Thursday, 13 February 2014

We are at the pointy end...


 

In 5 days, it will be exactly 12 months since I was granted Individual Droughted  Property  status for our sheep and cattle grazing property in southern Queensland. That’s not when the drought started, I had started cutting Mulga for cattle feed in October 2012, all the while hoping that the summer rains would come and that “it's only a few weeks away now, surely” we started feeding cotton seed that we still had on hand in November, and ordered our first truckload of fresh cottonseed for the last delivery before Christmas. “That will tide the ewes and lambs over until it rains”.

 February last year, some of the waters started to give out and it had become necessary to start rolling out some poly pipe. Just a bit to get water to the cows, it’ll rain soon.

By May, all the signs were there that we were in for a dry winter. We were pushing Mulga with the bulldozer and had fenced off and equipped some of the dams that had started to go boggy. It really started to look like we were in a bad way for winter. But the Weather Bureau, ever positive, was forecasting significantly above average rainfall. “we only need a little bit to keep the sheep going, they say it’s gonna rain, so we’ll join the ewes.... might buy another load of cotton seed to be on the safe side”

All through the winter we kept feeding Cottonseed, lick and pushing Mulga, until the dozer broke down, but the Bureau says its gonna rain soon. So we started cutting with a chainsaw.

In August, we weaned the last of the late calves off the cows, they are getting poor, but we found some agistment not far away, so we shifted the cows away and early weaned the calves on to cottonseed and Mulga, all the while continuing to fence in waters as they gave out.

By the end of August, we had started to run seriously short of water in our ewe paddock, so more poly pipe and tanks were put in. But the sheep were in good enough condition to shear at the end of August so we got away with it.

The end of September, more dams went dry, more waters were required.

By October, we knew we were in trouble. The Bureau finally admitted they had got it wrong and the outlook for the summer was bleak. 40% chance of average for the summer..... And our ewes were lambing..... And we ran out of cottonseed.... and another dam went dry...

We started feeding the sheep the remaining cottonseed, and in the mean time, were blessed with finding some cheap chickpea gradings. 10 tonne would get us through to Christmas, surely there would be a shower by then.

It didn’t...

There wasn’t....

More dams went dry....

The large house dam installed only a couple of years before gave out....

So, come December, we cut the fences and swung the gates to let the stock forage for what feed they can find. We started to transition over to supplying nearly all our stockwater from our bore, upgrading the pump and pipelines.... surely it will rain in the New Year.....

It didn’t.....

By the end of January, we had started on our second 10 tonne of chickpea and all but two of our dams where dry.

The Mulga in the paddock nearest the bore had all gone....

All our lambs had died......

More pipe and troughs were installed.

So here I am 12 months on, 12 months of lost production and no reprieve in sight. In the last 12 months, I’ve done:

-70 tonne of cotton seed

-20 tonne of chickpea

- Countless tonnes of minerals supplement

- Hundreds of bales of hay

- 5000 acres of mulga harvested

-20km of poly pipe

-17 new troughs

-10 new tanks

-5 new pumps

- Worn out 2 chainsaws

 

And lost a heap of my future income stream in the process, with the death of countless livestock.

By the end of winter, it had really stopped being Just Another Drought. The native vegetation started to die. The wildlife started to die.

Since Christmas, there has been a significant and sustained die off of kangaroos from starvation, they don’t eat chickpea or mulga, and while there is still dry grass in the paddock, it has been there too long and the harsh sun has bleached it of all its nutritional value. Daily I drag dead roos from the troughs, where they have climbed in to drink and cool off, but are too weak to climb back out. Or they just die in the shade of the trees, unable to go on.

The native eucalypts dropped their leaves, and the Brigalow trees went red, then brown, their leaves crunching up in your hand like potato chips.

It’s not a drought anymore, it’s not even an exceptional circumstance....
 

 It’s a natural disaster.

Rainfall records show the driest year ever recorded in the district. Normally, we get around 530mm, or a bit over 21 inches on the old scale,  for 2013 we recorded 200mm or 8 inches ... and 2014 so far is less.
I currently have 1200 ewes spread over 10,000 acres.... and I still have to hand feed them. The cattle and the wethers are having free run of a couple of other paddocks too, they forage for what they find, and what I can afford to buy them. There is no mineral supplements, I can’t afford that any more, its mulga, chickpea and whatever you can forage. I’m saying I have 2 dams left, but that is being generous, one is a boggy slophole.

So I’m at the pointy end of this drought now, the funds are running out, but the bills are piling up. A decision must be made, do we continue to throw more money at the problem? Or quit now and walk away? Surely it will rain soon.

I read a comment piece the other day by an economist saying that agriculture isn’t a special case, tourism doesn’t get any special help when they experience a downturn due to the weather. No, that’s true, they don’t. But unlike agriculture, they don’t see their expenses rise, and their income fall, they are a discretionary industry, not the staple provider of the staff of life, they are not personally responsible for the welfare of thousands of living, breathing, feeling animals.

So tomorrow, I’ll get up and do battle again trying to do the best for the animals in my care with the little that I have.... But the Weather Bureau is optimistic again.... surely it will rain soon.....

Monday, 27 May 2013

Tonight, I have the opportunity to give a speech to the local Forum club on the topic of "Impressions Of"
 
Once I had written my speech, I thought "That'd make a top Blog post" so here it is!
 

Impressions of

Almost 2 years ago today, ABC television broadcast footage of animal cruelty in Indonesian abattoirs which set in motion a chain of events that has ramifications across the nation.

The footage showed horrific images of animal cruelty, which no right thinking person could condone. How could someone do such a thing? The footage gave the impression of systemic animal cruelty and it appeared simple, the sale of animals to these people must stop.

As a result of the public outcry, pressure was placed on the government to do something about it. The government had been caught napping by the expose by animals Australia. What could they do? Government had to give the impression of being in control. A hastily thought out ban of Live export of all Australian livestock was put in place. Overnight the trade snapped to a stop.

It was around this time that I was introduced to the online world of Agvocacy by a friend. What is Agvocacy you ask? Well, an Agvocate is someone who advocates for agriculture.

A significant social media presence was established by the Anti Live export campaigners showing horrific images of animal cruelty and giving the impression that all livestock producers where greedy, uncaring and selfish. I, like many other producers tired to provide the balance of view. If we didn’t live export to these countries, someone else would. Then who would be there to advocate for better animal welfare in the receiving countries? If we aren’t selling them the product, we can’t dictate the terms. Livestock producers spoke of the impending animal welfare disaster, should they have no markets for their cattle and be forced to destroy them.

Meanwhile, cattle continued to “stockpile” on farms with no homes to go to. It was ok though, even thought there were no markets, at least the season was good, so the cattle could be retained on property. Given that the cattle weren’t flooding onto the market yet it gave the impression of a frozen beef export industry that could absorb these extra cattle. “See, I told you we didn’t need live export” was the cry from the animal liberationists.

It was a grave concern to many of us who, while we where livestock producers, where not Live Exporters. All livestock producers where being tarred with the same brush. Something had to be done.

About 12 months ago, our loose band of facebook and twitter friends decided that something had to be done. We had to improve the impression of all forms of agriculture in the eyes of the general public. We had to Agvocate loud and clear. With that in mind, a facebook page called “Ask and Aussie Farmer” was launched to the general public. It is a friendly and non confronting place where any question about any aspect of agriculture, irrespective of how complex or simple can be asked. We have pledged to answer them courteously and quickly to give the public confidence in the agricultural production systems in this country. It started out pretty slow and built momentum over time. A quick check this afternoon shows over 4982 followers, or “Likes” in Social Media speak.
This kind of Agvocacy was beginning to have inroads in the debate about agriculture in the country. A survey commissioned by the world society for the prevention of cruelty to animals (WSPCA) commissioned an automated telephone survey on live export asked the question “do you agree with the slaughter practices in foreign countries” to which 77% of people replied “NO”. WSPCA, Animals Australia and the Greens used this survey to give the impression of a majority of Australians being opposed to live exports.

The group, “Humane chain” had planned to protest against live exports by assembling anti live export protesters on the Stirling Bridge in Freemantle. For those of you who don’t know Freemantle, the Stirling Bridge links the Port of Fremantle in WA to the mainland and is the route traversed by the trucks carrying sheep to the live export terminal on the Fremantle dock. The purpose of this protest, was to give the impression of a significant proportion of the population being opposed to live exports, by spanning the bridge and holding hands and thereby forming a Human Chain. Over 900 people attended the event.

Being firmly of the belief that there are always 2 sides to every story, we were able through our network of social media to organise a counter rally of supporters to provide the balance. It was a huge success, with over 3000 people attending including a convoy of livestock trucks forming their own chain over the bridge.
 
One of the solutions put forward by the anti live export movement is for on shore processing, Build abattoirs in the north, processes it here and send it overseas in boxes. Their argument gives the impression of a simple transition to an alternative market. The issue here is that the live export market is for store cattle, that is cattle that can be sent overseas and fattened in feedlots in Indonesia. There isn’t sufficient suitable land in the northern territory to fatten, or Finish the cattle. Also, given the tropical climate, the supply of cattle in “The Wet” becomes another issue. Couple this to the fact that Australia has the highest processing cost of any major meat exporter in the world, there is another problem, it prices the product out of the market.

So what of our customers, The Indonesians? What do they make of all this? Well, reports from Indonesia show that they see Australian as an unreliable supplier of their meat, we have given them the impression of a country that cannot guarantee supply, we have given them the impression of a country that thinks we can dictate our terms to them on how they do things by forcing them to upgrade their facilities and we have given them the impression of a country that does not care about the cost effective supply of food to the poorer nations in the region. It gives the impression of a country that is racist.

As the debate wore on, cattle numbers continued to grow and the seasonal conditions in the north of the country continued to deteriorate, giving the impression of an impending disaster. “We have to find an outlet for these cattle” was the cry from the north. It appeared the animal welfare crisis was coming to our own shores. A claim fiercely denied by the Anti Live export campaigners.

As the season continued to deteriorate, cattle started flooding onto the market, you had to look no further than the stream of trucks passing down our very main street to see the volume of cattle that where being forced onto the market as numbers continued to climb, and feed continued to disappear. The issue came to a head when Brahman steers from the north weighing 200 kg sold in Longreach for as little as 10c/kg, that is just $20 each.

Today, we hear what appears to be good news; Indonesia has lifted its import quota for beef. It gives the impression of an outlet for some of the many stranded cattle. But a closer look reveals that it is an increase in chilled Boxed beef, which is a market the stranded northern cattle can’t meet, and given that reports show that the receiving facilities chillers in Jakarta are currently broken down, it would appear that is a market that can’t be filled.


Before I conclude here this evening, I would like to share with you, the editorial from today’s Australian newspaper

Emaciated cattle out of sight


GRAZIERS in northern Queensland face the dreadful choice of trying to save their emaciated cattle or putting them out of their misery. It is a choice the animal welfare lobby's loudest advocates do not have to face. Their moral trumpet is used to draw attention - often with the help of an ABC television crew - to abuses in other countries.

The scrawny, skeletal, starving beasts strewn across dusty paddocks in the nation's north seem to be of little concern to them. It is the wicked combination of drought conditions, the impact of bushfires and the campaign to end the export of live animals that has reduced these beasts to the terrible state they are in.

On Saturday, we published stories and photographs of graziers dealing with these gut-wrenching choices. Today, drought conditions extend over a third of Queensland, after bushfires and heatwaves swept across farming stations last year. With no relief in sight and a glut of cattle, there are about 300,000 head at risk of dying from starvation.

Farmers are in no doubt about how this trouble began. It was the ill-considered decision by Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig to suspend live cattle exports to Indonesia in 2011. This hasty decision was made in response to footage of Australian animals being abused in several Indonesian abattoirs. The temporary ban, however, amounted to a death-blow for the industry. Two years ago, 400,000 head of cattle were exported to Indonesia; today it is 267,000.

The industry must shoulder responsibility for improving animal welfare at every stage of the supply chain. Nobody likes to see animals treated cruelly, here or abroad. But rather than stop the live export trade there should have been a concerted effort to improve the handling and slaughter of animals by investing in new facilities and boosting education and training.

Farmers are now being portrayed as heartless when they are in fact deeply troubled by the situation they find their cattle in. The impact of the campaign by animal welfare activists to shut down the $1 billion live trade is not only being felt through commercial losses. It can be seen in the eyes of the starving cattle, unable to stand or roaming paddocks looking for nourishment. This is the impact of political decisions driven by populism.


We need to be aware that our impression of something can be vastly different from the reality. While a ban of live exports may give the impression of sparing thousands of Australian cattle from a cruel death, the reality has become vastly different. In the words of the great Adam Savage of Mythbusters fame, “I reject your reality and substitute it with my own”

Thursday, 3 January 2013

And now for something completely different.....


I feel my little infant Blog is at risk of becoming an Animal Rights activist hate fest, so I have decided to post something completely different and fun.

This post is based solely from my own experience:

How (not) to change the transmission oil on a tractor:

1.       Climb under tractor to check drain plug size

2.       Climb out and get socket and oil tray/drums

3.       Climb under tractor and attempt to remove drain plug

4.       Climb out from under tractor and get correct size socket

5.       Climb under tractor and attempt to remove drain plug

6.       Climb out from under tractor and find a length of pipe to put on socket handle to loosen overtight bolt

7.       Climb under tractor and attempt to remove drain plug

8.       Drop socket just out of reach

9.       Climb out from under tractor, go around other side and retrieve socket

10.   Climb back under tractor and attempt to remove drain plug

11.   Knock skin off knuckles, swear

12.   Retrieve socket from where it landed after being ejected in fit of rage

13.   Remove drain plug

14.   Let oil run down arm and drip off elbow

15.   swear

16.   Drop drain plug

17.   Put drum under drain plug with bung slightly out of line with oil stream from bunghole

18.   Run more oil down arm

19.   Hold drum up to catch oil flow, allow arm to get tired

20.   Overflow drum, run more oil down arm

21.   Swap drum, repeat steps 17 to 20

22.   Climb out from under tractor (kneel in dogshit if available)

23.   Remove oil drums from under tractor (spill some in the process)

24.   Spend 10 minutes trying to find dropped bung in grass

25.   Rinse off bung

26.   Climb back under tractor and screw in drain plug, search for Socket

27.   Climb out from under tractor and search for socket

28.   Climb under tractor and tighten drain plug

29.   Skin knuckles again

30.   Climb out from under tractor

31.   Spend 10 minutes finding funnel

32.   Get oil and funnel , remove transmission filler cap

33.   Inset funnel

34.   Remove cap from oil drum, pour into funnel

35.   Knock funnel from filler, pour oil down side of transmission

36.   Replace funnel in filler, pour in oil

37.   Repeat steps 33 to 36 3 times minimum

38.   Wipe off dipstick

39.   Start tractor, check for leaks

40.   Blow hydraulic hose and pump half the fresh oil out on the ground

 

 

Saturday, 29 December 2012

Unethical treatment of people part 2

Those of you who read my blog post of yesterday will be aware of my disgust with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) and their ill thought out and ill informed media release calling for landholders who have been affected by bushfires in the gulf to be charged with animal cruelty.

Since my last blog post, this radio interview http://www.abc.net.au/rural/news/content/201212/s3661672.htm has taken place with Clare Fryer.

The interview shows a complete lack of compassion for the producers affected, as well as a complete lack of understanding of what actually happens in Australian agriculture. (She refers to the station owners as "Ranchers")

Anyway, today I stumbled across the Email address for Clare Fryer and I took the opportunity to express my displeasure.

Here is a copy of my email:

Claire

 I was shocked and appalled to firstly read a PETA media release and secondly hear your radio interview on ABC radio regarding the fires in the gulf country.

Your lack of understanding on the topic does you and your organisation little credit in the wider community. while you mention that Farmers (NOT ranchers) have a duty of care to their animals, you repeatedly fail to acknowledge the fact that what has occurred in the gulf IS a natural disaster. I have not herd you calling for prosecutions of livestock owners who have had stock washed away in the floods earlier this year, or for prosecutions of pet owners who lost their animals in these events.

Your latest stunt is yet another thinly veiled attempt to close down any form of livestock production in the north of the country and it is pleasing to see that the minister has treated your claims with the contempt that they deserve.

 Your actions would be better spent assisting in fundraising to provide feed and water for the livestock and native animals left to fend for themselves in the aftermath of this disaster.

 Prosecutions will not save a single animal, if you really want to save the animals, support the producers who are trying their absolute best to save those that remain.

 
Regards

 
Kent Morris
 
I would encourage you all to contact PETA and express your displeasure too. If you want Claire's email, just get in touch.

Thursday, 27 December 2012

Ethical treatment of animals = unethical treatment of people


 

While taking a midday break and watching the cricket on TV, I was browsing the courier mail online when I stumbled across this article: http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/breaking-news/peta-wants-charges-after-qld-cattle-deaths/story-e6freono-1226544033920 to give you a little bit of a background, bushfires swept through the cape some months ago burning huge areas of pasture and destroying fences, waters and infrastructure. The affected landholders have been desperately holding out for the onset of the wet season, which has still not arrived.

Many farmer groups, and even some animal welfare groups, have rallied to the cause by trying to source donated hay, pipe and labour to try and help some of the starving stock.

But not PETA.

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals is an organisation that has long relied on shock tactics and publicity stunts to promote a so called “Cruelty free” world. And once again they have shown their true colours.

It seems that the PETA jerks want to have the farmers charged for cruelty to animals, rather than try to actually help the animals. They claim that the farmers should have been prepared by having feed in storage for these kind of fires and droughts.

I have heard of one farmer who has 50,000 head of cattle on his property that has been completely burned out. Cows have been killed in the fire and abandoned calves make easy pickings for dingoes.

To put it in to context, a bale of hay will provide sustenance for 30 cows for 1 day, to feed 50,000 cows for 1 month on hay alone would require 51,666 bales of hay valued at $60/bale (Plus freight) equals $3.1 million. Beyond the reach of any farmer, all “Animal welfare” groups and most levels of government.

They have also failed to acknowledge that these burned out paddocks and destroyed watering points also provide food water and habitat for thousands of native animals

PETA don’t care about animals, they just care about bashing those people who do around the head.

Tuesday, 20 November 2012

Why animal rights activists will fail


Over the last couple of weeks, there has been much renewed talk about the banning of live exports after a horrific story coming out of Pakistan revealed that 20,000 sheep where needlessly slaughtered in a cruel and horrific manner. I am yet to find one person who thinks what happened in Pakistan is acceptable, but I can find many people who think we should not stop exporting there.

Many of the anthropomorphists who oppose the trade will state that even 1 breach of the ESCAS standards is reason enough to turn our back on the trade and walk away. Yet these same people are not calling for a total ban on all surgeons after the tragedy that occurred at Bundaberg hospital, or a ban on all motor coach transport as a result of the Kempsey bush crash. Why? Because these people will set the standards so high that there is no way any person, including themselves, can achieve it.

Which brings us to the Achilles heel of the anthropomorphist movement, they are never happy with what they get.

Only last week, we saw Animals Australia launch another campaign against the horse racing industry. In the middle of the spring racing season, in the wash up from the Melbourne cup, which has become a national institution, they have come out against horseracing. They are like the divorced, bitter middle aged uncle you only see at family gatherings that when asked how he is will answer, “I’m not well” and will then spend the rest of the evening telling you what is wrong with him and complaining about what every other person in the room has done to him, right down to when your dad stole his iceblock from him when he was 3. Eventually you get to the point that when you see him enter the room, you feign a bout of bubonic plague, just so you can leave the room.

Don’t get me wrong, I in no way condone animal cruelty and I enjoy the company of my animals, but I don’t want to spend an evening being lectured on how dairy farming is rape and to eat an egg is to eat the period of a chook. It is emotive, sensationalist and often factually inaccurate.

Only the other day, I read an article on “The truth about  sheep” on the animals Australia unleashed page http://www.unleashed.org.au/animals/sheep.php to read this, you would think that all sheep farmers where cruel heartless bastards who mustered their sheep once a year to shear them and left them to their own devices. Like most of the bile and vitriol spewed forth by the animal rights groups, there is a little bit of fact, interspersed with a lot of sensationalism, sprinkled with some emotive statements and misrepresentations. Yes, shearers are paid by the head and want to shear them as quick as possible, no that does not mean they are roughly shorn. From an economic standpoint alone, the wool must be evenly and cleanly shorn to receive full value for the clip and a sheep that is cut about at shearing time takes a while to recover, and like any animal, if it is happy, it is productive. As a woolgrower, I can tell you that any shearer who races and knocks the sheep about gets told quick smart to slow down and do the job properly. Rough shearers don’t last long in the industry, they soon improve their skills or find themselves not asked back next year.

I have also noticed that PETA has now come out to allege animal cruelty on the set of “The Hobbit” http://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/movies/jackson-denies-animal-mistreatment-on-hobbit-set-20121120-29n8o.html It seems the Peta radicals are calling for people to boycott the film when it opens in cinemas. Good Luck with that, I think the call for those obsessed with high fantasy boycotting the movie will have as much chance as a cream bun in a room of fat kids. It’s not gunna happen.

So this brings me back to my initial point, the Animal Welfare lobby looks like a worthwhile cause at first glance when they are calling for someone who drowns kittens to be held accountable, but as they go on, they develop more and more outrageous demands  that affect the daily life of more and more people. They continually demand more, start a new campaign, piss a few more people off. Yes they will have a win occasionally, but as they continue their campaigns, they will impact on more and more average Australians in a negative way. Eventually, there will be no-one left to support them, with the possible exception of an unwashed Lezzo with dreadlocks, wearing hemp knickers that smells of pot smoke.

Should we be worried about groups like PETA and Animals Australia? Absolutely. Will they ultimately succeed? Not a chance.

Sunday, 28 October 2012

I update this blog far too infrequently. Life just seems to get in the way I guess.

The other day, I was searching for a poem my dad wrote about his working dogs, when I got to thinking about my working dogs. one thing led to another, so I decided to write my own poem about my own working dogs and here it is. I still haven't found dad's yet tho....


The Kelpie

 

The sun is rising slowly through the mulga and the box

The day is slowly dawning over parched and broken rocks

The sheep they need a shifting as the waters cutting out

It’ll kill off all the cattle lest the rains don’t break the drought

 

We have no choice but shift them to find some more sparse feed

But the day is getting hotter and there’s not much of a breeze

We drift around them slowly as we look over the mob

A streak of red shoots to the lead, a little kelpie dog

 

It’s Joolia, the kelpie, a mighty little hound

Out the front and in the lead is where she will be found

She’ll set ‘em and she’ll block ‘em as we walk the stock away

She’ll drift and block and tuck them in and do it all the day

 

And as the heat is rising and the mob, it starts to break,

A call will rise for Sophie and the job will be OK

The black and tan trooper, bred down in the south

A faithful, loyal worker who will never let you down

 

But now we steady down as we’ve reached the end at last,

We count the mob out through the gate to our last patch of grass

We wait and hope and hold our breath for the coming of the rains

When once again the stock grow fat out on the western plains

 

A bang, a crack a deafening roar as down comes thunderous rain

We wait to see at daylight how much water in the gauge

The rain keeps slowly falling over coming weeks and days

The grass it is returning to the verdant western plains

 

The wool is bold and lustrous now on the backs of robust sheep

The cows are fat and shiny and the calves are big and sleek

We’ll have to muster in the mob and draft and shear and brand

They’ll be fast now through the mulga as they are brought to hand

 

They streak up through the ridges and down along the creek,

It’s time to send the big guns in and send in Boy and Dee

The black and brown will block the lead and turn the mob right back

They’ll use the tooth to turn them they won’t cut them any slack.

 

And trigger too will back them up and block and push and drive

There’s not a beast outrun her although many have but tried

The little streak of lightning a jet of darkest black

She’s one of the all rounders who’ll give anything a crack.

 

And let’s not forget our Lilly, the sister of streak

She’s a tough but gentle trooper who is nimble on her feet

She looks all sweet an innocent as she as she keeps the mob along

But she’ll bite the bloody bastards if they’re taking far too long

 

I have no time for trial dogs, there’s no secret in that fact

They worry all about the looks and how they move and act.

My Kelpies style is ugly and the job looks bloody rough

But of style, and points and prancing, I couldn’t give a stuff.

 

I’d be stuffed without my kelpies, of that there is no doubt

For without them I’d be busted up with bikes all smashed about

My mutts are worth a dozen men, they’re loyal, straight and true

They never ask for nothing  ‘cept a bag or two of food

 

So please don’t be offended if I turn down the request

Of a rough and tumble ringer who claims to be the best

For I’m sure my dogs will show him up and leave him looking dumb

And they’re always there to help me, they never leave my run

 

 

So through the drought and through the floods and all that in between

My dogs will stand beside me as a solid working team

I know they’re not the best of breed, of that there is no doubt

But they’ll do for a close second, oh yes “KELPIE” is the shout.