My name is Austin Taylor
I am 71 years of age, been on the land my whole life and had some wonderful dogs.
Currently I have had Sophie some three years, having purchased her when she was two and was basically trained for sheep and cattle.
I have trained Ridgebacks to high levels of obedience and competed them all over Australia. I have won Obedience competitions in Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales with them and trained the first Rhodesian
Ridgeback to ever gain an Agility Dog Title in Australia on the 23rd September 1990.
I have worked sheep dogs since 1967 to the present and my current dog is the best of them. She is a dominant bitch, but so stable, intelligent and intuitive that she amazes me with what she adapts to. Not only is she an excellent sheep dog, a capable cattle dog but I am now also using her as a dingo sensing dog as I am now professionally trapping wild dogs.
She sleeps on the verandah in a solid kennel, can see me at the kitchen window during the night or first thing in the morning. Temperatures drop to minus 4 here some nights and there is nearly always a frost during the winter, I am 600 feet below the snow line.
Sophie is wonderfully obedient but at the same time capable of decision making that is absolutely essential with a good working dog. Her loyalty is unquestioning and she gives every bit of 100 percent to you. An indication of this is that she has never left a mob to get a drink or cool down in a trough, leaves that until the sheep or cows are yarded and then heads for what she needs. Constantly maintains eye contact with you at all times.
I can recommend this line of working dogs to anyone who needs a good reliable dog and believe me they make wonderful companions too, Sophie talks to me and I let her spend at least ten minutes a day on my lap as reward for the effort she makes daily to make my life easy.
Her breeders have kept in touch ever since I bought her and they will give you every help you may need to get the best out of any pup or dog you are fortunate enough that they entrust you with.
I can only say Sophie is worth every cent I have ever spent on her, put your initial training in and be firm but consistent, and never cruel and a Farogan dog will serve you to the end.
Wonderful dogs and wonderful people, I recommend them to anyone.
(June 2020)
I am 71 years of age, been on the land my whole life and had some wonderful dogs.
Currently I have had Sophie some three years, having purchased her when she was two and was basically trained for sheep and cattle.
I have trained Ridgebacks to high levels of obedience and competed them all over Australia. I have won Obedience competitions in Western Australia, Northern Territory, Queensland, New South Wales with them and trained the first Rhodesian
Ridgeback to ever gain an Agility Dog Title in Australia on the 23rd September 1990.
I have worked sheep dogs since 1967 to the present and my current dog is the best of them. She is a dominant bitch, but so stable, intelligent and intuitive that she amazes me with what she adapts to. Not only is she an excellent sheep dog, a capable cattle dog but I am now also using her as a dingo sensing dog as I am now professionally trapping wild dogs.
She sleeps on the verandah in a solid kennel, can see me at the kitchen window during the night or first thing in the morning. Temperatures drop to minus 4 here some nights and there is nearly always a frost during the winter, I am 600 feet below the snow line.
Sophie is wonderfully obedient but at the same time capable of decision making that is absolutely essential with a good working dog. Her loyalty is unquestioning and she gives every bit of 100 percent to you. An indication of this is that she has never left a mob to get a drink or cool down in a trough, leaves that until the sheep or cows are yarded and then heads for what she needs. Constantly maintains eye contact with you at all times.
I can recommend this line of working dogs to anyone who needs a good reliable dog and believe me they make wonderful companions too, Sophie talks to me and I let her spend at least ten minutes a day on my lap as reward for the effort she makes daily to make my life easy.
Her breeders have kept in touch ever since I bought her and they will give you every help you may need to get the best out of any pup or dog you are fortunate enough that they entrust you with.
I can only say Sophie is worth every cent I have ever spent on her, put your initial training in and be firm but consistent, and never cruel and a Farogan dog will serve you to the end.
Wonderful dogs and wonderful people, I recommend them to anyone.
(June 2020)
Keitley's kicking goals with Droughties
Matt Sherrington - Qld Country Life
24 Aug 2018, 1 p.m.
Little beauties: The Keitley's recently received their first drop calves by the bulls they bought from Nick and Sarah Hughes, Farogan Valley, at the 2017 Droughtmaster National Sale, and said they're very impressed with the overall quality of the progeny.
The Keitley family have successfully been using the Droughtmaster breed for many years, with the Droughtmaster National sale providing them with a great avenue to buy bulls which they use to bolster their homegrown breeding herd.
Darren and Renee Keitley, own and run Glassfordvale which they purchased in 2001 in partnership with Darren’s parents Neville and Jannette.
The 9000-hectare property is situated at the head of the Boyne Valley, on the Monto border and lies on mountainous semi-coastal country comprising of large tracts of Blue Gum flats, through which the Boyne River flows.
Glassfordvale is the Keitley’s primary breeding block for their near pure Droughtmaster operation.
Darren said they also do a bit of fattening at Glassfordvale, but from their 2250 head operation most of their steers are grown and finished at the Keitley’s other properties; Salty Flats (245ha), in Bancroft, Spring-Sierra (500ha) near Monto, and a 120ha block in Mulgilidie.”
The Keitley's: Renee and Darren Keitley at their 9000 hectare home property Glassfordvale with their children Charlotte, Darcy and Chloe.
They bought Salty Flats in 2016, to allow them to spread out the herd so they can focus more on growing and breeding at Glassfordvale.
“Down the line, we’re looking at purchasing another block near Biloela, as we sell a lot of our cull cows and spayed heifers to Teys there.
“We’ve been getting excellent weight gains on the semi-scrub country at Salty Flats, which is allowing us to turn off our cattle younger and quicker, we’re even able to get MSA grading on them sometimes, which is something we’re looking to achieve more consistently."
Darren said of the close to 30 bulls they use within the operation only two aren’t Droughtmaster’s, which they plan to phase out when they’re finished as sires.
“We’ve been using Droughties pretty much since we purchased Glassfordvale," he said.
“We think they’re a great breed, they’re a fertile, easy doing beast which use our mountainous country very well, and they’re easy to sell into the feed on market; they’re just good all-around animals.
“Being in ticky country, the slick coat of the high Brahman-content Droughtie is also a big benefit, if we do have any come through with hair on them they’re quickly culled out of the herd.”
He said they strive to produce a good even line of cattle, with quiet temperaments, while attempting to improve their breeding herd from which steers are sold at 320-400kg to the feed on market.
He said the feedlot sector is a good market to sell into.
"It offers us with an avenue to get the steers off the property by the time they’re 18 months to two-years-old, and while the price fluctuates quite a bit, we were getting spoiled in that regard for quite a while before they came down.
“We seem to be on the right track as we never have a problem selling the steers."
Renee said they’re down on numbers at present, as they cashed in on the high prices being offered last year.
“In hindsight, it was probably a good decision as we managed to reduce the herd size and make good money before the dry set in."
She said the two years of strong prices, afforded them the opportunity to start paying off Glassfordvale.
“That’s really helping us out now financially, during the current harder season.”
Renee said a lot of work has gone into building up Glassfordale, which she said was a bit run down when they bought it.
"We’ve spent a lot of money on water infrastructure, primarily through the installation of solar pumps, which has reduced our labour costs," she said.
“We also put a lot of money into timber control, which has really helped out our cattle and improved the condition of breeders.
“We have a full time locally contracted employee who tordons for us, and sprays for noxious weeds.”
Due to the dry, the Keitley’s have also modified the joining period in the operation with the bulls now being put in with the breeders in November.
“We’d always started in September, but we were noticing that the heifers were dropping their calves in the middle of winter and they were losing conditioning,” Renee said.
“By shifting to a November start, the calves are now arriving when we’re coming out of the cool, which has helped across the entire herd as we’re achieving better calving percentages, and they’re holding their weight better," she said.
Darren said they improve their breeders internally, which is why they don’t mind spending good money on bulls to put over them, which in turn bolsters the genetic diversity and positive traits they’re looking to incorporate into the herd.
“We just want to keep improving on the cattle we’re producing, which is why the Droughtmaster National is great for us as we can access a stack of data, and cross-reference that information with the traits we need to bring into the herd and really go after the bulls we want that fit those requirements.
“We initially invested a lot of money in bulls from the Childs family, Glenlands Droughtmasters, Theodore, and once we got enough of their genetics to get us off on the right foot with our breeding program we started attending the National sale to diversify our bloodlines.
“We’ve been going to the sale for a decade now, and there are always so many great bulls to choose from.
Renee said at the last two sale’s they’ve purchased “really good bulls” from Nick and Sarah Hughes, Farogan Valley Droughtmasters, Upper Kandanga.
“The calves from the Farogan Valley bulls we purchased in 2016 have been weaned, and the bulls we bought last year are dropping calves now and they look beautiful, they’re quiet, little, look almost identical to each other, and have the same look as their sire, basically they’re everything you look for in a Droughtie calf.
“When we see great results like this in the progeny, it tells us that we’re going to get good lines of breeders and that the bulls have the qualities we require."
Darren said while they've had success with the Farogan Valley bulls, they don’t chase specific studs.
“If we see a bull we like that tick’s all the boxes, that’s the one we’ll buy.”
Renee said that Darren and their daughter Chloe love going to the sale together.
“Chloe’s in Year 7, and wants to be a vet, she’s also right into cattle club at her school, and she has a great eye for a good bull."
With Chloe and their son children Darcy at boarding school and their youngest Charlotte at primary school, Darren and Renee are kept busy managing the properties and looking after their homestead, which receives a lot of praise from visitors.
“We bought a camper to go on a trip a while back, but we ended up just parking it right on the dam at home, as we think there is no better place to be, with the cows roaming around beside us," Renee said.
“We love the country, it affords us a great lifestyle.
“They’ll have to cart us out of here in a box,” she said with a laugh.
Matt Sherrington - Qld Country Life
24 Aug 2018, 1 p.m.
Little beauties: The Keitley's recently received their first drop calves by the bulls they bought from Nick and Sarah Hughes, Farogan Valley, at the 2017 Droughtmaster National Sale, and said they're very impressed with the overall quality of the progeny.
The Keitley family have successfully been using the Droughtmaster breed for many years, with the Droughtmaster National sale providing them with a great avenue to buy bulls which they use to bolster their homegrown breeding herd.
Darren and Renee Keitley, own and run Glassfordvale which they purchased in 2001 in partnership with Darren’s parents Neville and Jannette.
The 9000-hectare property is situated at the head of the Boyne Valley, on the Monto border and lies on mountainous semi-coastal country comprising of large tracts of Blue Gum flats, through which the Boyne River flows.
Glassfordvale is the Keitley’s primary breeding block for their near pure Droughtmaster operation.
Darren said they also do a bit of fattening at Glassfordvale, but from their 2250 head operation most of their steers are grown and finished at the Keitley’s other properties; Salty Flats (245ha), in Bancroft, Spring-Sierra (500ha) near Monto, and a 120ha block in Mulgilidie.”
The Keitley's: Renee and Darren Keitley at their 9000 hectare home property Glassfordvale with their children Charlotte, Darcy and Chloe.
They bought Salty Flats in 2016, to allow them to spread out the herd so they can focus more on growing and breeding at Glassfordvale.
“Down the line, we’re looking at purchasing another block near Biloela, as we sell a lot of our cull cows and spayed heifers to Teys there.
“We’ve been getting excellent weight gains on the semi-scrub country at Salty Flats, which is allowing us to turn off our cattle younger and quicker, we’re even able to get MSA grading on them sometimes, which is something we’re looking to achieve more consistently."
Darren said of the close to 30 bulls they use within the operation only two aren’t Droughtmaster’s, which they plan to phase out when they’re finished as sires.
“We’ve been using Droughties pretty much since we purchased Glassfordvale," he said.
“We think they’re a great breed, they’re a fertile, easy doing beast which use our mountainous country very well, and they’re easy to sell into the feed on market; they’re just good all-around animals.
“Being in ticky country, the slick coat of the high Brahman-content Droughtie is also a big benefit, if we do have any come through with hair on them they’re quickly culled out of the herd.”
He said they strive to produce a good even line of cattle, with quiet temperaments, while attempting to improve their breeding herd from which steers are sold at 320-400kg to the feed on market.
He said the feedlot sector is a good market to sell into.
"It offers us with an avenue to get the steers off the property by the time they’re 18 months to two-years-old, and while the price fluctuates quite a bit, we were getting spoiled in that regard for quite a while before they came down.
“We seem to be on the right track as we never have a problem selling the steers."
Renee said they’re down on numbers at present, as they cashed in on the high prices being offered last year.
“In hindsight, it was probably a good decision as we managed to reduce the herd size and make good money before the dry set in."
She said the two years of strong prices, afforded them the opportunity to start paying off Glassfordvale.
“That’s really helping us out now financially, during the current harder season.”
Renee said a lot of work has gone into building up Glassfordale, which she said was a bit run down when they bought it.
"We’ve spent a lot of money on water infrastructure, primarily through the installation of solar pumps, which has reduced our labour costs," she said.
“We also put a lot of money into timber control, which has really helped out our cattle and improved the condition of breeders.
“We have a full time locally contracted employee who tordons for us, and sprays for noxious weeds.”
Due to the dry, the Keitley’s have also modified the joining period in the operation with the bulls now being put in with the breeders in November.
“We’d always started in September, but we were noticing that the heifers were dropping their calves in the middle of winter and they were losing conditioning,” Renee said.
“By shifting to a November start, the calves are now arriving when we’re coming out of the cool, which has helped across the entire herd as we’re achieving better calving percentages, and they’re holding their weight better," she said.
Darren said they improve their breeders internally, which is why they don’t mind spending good money on bulls to put over them, which in turn bolsters the genetic diversity and positive traits they’re looking to incorporate into the herd.
“We just want to keep improving on the cattle we’re producing, which is why the Droughtmaster National is great for us as we can access a stack of data, and cross-reference that information with the traits we need to bring into the herd and really go after the bulls we want that fit those requirements.
“We initially invested a lot of money in bulls from the Childs family, Glenlands Droughtmasters, Theodore, and once we got enough of their genetics to get us off on the right foot with our breeding program we started attending the National sale to diversify our bloodlines.
“We’ve been going to the sale for a decade now, and there are always so many great bulls to choose from.
Renee said at the last two sale’s they’ve purchased “really good bulls” from Nick and Sarah Hughes, Farogan Valley Droughtmasters, Upper Kandanga.
“The calves from the Farogan Valley bulls we purchased in 2016 have been weaned, and the bulls we bought last year are dropping calves now and they look beautiful, they’re quiet, little, look almost identical to each other, and have the same look as their sire, basically they’re everything you look for in a Droughtie calf.
“When we see great results like this in the progeny, it tells us that we’re going to get good lines of breeders and that the bulls have the qualities we require."
Darren said while they've had success with the Farogan Valley bulls, they don’t chase specific studs.
“If we see a bull we like that tick’s all the boxes, that’s the one we’ll buy.”
Renee said that Darren and their daughter Chloe love going to the sale together.
“Chloe’s in Year 7, and wants to be a vet, she’s also right into cattle club at her school, and she has a great eye for a good bull."
With Chloe and their son children Darcy at boarding school and their youngest Charlotte at primary school, Darren and Renee are kept busy managing the properties and looking after their homestead, which receives a lot of praise from visitors.
“We bought a camper to go on a trip a while back, but we ended up just parking it right on the dam at home, as we think there is no better place to be, with the cows roaming around beside us," Renee said.
“We love the country, it affords us a great lifestyle.
“They’ll have to cart us out of here in a box,” she said with a laugh.