A NORTH Pembrokeshire farmer, who has run a polled Hereford herd for just six years is the proud owner of a seven-year-old bull, Solpoll 1 Gilbert – his stock bull – which has been named as UK Sire of the Year for the third successive year.

Euros Rees, 37, founded his Trefochlyd herd in 2011 when he made his first purchase of a mature cow Glenvale 1 Miss Millie, from the well established herds of George, Ionwy and Non Thorne near Milford Haven.

Subsequently he bought in his first stock bull from the mid Wales based Solpoll herd of Aled Jones whose parents, the late Dennis and Doris Jones, began establishing their herd in 1954.

In 2014 the Solpoll herd was named as the top herd in the UK when the results of the National Herds Competition were announced by the Hereford Cattle Society.

Further success followed when Solpoll 1 Gilbert was named Sire of the Year and his daughter Dendor 1 Molly 41st was confirmed as the UK Female of the Year.

Polled Herefords represent the development of an spawned in the minds of a small number of breeders in the late 1890s who realised that it was both possible and practical to develop "modern Herefords minus horns".

These breeders were motivated by the promising prospect of developing Herefords with outstanding beef-producing characteristics, but with the added desirable trait of being naturally hornless.

The polled Hereford of today is the result – a modern, practical breed of cattle that has experienced widespread acceptance and desirability.

Polled Herefords were developed from the horned Hereford breed which was founded in the mid-18th century by farmers on the Welsh borders and in Herefordshire. Among the horned Herefords an occasional calf would be born which did not develop horns – this change from parents' characteristics has become accepted and these cattle soon came to be called "polled," which means naturally hornless thus, in 1901, the original polled Hereford breed came into being.

Trefochlyd farm has been in the Rees family for some 80 years and, whilst their polled Hereford herd have developed solely by Euros, the remainder of the 190 acres carry a 60 cow commercial suckler herd together with around 130 youngstock and a small flock of mixed breed ewes owned jointly by his parents, Peter and Dilys and his uncle, David.

Euros, who won Wales small herd of the year 2016, continues to judiciously build up his pedigree herd retaining his best females and selling a few quality breeding bulls. He is especially proud that Gilbert continues to throw excellent stock and one of his daughters, Dendoe 1 Jennefer, is currently the UK Female of the Year.

Euros may be contacted on 07817 995903.