Ochre

Ochre the cow entered our lives over ten years ago when we decided to upgrade our cattle herd with stud stock. We finally settled on Queensland’s own breed, Droughtmasters. Purchased from a Droughtmaster stud, Ochre had the official name of Okra. All stud cattle have two registered names for identification purposes, the stud name first and then the animal’s own name. We found that “Okra” was just too harsh and unofficially renamed her.

Two attributes were very much apparent from the start. Ochre had a mind of her own, and she was not just any type of cow. Her price alone established that fact.

While her largish flap in front of her udder was an initial detraction during her previous entries at local Agricultural Shows, the size of her udder and the calf she was feeding gave very good indications for her future as a breeder. The stud manager told us she was definitely a future “Top Cow”.

Introducing Ochre to the herd was a somewhat bittersweet exercise since the then Top Cow (TC)…