The Mercury Angus herd based in north Cork was established a mere 11 years ago and is run by the father and son duo of John and Shane Murphy. The herd now amounts to more than 40 breeding females.

Speaking about how the herd was started, Shane, pedigree editor with the Irish Farmers Journal, said: “I purchased my first cow when I was 14 years old. We were an all-commercial herd at that time, but I wanted to go a different route with money I had saved up.”

I purchased my first cow when I was 14 years old. We were an all-commercial herd at that time, but I wanted to go a different route with money I had saved up

This is what led Shane down the road of pedigree breeding, and introduced him to the Angus breed.

“I had looked into a number of breeds at the time, but the Angus breed just seemed to tick all the boxes for me. Easy calving was probably the biggest thing. All the money I had as a young lad was going to be wrapped up in this purchase, so I wanted to make sure I bought something that gave me the best chance of having something to sell every year,” said Shane.

Breeding female

With the breed chosen, he went in search of a breeding female. He didn’t have to go far, with the herd’s first female Vega Meg E714 purchased from next-door neighbour Timmy Twomey.

“She was a two-year-old in-calf heifer when I bought her, and a month after arriving in April 2007 she had a bull calf which we called Demon. He was the first animal to carry the Mercury prefix,” added Shane.

The herd remained majority commercial for a number of years after this, with John then also turning to pedigree Angus breeding.

John explains: “Shane was buying pedigree Angus anytime he had enough saved up. I also added a few to the herd, replacing commercial cattle with pedigrees.

“The last of the commercial cattle left in 2012 and we have been all pedigree Angus since then.”

With the herd increasing, the duo started to focus more and more on bloodlines. They soon realised the importance of choosing stock based on proven family lines as well as phenotypic characteristics.

While I was looking at heifers, I saw a bull calf of eight months and knew I had to have him. We still only had about six cows, but I just knew a bull like this doesn’t come around that often.

Shane said: “It was probably two years after the initial purchase that I made my biggest investment. I saved every cent I earned working and went in search of a couple of top females. I was a regular caller to Jerry Henchy’s Friarstown herd in Limerick, as he had so much to see due to the amount of money he was investing in embryos and livestock at the time.

“While I was looking at heifers, I saw a bull calf of eight months and knew I had to have him. We still only had about six cows, but I just knew a bull like this doesn’t come around that often.”

Shane got the bull that day and also purchased a mature cow. The bull was Friarstown Idol, and the cow was from the Evening Tinge line. These two acquisitions are what really introduced the Mercury prefix to the Angus scene.

“The Evening Tinge cow had a heifer calf that December that went on to be one of the best breeders in the herd. Following on from this, she had a bull calf the next year sired by Friarstown Idol. Mercury Hunter was the name of the bull and he went on to become champion at the Kilmallock premier and sell for €4,600.,” Shane said.

This was Friarstown Idol’s first calf, but in the years that followed he went on to sire progeny that claimed top placings and top prices at all major shows and sales. John added that his daughters are still the “standouts in the herd”.

To stay in our herd, cattle need to be born easily, grow fast and produce and feed a calf of better quality then itself

Following the purchase of Idol, both Shane and John invested in some other top lines. These females came from a number of places across Ireland and Northern Ireland, but only a few remain.

John said: “Over the years we brought dozens of the most proven family lines into the herd. However, at the moment we’re down to only a handful. To stay in our herd, cattle need to be born easily, grow fast and produce and feed a calf of better quality then itself.”

John added that the herd is run as commercially as possible. No cow on farm receives concentrates, with the majority feeding a calf for 10 months of the year.

“Even when you’re doing things right, the margins are very tight. So we need to keep costs as low as possible and only breed the most productive cows,” said John.

Now the herd amounts to more than 40 breeding females, with Shane saying the top end really shows.

“We’ve been lucky enough to be able to get our hands on some of the best family lines available, standouts being the Evening Tinges, Floras, Ellen Ericas and Elbas. These pedigrees are sought after around the world and it’s easy to see why with the way they produce.”

Stock bull

John said: “We have always aimed to have a good stock bull on farm. We would consider a lot of the bulls we are able to buy for our own use to be as good if not better than most bulls available in AI.

“Our current bull, Luddenmore Just the Business, has already bred a Kilmallock champion, reserve all-Ireland bull calf champion and some of the best heifers we ever had and he’s only four.

“The biggest problem with finding a good stock bull is that with a small herd you don’t get to hold on to them long enough.”

This year will mark the biggest to date for the herd, with a full female clearance set for 5 October in Roscrea Mart.

This year will mark the biggest to date for the herd, with a full female clearance set for 5 October in Roscrea Mart. Shane said there are a number of reasons behind the sale, with work commitments being the biggest issue:

“The decision to sell our herd was not made lightly, but due to full-time work commitments of both my father and myself, the increasing numbers were no longer feasible. We thought the fairest way to sell the cattle was to flush a few standouts and offer everything for sale.

“Sales like this really don’t come around often as it offers proven bloodlines, which, in some cases, are no longer available. We have export-tested everything and also genotyped all stock, with 85% eligible to meet the BDGP requirement.”