Dexter Cattle

Dexter cattle originated from the SW of Ireland, and first came to England in 1882. The Dexter is the smallest British breed, the average cow being 300-350 kgs and 96-111cms at the rump. There are two types, short-legged and non-short-legged, and three colours, black, red and dun. Here at Norley Farm we have both leg lengths but only black cows.

Our herd started in 2008 when we bought 8 animals from Judy Knight's auction. We realised how outstanding her Knightsway herd was, so felt the auction was a good place to start. We bought 2 of Judy's outstanding show winners, Knightsway Jody with her heifer calf Jade at foot, and Knightsway Katy. We also bought a couple of the older girls, Belinda and Joan, who were due to calve first and we hoped would act as matriarchs for the herd. Knightsway Doris was added as a perfect example of the non-short Dexter, her son Digby to be Jade's weaning companion, and finally Knightsway Sonia, a sweet non-short.

We have already had our first calf, Joan produced a lovely little heifer calf without any fuss, and I am hoping Belinda will follow suit.

Dexters are reknowned for their maternal capabilities, and because of their dual-purpose qualities are very milky. We especially like the fact that they tend to calve easily and the calves stand and suckle quickly. Donkeys foals can be the opposite, and we really didn't want to spend all our time waiting for off-spring to get going!!

We are planning to show ours and we will also be halter-training all our calves. We won't be selling heifer calves for a while but if you are interested in a quality steer, please contact us. They are great small holder cattle.

If you want more information about killing out weights and milk yield please contact us, phone 01590 626224 or