ABOUT US
From the Mountains of Vermont to Wisconsin's Grasslands
Founded in 1984, Windemere Farm has it's roots in northern Vermont. Jay and Martha Sheperd selected the highland breed as an ideal choice for their family, with the goal of keeping their New England pastures clear. After admiring Highlands at local county fairs and neighboring farms, our adventure with highland cattle began with the purchase of a herd bull, Shat Acres Red Baron, followed closely by several cows from Owl Rock Farm. The original herd grew to about 35 head, and although Jay's daughter, Anne, left Vermont and the Highlands to pursue a Ph.D. in Ruminant Nutrition at UW-Madison, the original herd remained at Windemere Farm until her father's retirement in the late 1990s.
Currently rooted in the heart of Wisconsin, Windemere Farm has continued to raise Highland cattle, now with a focus on breeding high quality seed stock and show cattle. Anne and John Proctor established the current Windemere herd in the spring of 2008, with the purchase of a first cow-calf pair. Our herd grew quickly as we carefully added animals with exceptional pedigrees. Their children, Paige and Nicholas, have grown up with highlands. Paige now serves on the AHCA board of directors and as Co-Chair of the AHCA Junior Committee. Anne serves on the NCHCA board and is the editor of the national breed magazine, The Bagpipe. Our family exhibits cattle at many shows, both regional and national, throughout the year, and often offers select animals at regional and national auctions.
Quality Care to Realize Genetic Potential
We follow Beef Quality Assurance guidelines and work closely with our veterinarian to monitor the health of the cattle. Our cattle are vaccinated according to current recommendations for our area and dewormed regularly. Our AI work is performed by a team of breeding specialists and hooves are trimmed regularly by a certified cattle trimmer. We are fortunate to have a great team of people to work with.
Our feeding program is monitored by our Ph.D. nutritionist with input from industry experts. We use pasture as the primary source of feed during summer months and locally grown hay during the winter. We do not supplement grain to the herd, though we often use lick tubs to provide sugars and nitrogen to optimize rumen function. Show cattle are fed grain during the show season and all cattle are maintained on a balanced vitamin and mineral program.
We have a specially constructed handling facility that was designed to make handling low stress for our cattle and easy for the handlers. Based off of research and designs by Temple Grandin, our facility that was designed to work with the natural tendencies of cattle. Our facility has a crowding area and curved raceway that take advantage of the natural tendency of cattle to go back where they came from, and a head gate and chute that were handmade for horned cattle allowing them to enter and exit easily. Allowing us to easily monitor health, our handling facility is an invaluable asset to our AI breeding program and overall herd health.
