All in the breeding

At just 10 and 12 years old, Daisy and Rosie Sutherland are carrying on their great-grandmother’s legacy of breeding Murray Greys and other animals.

Story + Photos Virginia Tapscott

In the same valley where the very first Murray Grey calf struggled to its feet, 12-year-old Rosie Sutherland shakes hands to close a deal. It’s the sale of Ironbark, the first bull registered under her stud name Kimolong, which she started when she was just eight years old. Striding through the dry feed on river flats that give way to the mighty Murray River, Rosie is the third generation to carry on the breed started by her great-grandmother Helen Sutherland.

When an Angus Shorthorn cross accidentally yielded a little grey calf in 1914 on the family property Thologolong, the Sutherlands immediately saw potential. The breed flourished under Helen’s care, and soon other prominent cattle owners in the district began to seek out the fast-growing and good-natured Greys, which seemed to thrive in Australian conditions. “My first heifer is the kind of heifer my great-grandma would have liked because she’s not very big,” Rosie says. “She always said they didn’t have to be big animals as long as they have nice structure, a good head and were able to produce a good calf. So I’ve taken after my great-grandma, which is really special to me, and I also like that I get to work with my grandpa and feel more connected to him.”