By David Jons
Pennsylvania Ayrshires were
front and center as the World Aryshire Conference continued on their tour on Sunday,
September 25th.
First on the itinerary was
Maulfair Acres located in Jonestown, Pennsylvania owned by Dale and Pattie
Maulfair with their son David and wife Rachel recently purchasing the herd.
Dale and Pattie Maulfair
Dave and Rachel Maulfair
After a delicious lunch we
viewed the 75 cow herd consisting of 30 Ayrshires with a rolling herd average
of 22, 600 lbs. of milk and 45 Holsteins with a rolling herd average of 29,800
lbs. of milk. Cows are milked 2X with no BST and fed a TMR.
Many of the Ayrshires in the
herd trace their pedigrees to some of the most well-known Ayrshire herds in the
United States and Canada. Some are family members of All-American, World Dairy
Expo and Royal Winter Fair Champions.
Maulfair Acres Tri-Star Creampuff EX-91 4E
Mega-Star Burdette Bells EX-92
Mega-Star Burdette Bells EX-92
A couple of David’s barn
favorites are Maulfair Acres Tri-Star Creampuff EX-91 4E with lifetime
production to date of 206,533 lbs. of milk and Mega-Star Burdette Bells EX-92
with a record of over 25,000 lbs. of milk.
In addition to viewing a top
notch herd of cows, Dale had a few of the automobiles and tractors on display
from his collection.
Don and Pam Gable welcome the Ayrshire tour group to their farm.
Continuing through the state
to our next stop at Conebella Farm in Elverson, Pennsylvania owned by Don and
Pam Gable. A fourth generation dairyman, Don and his family have a herd of 115
Ayrshire cows that generate a rolling herd average of 19,000 lbs. of milk with
4.1% fat and 3.1% protein.
In addition to dairying,
Conebella Farm is also involved in two other business ventures: a cheese making
business using 10% of their current milk production and a hay business selling
high quality grass hay to mostly local horse owners.
Conebella Percy’s Tiva VG-88
Conebella Percy’s Tiva VG-88
Some of the standouts in the
herd are Conebella Percy’s Tiva VG-88 with 3-01 2X 365 25,290 5.1 1286 3.9 978
and she is the number 4 ranked cow on the Elite List.
Conebella Percy’s Lavonia
GP-83 at 2-09 and she is the number 10 ranked cow on the Elite List.
Conebella Avenger’s Dove
EX-91 3E with a lifetime to date of 163,515 lbs. of Milk 6,113 lbs. of Fat and
5,077 lbs. of Protein.
The evening was topped off
with a savory meal of smoked and BBQ pork with all the fixings.