Paula Hynes: Cashel Blue on the menu at Dualla show

A first visit to Dualla Show in Tipp was memorable for Paula as Jersey cow Cash won two championship sashes

Cash marked her return to the show ring with two championship sashes including the Cashel Blue Dairy Cow of the Year.

Katie Taylor defied the odds and put women’s boxing on the map, culminating in a global show on Saturday night. Similarly, Dualla Show has defied the odds. 

While many agricultural shows are struggling to survive financially, the team of volunteers behind Dualla Show has created a show that is so successful, it has pumped over a quarter of a million euro back into its local community, which has developed a community centre, car parks and a sports field.

This was our first trip to Dualla Show and, from the moment we neared the livestock area, there was a huge, warm welcome from all the volunteers and everyone was so helpful.

Our trip was somewhat like a date, as it was just myself and Pete because the girls were busy and stayed at home. Our trusted dairy companions on our romantic agri-show date were Cash and Kaela, two Jerseys.

Cash returns to the show ring

Some of you might remember Cash, who joined us last season as a first-lactation cow from Potterswalls Jerseys in Co Down. She went on to win the Jersey heifer-in-milk class at the National Dairy Show on her first outing.

Well, Cash calved recently and, now in her second lactation, she has developed really well and is a cow we are hugely excited about. She just loves her job as a show cow and, from the moment she calved, we have gone the extra mile every day with her: daily washing, her udder moisturised three times a day and 15 minutes’ grazing on the halter every day.

The one thing we were unsure about was whether we should show her so fresh, but we felt she would benefit from the show.

Eddie Barrett was officiating as dairy judge and is no stranger to judging top show cattle. The Barretts are renowned Holstein breeders and Eddie has also judged Jerseys at UK Dairy Day, which is a premier show in the UK.

Two red ribbons

I had the job of showing Kaela in the autumn-born Jersey heifer class while Pete prepared Cash with the final touches. Those two have a bond, as Pete halter-trained her when she arrived last year.

Kaela bagged the red ribbon in her class and then Cash made her way to the ring looking awesome, standing in top spot in the Jersey cow class and clinching the Jersey championship. The judge commented that she was a phenomenal example of her breed, with super legs and feet, along with an udder that has great height and width.

The big dairy class at Dualla Show is the Cashel Blue Dairy Cow of the Year, sponsored by Cashel Irish Farmhouse Cheesemakers. With a big prize pot, six Holstein cows, and two Jerseys, competition was stiff and a big decision lay ahead for Eddie Barrett.

With a packed ringside, and after what seemed an eternity of deliberation, Cash was finally tapped into the top spot. It was a big achievement for her on her first outing of the season and her second sash of the day.

It was time for her to relax while Dualla Show was still getting into top gear, with tractor pulling, top country music artists taking to the stage and an agricultural show party that no doubt went long into the evening to celebrate a fantastic community.

Next stop, the National Dairy Show

The big question for us was: was it the right decision to show Cash so soon after she calved? She travelled home perfectly and never seemed tired, but the proof of the pudding is when you see a cow looking even better the day after a show and increasing her milk production.

The National Dairy Show looms for Cash now and, hopefully after that, a trip to her birth county as she takes on the RUAS Winter Fair.