From an early age, Letitia Horn had a fascination for Ayrshires. As the family farm is a Jersey Stud, there were no Ayrshires in the herd, so Letitia would only see them at cattle shows.
At the age of twelve, whilst attending the sale with her father, Peter, at the annual NZ Dairy Event, Letitia spotted a beautiful Ayrshire calf and asked her Dad if she could buy her.
“I saw this cute red and white animal,” said Letitia. “I told Dad I would use all of my savings, which to be fair, wasn’t that much.”
Not to be outbidded, Peter bought the calf ‘Premier Dreamer Burleigh.’
At that point, Letitia just thought the calf would eventually become part of the herd and she would show her.
It was not until a few years later that Letitia decided to take a step aside and get into the breeding for herself, having the challenge that was away from the Jersey cows and everything her Dad had taught her.
From that first cow, Letitia bred a daughter, Allandale Burdette Burlesque, which took out the title of Junior Ayrshire Champion at the Dairy Event. This was her first Champion win. From there, her daughter, Rubicon Burleigh also became a Junior Ayrshire Champion and then got second in her class as a two-year-old. The following year in 2023, she was placed second in the three-year-old class and went on to achieve Reserve Intermediate Champion to the Ayrshire who won Champion of the whole show.
Today, Letitia has 12 ‘Allandale’ Ayrshires in the 220 cow herd, made up of four different families.
Letitia has found that they are much harder to breed because they have a smaller gene pool and tend to throw back to the ‘old school Ayrshire.’ She can see the potential they have and has the need to want to help other Ayrshire breeders in New Zealand to take the next step further to help make them what they could be.
“It’s an interesting challenge and it’s a big thing for me,” said Letitia. “I believe we can get them to the point where the Ayrshire show is as good as the Jerseys and Holsteins.”
Letitia said in terms of character, the Ayrshires are very loyal and hearty. First you have to earn their trust and when you do, they are the coolest to work with.
“All of my Ayrshire cows love me,” said Letitia. “And they won’t have a bar of anyone else.”
The characteristics of the cattle are very important to Letitia because she sees them as her family.
“I spend so much time with the animals not just during show time but also on the farm,” she said. “This is the most satisfying part of farming to me.”
Letitia is very thankful for everything that her father has taught her about animal husbandry and has never seen him give up on any animal no matter how important or good they are on paper. As a fifth generation farmer, she manages the 70ha family farm near Fielding with Peter still very involved each day.
“Dad has taught me that the cows always come first, and they really are our family. Generations before us were the same but it feels deeper than that. It is a feeling I can’t describe. It is in my blood I guess.”
Most of the herd is Jerseys and is the oldest owned family Jersey Stud in New Zealand.
Letitia has found that Jerseys have a character that shows they never want to give up. She said, if they get sick, no matter how depleted their body is, they just keep on pushing. Letitia said she has been quite touched by this because if you see someone in that much pain, you would think that the easiest thing to do would be to give up, but they never do.
During the calving season, Letitia checks the cows each night, sometimes every 2-3 hours if the weather is cold. She said she finds it peaceful and satisfying when they are at their most vulnerable, but they trust you to help them.
“Sometimes I think that how soft I am can become a fault as it can have negative effects especially when I am not running on much sleep, but I wouldn’t change it.”
