– Our First AI Calves are Born –
– The first annual Southern Highland Cattle Association Spring Classic –
– Information on Purchasing a Calf –
On December 23rd of 2024, an historic event occurred at Elm Hollow Farm. Our very 1st AI calf was born and he is a beauty! Elm Hollow’s Heather did an outstanding job with her bull calf sired by Wild River Bear.
Not to be outdone, on Christmas day AI calves #2 and #3. LEA Nocturne gave us Nowell (#37), sired by DuBoise Le Coq.
Then Loc Moire NicAodhan presented us with Nicholas, sired by Rioghail of Balmoral -7599.
And 2024 had one more nice surprise for us.
On 12/31/25 Elm Hollow’s New Year’s Eva was born to Muirneag 3rd of VH. Her sire is Trafalgar Blain.
That wrapped up 2024, but the calving season isn’t over, just the year. Refer to Newsletter #36 to see how this season began. https://elmhollowfarm.com/issue-36-calving-season-begins/
In 2024, our calves were given names that started with “N”, so you might expect 2025 to see “O” names in 2025. We’d worked on a list and soon realized there were some challenges with that and moved on to “P” which was much more productive. Then, consulting the AHCA naming calendar, discovered that 2025 had been declared an “R” year. So here we go with a whole new slate of names.
Our very first calf for 2025 was a much sought after son of Davidson MacDonald VI born on 1/16. I almost missed him when I did my morning walk through the pastures.
CaitlinRudah of Legacy is one of our best proportioned cows. She is a great, gentle mother and wanted me to see her fine son, Elm Hollow’s Regal Lad. Lad will be residing here at least until age two. His sire is well known for producing champions.
Nailed It! , Roseanna, and Regal Lad were hanging out together, sleeping in the sun. I guess I got too close for comfort, so one at a time they stood up, ready to run just like mama said to do.
Phase 3 of calving this season will be our calves sired by our herd sire, WKA Braxton. Braxton took 1st in his class in the annual virtual show in 2023. We had so many things happening in 2024 that I missed the deadline for entry, but I’ll get him entered in 2025. The next group of calves were all sired by Braxton.
On 1/21/25, LEA Never Enough had a lovely daughter, Elm Hollow’s Rosebud.
Elm Hollow’s Roy was born to PHF Chocolate Pudding on 1/27/25. Roy was a bit slow to catch on to the whole nursing thing, but once he figured it out, he began to grow like a weed!
CSF Honeysuckle is very proud of her little heifer, Elm Hollow’s Roseanna (#12) was born on 2/2/25; so proud that she wants to keep her all to herself.
Honeysuckle is as sweet as her name implies most of the time, but she is one of those mama’s that will give you pause if you get too close to the baby.
Windemere Dare has never had a calf that I didn’t want to keep. This year was no exception. Our first picture of Elm Hollow’s River on her birthday, 2/9/25, was thought of a dun heifer calf.
Two days later, River looked red. But wait, her nose is dark. Is she brindle? No, today she looks dun again. Rivers are always changing.
Calving was progressing routinely with no major hiccups until the morning of 2/11/25. Just the afternoon before I’d sent a picture of Pae’s Ashas Raisinette resting in the calving shed and looking very near to calving.
I did a little mucking out and Bruce brought in a bale of hay since rain was in the forecast. Meanwhile, Raisinette went up into the pasture to join the other expectant mothers, and we figured she’d decided not to let go of her hostage just yet.
We were wrong! Early the next morning, Raisinette had not one, but two beautiful heifer calves! Our past experiences with twins had not been great, and we were skeptical. Raisinette, however, just took everything in stride. She cleaned both babies, got them up to nurse and made it look easy! We are so proud of this mama.
The Southern Highland Cattle Association is now Official!
The first annual Southern Highland Cattle Association Spring Classic is just around the corner!
There is still time to enter. Hope to see you March 8th, 2025 at Clemson University for the SHCA Spring Classic. Get your farm recognized by sponsoring a class, division, Champion or Reserve Champion at the Spring Classic!
Here is the link for sponsorship or show entry:
Information on Purchasing a Calf from Elm Hollow Farm
Questions and Answers
Can I make a deposit on a calf to hold it?
- We do not take deposits to hold a calf until the time a calf is sold. When a sale is agreed on, a 10% deposit will hold the sold calf for 30 days to give the buyer time to arrange for transport of the calf. Thereafter, a boarding fee of $3.00 per day will apply.
- There are sometimes exceptions made to this for specific purpose calves suited for the education about and promotion of the Highland breed.
When will the calves in this newsletter be sold?
- The birth date of each calf is stated in this newsletter. Calves are weaned at 6-7 months and at that time will begin halter training and be seen by our vet to ensure that there are no health issues. They will also receive vaccinations so the buyer can be assured they are getting a healthy calf.
- Look at a calf’s birth date and add about 7 months to that date. When a calf is ready to be sold, a special news brief about that specific calf or pair of calves in some cases will be sent to all subscribers to our newsletter.
Can I come and see the calves in person before I commit to purchasing?
- Yes, Elm Hollow Farm offers tours where you can meet the cows and see the calves. We do charge for tours, but if you find the calf you want and do end up purchasing a calf when it is ready, the cost of the tour will be deducted from the sale price of the calf. Here is the link to our tour information: https://elmhollowfarm.com/farm-tours/
How much are the calves?
- Calves vary in price according to their conformation to breed standards, temperament, genetics, and gender. I will look at prices of comparable calves and determine the least amount I am willing to sell a calf for. That price will be stated in the sale brief. On the date of the sale, all the people who have expressed an interest in that calf will have an opportunity to make offers on the calf through a modified auction process that spans 1-2 hours during which all bidders are updated on the offers being made for the calf. Because there is no way to tell you the final sale price, we have kept a record of all our sales for the past two years and made them available on our website. If a calf has two prices, the first is the minimum price and the second is the price it actually sold for during our sale. Here is the link to that information.
https://elmhollowfarm.com/highlands-for-sale/
Before You Buy
There are things to consider:
- What are your goals? Do you just want pasture pets? Do you want to raise a few calves to sell? Do you want to provide beef for your family? Do you want a 4H project for a child?
- Do you have facilities in place to handle your Highlands when the vet needs to give them a shot or do some other type of treatment?
- Do you have a source of hay for winter and a place to store that hay?
- Are your fences secure?
- Do you have shade and a source of good water for the heat of the summer?
Now, where do you see yourself with your Highlands two or three years down the road? Please share that information with me if you plan to bid. I want you to be happy with the calf/calves you choose and I may be able to steer you (pun intended) in the right direction if I know what you are looking for.
When I say that you can’t have just one Highland, remember that these are baby cows. They are herd animals, and they will be frightened when they leave here for an unfamiliar place. I’ve heard many sad stories from people who have purchased a lone calf, put it in the pasture and after a day or two can’t find it. That calf has either broken out of the fence to go in search of other cows or has injured itself in a frantic attempt to find companionship. So far, that has not happened to any from Elm Hollow, but that’s because we always make sure there is a companion animal with the calves we sell.
If you are looking for pasture pets and do not intend to raise calves or if you are looking for a 4H project, I highly recommend that you consider steers. Steers are even tempered, they are less expensive than heifers, and they are not likely to jump the fence in search of cows when love is in the air.