the 2012 Indiana Holstein Princess at the annual Indiana Holstein Assn. meeting last Saturday in Indianapolis.

Macy, a senior at Adams Central High School, is the daughter of Stephen and Judy Mudd of Berne. Macy is active in 4-H and is currently serving as the vice president of her FFA chapter. Macy also served as the 2011 Indiana Milking Shorthorn Princess.

Macy enjoys working on her family farm, caring for their registered Holsteins and spending time with her family and friends. Not only does Macy work on her family’s farm, but she also works at Irish Acres as a vet assistant and at Belevista farms.

Macy competes at the county, state and national levels with her cattle. In the future Macy plans on having her own farm and has a desire to continue competing in the show circuit.

Macy is very excited to get to serve as the Indiana Holstein Princess and will get many opportunities throughout the next year to serve as a spokesperson for the Holstein breed and the dairy industry visiting schools, fairs and other various events.

In addition to the selection of the Holstein princess, the recipients of the Hoosier Homemaker scholarship and the Derek Blough Heart and Soul Award were also announced.

Robin Matlock of Knightstown presented Mallarie Stookey her Hoosier Homemaker’s scholarship last weekend at the annual meeting.

Mallarie Stookey, a senior at Warsaw High School, received the Hoosier Homemaker scholarship. Mallarie is the daughter of Jeff and Marla Stookey, who operate a small dairy near Milford. Mallarie will be attending Purdue University in the fall.

The 2012 Derek Blough Heart and Soul Award was given to Doug Wicker of Milroy. Doug is the son of JD and Bec Wicker. Doug is a sophomore at Purdue University studying agriculture economics.

The Derek Blough Heart and Soul award was presented to Doug Wicker. Doug received the honor for his dedication, unselfishness and positive attitude toward others and his care for his Holsteins.

This year’s Master Breeder award went to Dave Gierhart of Bryant. Dave and his wife Jo Ann have been in the dairy business for more than 40 years and have traveled to many shows competing at the county, state and national levels. Dave and Jo Ann have had the honor of 10 animals receiving All-American and Junior All-American nominations as well as exhibiting the grand champions and junior champions at the state and national levels. Dave and Jo Ann have two daughters who along with their own families continue to show and care for their Holstein cattle.

Nathan Kuehnert of Ft. Wayne stands with Master Breeder, Dave Gierhart.

Two Honorary Lifetime Members were also recognized at the annual meeting.

Dr. G.W. Snider of Goshen was one recipient of the Honorary Lifetime member award. Dr. Snider graduated from Michigan State University in 1957 when he began his veterinary practice in Elkhart County. He has continued practicing for the past 50 years. Dr. Snider has enjoyed these many years working with his client’s dairy cattle along with taking care of his own Holsteins with the help of his wife, Sherri. Although slowing down his practice, he still loves to help any farmer with any question or concern.

Dr. G.W. Snider has been known nationwide for numerous years for his many findings in the veterinarian practice and was honored as Maurie Kline of Goshen presented him with an Honorary Lifetime Member award

Bill Powell of Portland also received an Honorary Lifetime member award. Bill and his wife Shirley have been married for 57 years. They started their Holstein herd shortly after marrying and they now have four children and seven grandchildren. Bill and Shirley decided to exit the dairy industry more than fifteen years ago and now raise and exhibit Haflinger horses.

Bill Powell has loved the Holstein breed for more than 30 years and was humbled as Duane Hill of Fountain City presented him with one of the Honorary Lifetime Member awards.

Other awards that were also given at the annual meeting last Saturday were Progressive Breeder awards, Progressive Genetics Herd awards and the Five Highest BAA Average by herd size.

Progressive breeder awards went to Darrell Richard of Goshen, Dennis W. Paulus of Elkhart, Ray E. Eash of Middlebury, Mark A. Thomas of Fountain City, Lyle Weaver of Goshen and Duane Hill of Fountain City.

Progressive genetic herd awards were presented to Darrell Richard, Rauscher Farms, Inc. of Huntingburg, Nor-Bert Farms LTD. of Bremen, William and Susan Gamble of New Carlisle, Tony Bos of Fair Oaks, Brand Dairy Farm of Waterloo and Springbrook Farms of Marshall.

The top BAA Average for 10 to 25 head was presented to Richard Nisen of Leesburg; 26 to 40 head, Bruce Gingerich of Millersburg; 41 to 55 head, Paul Engleking of Greenfield and 56 head and over, Springbrook Farms of Marshall.

In addition to the numerous awards that were presented at the annual Indiana Holstein meeting another very hot topic was discussed. Indiana will host the 2013 National Holstein Convention in Indianapolis on July 7-11. The convention will have many different events for attendees.

Other important events for Indiana Holstein members are the Indiana State Holstein show in Richmond, June 18-21 and the Indiana State Fair.

Thanks to Courtney Lipply for sharing this great report!

Hanna Richman of New Jersey gave a speech during the National Holstein Convention in Richmond, VA, on the long-lasting impact of Regancrest Elton Durham. HolsteinWorld helped Hanna with some research and in return, we received a copy of her speech that follows. Attached was a note from Hanna, “Thank you for helping me get information for my speech on Durham. The magazine helped me get background information. I was lucky enough to be able to compete at the National Holstein Convention. I don’t know what place I got, but I feel I did well, and I learned a lot too. The National Convention was a great experience that I will remember for a long time.”

GRANDFATHER OF GREATNESS
There are many great bulls, but only a few have the honor of being one of the best in history. There is one bull that I call the “Grandfather of Greatness.” Can you guess what bull I am talking about? Here are some facts.

I call him the “Grandfather of Greatness” for several reasons. In the top 3 placings at the 11 National Shows in 2010, this bull ranked #1 maternal grandsire in heifers, cows and overall placings. Also, he was listed first in sire stack, topping the cow, heifer and overall lists. His final classification score is 90 points and he is a Gold Medal Sire. Plus, he has sired a whopping 30,281 classified daughters and has over 65,000 milking daughters. He was Premier Sire at the World Dairy Expo 5 times. I have found it interesting that he and his mother have the same white triangle marking on their heads. His date of birth is March 13, 1994. Have you guessed what bull I am talking about? He is Regancrest Elton Durham-ET.

I spoke to many people involved with Durham. First, I talked to Frank Regan, the owner of Regancrest, the farm that owned Durham’s mother, Snow-N Denises Dellia. He says Dellia’s best quality was her udder and her worst was her disposition. Dellia’s personality was unique. She did not like to be handled but strangely liked attention. She took care of herself and left herself to eat feed and make milk with ease. She won Global Cow of the Year and was named Queen of the Breed runner-up to Roxy. He said as a calf, Durham was like any other bull; nothing particularly stands out. He was very youthful! He says his favorite Durham daughter is Regancrest-PR Barbie-ET, classified Excellent 92. He actually owned Barbie.

I also spoke to Charlie Will, who works for Select Sires. He was the man who suggested the breeding of Elton and Dellia. I asked him why he suggested this. He answered, “Dellia was a beautiful Chief Mark daughter. However Chief Mark daughters tended to need better feet and legs because their thurls were too far back. At the time Elton was a high ranking sire with high production and he sired ideal feet and legs and correct thurl position, a logical mating to create a complete young sire.” He also said, “Durham was born 17 years ago and today is still the standard from which all other high type sires of today are compared.” He said his daughters’ best traits were their udders and thought the worst quality was they were a little spirited to handle. He also said that Durham was the first Premier Sire that actually sires traits that both commercial and registered breeders want in their herds and Durham daughters tend to improve with age.

I also talked to Elmer Watkins, the herd manager for the bull barn at Select Sires. He was the man that fed him, took care of him, cleaned his pen, clipped and shampooed him for pictures, classification and tours, and collected semen. He took care of Durham for six years. In the winter Durham had heat and in the summer he had air conditioning. He also told us his favorite memory about Durham is when his daughters won World Dairy Expo five times in a row. Next, he told us that Durham had various moods. One day he would be happy and the next day he would be very mean, but he was always curious. Overall he said the Durham had a good personality. He told us he remembers people talking about how good he was and he thought that Durham was pretty. Mr. Watkins also said that Durham’s best quality was producing semen and his worst was his attitude. He remembers when Durham started feeling sick and they took him to Ohio State University Vet School. He had a heart problem and needed a heart transplant, but this had never been done before. They did not want Durham to suffer, so they euthanized him. He said it was a sad day.

I would like to thank Frank Regan, Charlie Will, Elmer Watkins, Daphne Lang and Karen Knutsen for helping me get my information. I learned a lot researching Durham and one of these things is, it will be hard to ever match him. So next time you see the name Durham on your cow’s pedigree, you know it is coming from greatness.