It takes a huge amount of work, dedication, determination and passion to produce show and sale winning livestock – key features the team at Davidsons Animal Feeds possess in abundance.
As the owners of highly prized livestock, they not only have to attend to the health and welfare of their own stock but also those of an increasing number of producers throughout Scotland and the north of England who are turning to the individual care and attention to detail Davidsons Animal Feeds’ nutritionists provide for their customers.
Add in the company’s high-quality mix of raw materials, feeds and bespoke blends and it’s a winning combination for them and their customers as the past year alone has shown.
Steven Turnbull, Sales and Product Manager
For Steven Turnbull, his stockmanship and nutritional skills coupled with his reliance on Davidsons Animal Feeds, has enabled him to breed and bring out show winning North Country Cheviot sheep from the Jethart flock based just outside Jedburgh.
A regular winner in the show winning enclosure at Haddington, Dalkeith and Pennymuir, Steven also produced the reserve female champion at the Royal Highland in June with a ewe that went on to stand reserve overall at the breed’s National event at Peebles. Furthermore, his home-bred shearling rams are proving a force to be reckoned with in the sale rings, selling to a high of £5500 at Lockerbie in September, to average £1750 for eight.
RESERVE FEMALE NORTH COUNTRY CHEVIOT CHAMPION
“Producing high value stock is all down to genetics, nutrition, stockmanship and hard work,” he said. “I like flashy, correct sheep and if you want to make the most from them, you have to feed, but in moderation – when they need it.”
With 550 ewes run on 290acres, he knows all too well the benefit of feeding when his 110 North Country Cheviots bred pure produce average lambing percentages of 180+, and the 325 Texel cross Cheviot Mules and 125 Cheviot Mules come in at 195-200+%.
STEVEN WITH DAUGHTER KIRSTY
“Before lambing and up until the grass comes, our ewes are fed Davidsons Super Ewe, with the lambs having access to Reiver Grower Nut from a month onwards, which means 85% of the lambs are sold finished off farm by the end of July. I also use the Reiver Grower Nut for my show sheep up until August and the tup hoggs all winter.”
KIRSTY IS ALSO HEAVILY INVOLVED ON THE FAMILY FARM
“It has never been as cheap to feed stock when livestock prices are so high, and it’s youngstock that benefits the most from additional nutrition. However, every farm is unique and no one system fits all, but it is hugely rewarding when we work with individual farmers to achieve higher returns,” said Steven adding that an increasing number of producers are seeing the benefits of working with Davidsons Animal Feeds’ nutritionists to work out a unique plan for their stock.
Sophie McCarlie, Marketing Co-ordinator
Sophie has also enjoyed one of her most memorable years in both the show and sale rings, having not only secured the supreme championship in the Kerry Hill sheep section at the Royal Highland Show, but also the top price of 7800gns with a home-bred shearling ram at the inaugural breed sale at Lanark.
Sophie, who established the Hassockrigg flock from Harthill, Shotts, in 2020, went straight to the top for her first time exhibiting at the Ingliston event with a home-bred gimmer. Notably, she also scooped the reserve female honours with the second prize winner to the champion, another home-bred gimmer.
OVERALL KERRY HILL CHAMPION HASSOCKRIGG EASY ON THE EYE
RESERVE FEMALE CHAMPION HASSOCKRIGG ELIZA
Prior to that big day, the Hassockrigg enterprise, which numbers 50 pedigree ewes landed the tri-colour at Lesmahagow and Stirling Shows, and with two different sheep.
More impressive is the fact that her sheep attract some of the highest prices in the marketplace, having produced the sale leader at the first breed sale at Lanark in September, along with another shearling ram at 2200gns. Furthermore, Hassockrigg sold two of the three lead priced gimmers at 1300gns twice, with her five averaging £1103, while the same number of shearling rams cashed in at £2804.
HASSOCKRIGG ELECTRIFY SOLD FOR 7,800GNS
“You’ve got to have sheep with the correct breed characteristics and animals that are good on their feet and legs if you want to breed show and sale winning stock. I’ve always used Davidsons Animals Feeds Ultimate Show Blend pre-show and sale purely because it does what it says, and it puts a real ‘bloom’ on them. It’s a very palatable product full of natural, quality feeds which puts the sheep on a real thrive while also keeping them healthy,” said Sophie.
Her Kerry Hill ewes scan at around 170% and are introduced to feeding six weeks before lambing. They’re also housed just before their due date for easier management.
“We feed Super Ewe rolls from six weeks pre-lambing right up to when the grass comes and we’ve found that they have an abundance of colostrum and the lambs have plenty of vigour to get up and suckle.”
With the farm business – run by her father Robert and brother Robbie – based on a 200-suckler cow unit and a large silage contracting business chopping 4000 acres of silage and whole crop and 12,000 bales, Sophie has a busy life back home. Most of the cows (140) are Sim Luings, which are calved to a Charolais bull, with their progeny sold as stores as yearlings either privately or through Lanark Auction Mart. The McCarlies also breed their own replacements with 40 Luing cows running with a Simmental bull, having been calved to a Salers as heifers at two years of age.
Being heavily involved in a family mixed beef and sheep farm ties in well with Sophie’s day role at Davidsons, where she answers most of the incoming calls in the office, places orders and advises on the best feeds to provide livestock of all ages. Sophie also attends to all marketing and promotional work for the company which includes, organising trade stands at various agricultural events, developing new branding, brochures, advertising and social media.
Carolyn Logan, Dumfries and Galloway Feed Advisor
For Carolyn who owns a select number of pedigree Highland and Galloway cattle and some 200 commercial ewes with her husband Dexter, their stockmanship skills combined with the company’s highly nutritional feeds, have enabled them to produce some of the lead show-winning animals at both local and national events.
Earlier this year, Carolyn and Dexter took the supreme championship in the Highland cattle section at the Royal Highland with Cameron of Sguir Mor, a six-year-old bull owned in partnership with Ewen Macmillan that was reserve champion the previous year. In addition, they also sold one of the top-priced three-year-old heifers at the breed sale at Oban in October, when Bonnie of Blairlogan, the second-prize three-year-old, made 7500gns.
OVERALL HIGHLAND CATTLE CHAMPION CAMERON OF SGUIR MOR
BONNIE OF BLAIRLOGAN SOLD FOR 7,500GNS
Adding to the celebrations, their recently established Rogan Galloway herd produced the champion winner at Kinross and Dalmally Shows.
“We now rely more on a nut than a blend, which is a more consistent product and reduces sorting. Dexter noticed a huge difference in feeding Davidsons Reiver Grower Nut, as the cattle were performing better and there was less wastage. We’re now feeding less of a better-quality product,” said Carolyn.
NATIVE INTERBREED CHAMPION GROUP OF 4
Such has been their success that the couple, who are based just outside Alva, have also just started bringing out cattle on a freelance basis for other breeders and producing embryo-bred Highland cattle for an American cattle company.
CAROLYN WITH HER HUSBAND DEXTER AND DAUGHER BONNIE
Never ones to rest on their laurels, Carolyn and Dexter also run 200 Shetland and Shetland cross Cheviot ewes which are crossed to a Suffolk ram to lamb in April.
“All the ewes lamb outside in April and because we feed Davidsons Supreme Rolls to twin-bearing ewes four to six weeks before they are due, the sheep are fit to lamb with an abundance of milk and the lambs have plenty of vigour to get up and suckle,” said Carolyn.
Stephen Taylor, Dairy Tech Consultant
Stockman of the Year, Stephen Taylor, who also assisted in bringing out not only the junior inter-breed beef champion but also the senior and overall supreme beef animal at the Royal Highland for Andrew Hornall, has had an unbelievable, memorable year.
OVERALL INTERBREED CHAMPION FALLENINCH TOMMY
As one of Scotland’s most enthusiastic and capable young farmers, Stephen was crowned overall Stockman of the Year at the Royal Highland in June after winning the individual beef stockjudging competition on no fewer than three occasions and being a member of the winning pairs and part of the Glasgow Herald team in the same years.
STOCKMAN OF THE YEAR 2025
Add in feeding and bringing out of Andrew Hornall’s highly prized Charolais cattle at the Royal Highland to win the top two awards the same day, and it was a dream come true.
“I’ve always been interested in beef cattle since I started helping my father with the Charolais at Andrew Hornall’s farm at Falleninch, Stirling, as a teenager,” said Stephen, pointing out that the herd is believed to be the only enterprise to have produced two home-bred inter-breed beef champions at the Royal Highland in the same year. Notably, those two animals, Falleninch Tommy, the supreme beef champion and Falleninch Valentina, which was crowned junior inter-breed beef, were fed Davidsons Animals Feeds Ultimate Show Blend on the run-up to the event.
JUNIOR INTERBREED CHAMPION FALLENINCH VALENTINA
“There is a huge amount of time and work involved in producing show-winning cattle for the Royal Highland, and a lot of that is down to good nutrition. Obviously, you have to start with a good animal, but to have it at 12 o’clock on show day, requires continual – halter training, washing, and the right nutrition, which for some animals can mean feeding a year in advance.”
“Ultimate Show Blend is a really appealing, palatable mix that works well for feeding show potential cattle and sheep. Cattle take to it quicker than other products and because it contains all the minerals and vitamins, there is no need to feed anything else. It’s not too heavy a mix and a great feed for hair growth. It also puts a lovely finish on cattle for the show ring,” he said.
For Stephen, who is fortunate to work with some of the best cattle in the business at Falleninch and for a company he has always aspired to, the challenge continues in supporting and advising individual farmers on how to improve livestock margins.
“Davidsons is a cracking company to work for. They work with the best raw materials available and there is always support there if needed. Farmers are looking to become more efficient at feeding livestock and to work with the forages that they have on site, so it is hugely rewarding working with individuals to formulate rations and bespoke meals.”
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