COMMUNITY
you have bred. You want folk
to see your show record and
think “They must be good animals,”
and come to you fi rst.
It’s a sacrifi ce to do it – feeding,
haulage and time spent are all
expensive, and you’ll be working
on it for months before, but
I do enjoy doing it.”
Blackface sheep
John MacPherson, Balliemeanoch
Farm, Portsonachan (near
Dalmally)
Prizes: Trophies for Blackface
sheep at Dalmally Show, Lorn
Show and others
Success story: “If you’ve got
a good one, you know you’ve
got a good one. We’ve had fi ve
or six years of very good showing.
The ewe we used to show
was called Prosecco, and she
won at umpteen shows, but
now she’s older, so we’re trying
to fi nd a new Prosecco!
“A show is months and
months of preparation, but it
can change overnight depending
on what happens – one
might go lame or break its horn
– you’ve got to have a team,
then pick the best. Even at
lambing, within a few hours of
them being born, you’re starting
to think ‘this or that one
might be a show one’.”
View: “It’s about promoting
your stock and advertising the
produce that’s there. And it’s
a hobby – other folk play golf,
and as a farmer, this is what
we do. You’ve got the comradeship,
the craic with all your
pals, and the fact you’re trying
to beat them!”
10 | AUGUST 2018
West Coast Agricultural Shows 2018
Lismore Show
21 July, Isle of Lismore
Kintyre Show
3 August, Campbeltown
Lorn Show
4 August, Tralee Beach, Oban
Bute Show
8 August, Rothesay
Mid Argyll Show
11 August, Kilmory, Lochgilphead
Appin Show
18 August, Appin
Dalmally Show
1 September, Dalmally
The above list is a local selection.
See your local newspaper
for full listings including island shows.