FARMING MATTERS: Taking a road trip to Wales

Heather Jan Brunt's brother-in-law and husband enjoying a family get together in Wales. Picture by Heather Jan Brunt

All the time I have known my husband he has been a beef farmer, but his childhood was very different as his father was a dairy farmer and life revolved around the twice daily milking of the cows in the parlour. This had to be done whatever the weather, whatever the day, and however the farmer and herdsman were feeling.

My brother-in-law has continued the family tradition for milking, and he farms a herd of red and white dairy Shorthorn cattle in west Wales.

Recently we visited him and his family during a short trip to Wales and we spent a lovely afternoon catching up and exchanging news whilst walking along the cliff tops and through the fields which look out to sea.

My sister-in-law looks after the little calves, and showed me around the farmyard, parlour and calf sheds.

It was a good job we saw so many beautiful dairy Shorthorn cows whilst at my brother-in-law’s farm, because during the hours and hours we drove through Wales my husband was disappointed to see so few cattle.

One thing we did see a lot of in the Welsh farmers’ fields however were hundreds of sheep.