ASHLEY Hall is on her way to Angus stud stardom.
She now has two cows, one with daughter and expecting, the other with a son at foot, plus a young bull and a bit of luck in the show ring and breeding programs.
The 17-year-old Parkes, NSW, stud owner who has just finished Year 11 at Red Bend Catholic College, Forbes, NSW, is looking to a future with livestock, preferably with Angus cattle.
Miss Hall’s small herd of five head was established a couple of years ago and already she has one heifer named using her own stud prefix, “Infinity”, based on her parent’s mixed-farming property, “Taraloo”, near Parkes.
The three females and the older bull are dinky-di show exhibits, having been led around the judging ring at Eugowra, Forbes, Condobolin, Tullamore and Bathurst shows in NSW, just to mention a few.
Her own Infinity Kansas K1 has gained first prize ribbons at some of the local shows while its mother, Hollywood Little Bit Cheyenne H33, was reserve champion female at Royal Bathurst Show in 2014 and the others have a string of ribbons too.
Infinity Kansas K1 began its show career as a three-day-old calf Ashley’s mother, Toni, pushed in a wheelbarrow behind Hollywood Little Bit Cheyenne H33.
In 2013 Miss Hall was awarded sixth place in the state schools parading competition and has qualified for this section again this year at Sydney Royal after competing at the qualifying Eugowra Show.
Her cattle grooming and parading career began as a Year 8 student with the Red Bend cattle show team in which she became a regular at shows prior to showing her own stock.
“While with the school team I began helping other studs by leading their cattle at the shows we attended,” she said.
“This then led to me helping the Frecklingtons of Hollywood stud, Peak Hill NSW, who I bought my females and bull from.”
Miss Hall said the Hollywood experience was excellent and she was so excited at buying the stock from Lynne and Ian Frecklington.
She has been working at the Red Bend GrainCorp silo sample testing grain and has found more work between now and February when she begins a Certificate III Agriculture course at Tocal Agricultural College, Paterson, NSW.
She then plans to complete her diploma and a wool classer’s certificate.
“I want to be able to conduct my own artificial breeding program in the future and will complete an AI course some time next year as well,” she said.
Embryo transfers are also on the radar.
Miss Hall’s dreams of owning and showing a Sydney Royal Show grand champion may not be all that far away, but in the meantime, she’ll do her best in the paraders’ ring and concentrate on breeding that elusive broad-ribbon winner.