Paula Hynes: The North's bluetongue scare has given us a dose of the Winter Fair blues

Unfortunately, the bah-humbug of Christmas show spirit has come in the form of two suspected cases of Bluetongue in Northern Ireland. The disease has been rampant across Europe and has also affected the UK; however, up until now, the island of Ireland had managed to escape any cases.

Our thoughts go out to the farm where the two suspected cases originated, as the entire herd was tested for Bluetongue on Monday and there are many more farms impacted by the 20km restriction zone, which has been implemented.

While the disease poses no risk to humans, it does have a vast impact on animal health and any farms that become infected. Of course, vaccines are available, but at a high cost, and they do not stop the spread of the disease — which is carried by midges — they simply reduce the effects.

Social media is awash with theories and conspiracy, but the reality is that cases are most frequently detected between the months of April and November

We also need to keep in mind the timeline: the disease has an incubation period of between one and two weeks in cattle. Similarly, Storm Claudia hit in mid-November and developed deep in the south Atlantic, travelling up the coast of Africa, Spain and Portugal, which may be an explanation as to why animals were infected so far north in November.

Britain's department of agriculture, environment, and rural affairs is doing everything in its power to ensure the disease is eradicated from the island, and it is crucial that Southern Ireland remains free of the disease. Therefore, as of today, no animals are travelling from the Republic of Ireland to the show. We simply are not in any position — nor is the show — to quarantine the show animals in NI and go through rigorous testing before the animals could return home. Likewise, any exhibitors within the restriction zone will not be able to compete.

Winter Fair

The latest news is that the show will go ahead with livestock, and we are chatting to friends in Northern Ireland to see if the girls can compete in the showmanship, which the show is very hopeful we can organise. We wish all those involved in running the event the very best and look forward to competing there again in the future with our own animals.

This year, we had five animals entered for the Winter Fair, and it was due to be our first time showing Jerseys in Northern Ireland. There were record entries this year, and once again, there is a US dairy judge for the show. Travelling all the way from Kentucky, Alta Mae Core knows a top-class Jersey when she sees one; she breeds world-class Jerseys with her husband Jeff, and they were named AJCA Master Breeders in the US in 2022.

Our Jersey team consisted of Cash, who won the heifer-in-milk class at the National Dairy Show; Kalani, who was Junior Jersey champion there; and Kiki, who is the dam of our good Jersey cow Kasey. Jagerbomb was also due to travel as a Junior Holstein, joined by our Fame heifer-in-milk. They had all been clipped and ready to show, their 30-day TB test completed, and the Department of Agriculture, Food, and the Marine had begun working on the export paperwork. 

It is unfortunate that we can’t compete at the show; however, like many more, we play our part in ensuring the disease is eradicated

We completed our last milk recording of the year this weekend and will be drying off more cows this week in an effort to get the farm ready for Santa’s arrival. Preparation may seem a little premature, but the reality is that while 2025 has flown by, December goes even quicker, with most of a week gone for the Winter Fair and then my own little festive excursion the following week.

If all that didn’t seem busy, plans are already afoot for the 2026 show season as Becky heads off to Australia again for International Dairy Week. Thankfully, she will be home for Christmas dinner this year, but the bags will be packed and ready as she leaves us for five weeks. It is a great experience for her as she manages a full string at a 10-day show and also has a tighter timeframe to get to know the animals. This will be her third year heading down under, and she is well known now on the Aussie show circuit.

The festive season can seem like silly season to some people — weeks of preparation for one day, people running around panic-buying in a fashion that seems like grocery stores will be closed for weeks. 

I have given up panicking about Christmas and have adopted the 'what will be, will be' approach. There will be food on the table on December 25, and if I have forgotten anything or any present, it won’t be the end of the world, because 2026 will still arrive

Perhaps the real festive spirit is remembering that life is fast-paced, it passes in the blink of an eye, and rather than letting a Formula One pace set the tone for December, we should grasp the opportunity to slow down and enjoy the simplicity of time with friends and family.