The Rural Voice, 1998-09, Page 42Meet Ontario's
Dexter breeders who are
Raising small cattle
in a big way
Story and photos by Allison Lawlor
A Dexter bull stands no more than 42 inches tall and weighs less than 1,000
pounds(above), cows mature at close to 700 pounds. Winona Crapp visits Sylvia
and Ed Stan at their farm near Denfield (below right).
38 THE RURAL VOICE
All it took was an article in
Harrowsmith magazine for
Sylvia and Ed Stan of
Denfield, to get rid of the few Angus
and Charolais cattle they had and try
something new.
More than ten years later they're
still happy they sold their cattle. In
1987, when the Stans decided to try
something new, they bought a Dexter
cow and calf. They now have seven
Dexters.
"It's hobby farming for us and a
business on the side," said Sylvia.
The Stan's primary business is
running their printing company in
London.
"When we first got the Dexters
our neighbours sort of looked down
at us and laughed at us. Now they're
more curious about them," said
Sylvia.
The Stans raise the animals for
breeding stock and sell the steers for
meat. Over the past few years they
have seen an increased demand for
meal
"The meat has a really different
flavour than the stuff you buy in the
supermarket," said Sylvia. Dexter
meat is low in fat and nicely marbled.
In order to raise good beef the
Stans keep their animals "natural".
The cattle don't receive growth
hormones or vaccinations. They are
on seven acres of pasture and in
addition they receive a small amount
of corn and oat mixture every day. In
order to ensure a healthy start the
calves are left to feed with the cow
for five months.
Dexters are known to be good
mothers, breeders often allow the
cows to double suckle. A story
circulates in the Dexter community
that one farmer allowed his cow to
have four calves on her at one time.
Some farmers will even allow a non -
Dexter calf to suckle on a Dexter cow
because she is such a high milk
producer.
Dexters are considered an ideal
animal for small landowners because
they produce smaller amounts of
meat and household amounts of rich,
creamy milk. Although they are a
dual-purpose cow, few farmers raise
Dexters for the milk.
Due to their size the cattle eat Tess.
On a good, green pasture, a half acre
per animal is enough. Depending on
the quality of hay, Dexters only need