The ALPHA herd of Poll South Devon cattle was established by John & Pam Flynn in 1996 when it was realised that the desirable carcase characteristics which were being obtained with British - European crosses could be found in a single breed - the South Devon - thus greatly simplifying management, reducing costs, and permitting the use of such genetic analysis tools as BREEDPLAN.
The South Devon, the largest of the British breeds of cattle, was originally developed as a triple purpose animal (see History) and as such combines frame, meat and maternal qualities. It is also recognised as having a docile temperament, excellent feed conversion efficiency, and as being able to thrive in a wide variety of environments. The aim of the ALPHA herd, therefore, is to build on these excellent natural attributes and breed superior beef-producing animals. To this end the herd has established strict Breeding Objectives, is fully performance recorded, and participates in South Devon Group Breedplan (a summary of its performance in relationship to other Breedplan recorded herds may be found on the Statistics page). The herd is run under commercial conditions on hilly country, and is grass fed with no supplementation (what you see is what you get).
The ALPHA herd is managed in association with a second Poll South Devon herd - the ACE herd - which is owned by Michael Flynn who is also a Member of the South Devon Cattle Society of Australia.
SALES OF BREEDING STOCK:
Each year, both herds usually have selected registered bulls and females for
sale (see Sale Animals).
Enquiries are always welcome, as are visitors (by appointment).