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Crea gown vr RR QUE rs 24 - PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, June 16, 1992 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice" HOLY CO By Marnie Luke Port Perry Star Hazel Morris had seen her cows give birth many times be- fore, so she wasn't alarmed or nervous as she stood awaiting the birth of yet another full- blood Simmental calf late one evening this past January. She and her husband have been breeding cows for almost 20 years at their farm on Scu- gog Line 4. So, on that night, she thought 3 RAK a ty TN % ABUL RUS = Fay Hazel Morris got quite a shock recently when one of her nothing of going inside to hight a fire and fix herself a pot of tea to help pass the time. On her return to the barn, she expected to see the familiar sight of a newborn brown and white calf. But instead, the cow had given birth to a black full- blood - the only one of its color known in the world. One would think that such a rare stroke of fortune would have made Mrs. Morris happy. But at first, it certainly did not. RR NL A ct: [# ¥ " Simmental cows gave birth to a black full-blood, the only one of its color known in the world. Please see story for de- tails. CHILDREN'S The European Tradition of Shoemaking for the Whole Family 263 Queen Street,Port Perry Special Rebate offer... Royal Doulton will rebate $10.00 for every $100.00 you spend on your dinnerware (up to $1200.00), offer expires Aug. 1, 1992 No layaways Royal Albert % Paragon ® Royal Doulton Save 50% on Place Settings Save 40% on derving Pieces PENTLAND JEWELLERS 174 Queen St., Port Perry 985-7641 "I -was furious! It was sup- posed to be brown, so I thought I'd been given a vile of semen from a Holstein, instead of a fullblood," Mrs. Morris said. She paid $100 for a vile of se- men from a highly reputable bull. With the average rate be- ing just $10 a vile, Mrs. Morris had just cause to be upset. She and other farmers even entertained the notion that an- other breed of bull may have wandered onto her property, impregnating the cow. But after extensive blood and DNA testing on the calf, she was no longer angry, but rather confused and overwhelmed. It appeared that the mother and father, both fullblood Sim- mentals, had conceived the only existing black and white calf of that breed. "We've had that calf tested 1n- side and out. All of the blood types matched up. There's no question about it," she said. Later named Barbara, the phenomenally rare calf still has Mrs. Morris, along with leading veterinarians and livestock spe- cialists, somewhat in shock. "It's absolutely a freak of na- ture, and we can't quite seem to explain it. Nobody really can," she said. A calf inherits genes from both its mother and father, gen- erally at an equal proportion. Barbara's mother, Xichaela, and father, Acceleration, are both brown, as are all fullblood Simmental cows. Mrs. Morris's only possible explanation for the calfs unique color is the practice of line-breeding. It appears that the same bull, Jerico 2X, was the grandfather to both Xichae- la and Acceleration. Although Jerico 2X died some 10 years ago, Mrs. Morris still has much of his sperm frozen in viles, which she uses to insemi- nate other cows. She also stores viles contain- ing the sperm of Acceleration, - who was sold to a breeder in Western Canada for $150,000 two years ago. She said, however, that Dr. Kray, from the government blood testing station in Sas- katchewan, believes the color- ing may be the result of a reces- sive gene in Barbara's family. But regardless of how this unique calf came to be, it's caus- ing quite a stir in the cow breed- ing industry. Pureblood Simmentals are European cows, which were brought to Canada in the 1960s to be mixed with existing breeds. The Simmentals are favored as beef cows, as they tend to mature faster and grow larger than other varieties. While the purebreed class of Simmentals are quite frequent- ly black and white in color, the fullbloods are not. , Local farm home to one ¥ of world's rarest calves But Mrs. Morris has no plans to quit at just one black full- blood. She plans to try the same combination of inseminating Xichaela with Acceleration's se- men again this year. She will also apply the proce- dure of 'flushing', in which fer- tile eggs from one cow are 1m- planted into another. In this case, Xichaela's eggs, fertilized by Acceleration, will be implanted in other cows, pos- sibly resulting in large num- bers of black fullbloods. Mrs. Morris admits she is "playing a game of chance", as the procedure could take many years before it's successful, but added it will be well worth the wait. Still time left to register in the flag competition Which ward is the most patri- otic? Ward 1, Ward 2, Ward 3, or Ward 4? That question will be an- swered on July 1 when the Blackstock Lions Club an- nounces the winner of the Cana- da 125 Flag Competition. The Blackstock Lions Club, along with Scugog Township's Canada 125 Committee, are or- ganizing a special flag flying contest that will pit ward against ward. Township residents are urged to fly a flag on their property and report their participation by calling one of the telephone numbers listed at the end of this article. After the June 28 deadline, members of the Lions Club will tally up the entries from each ward. A winner will be decided based on the percentage of par- ticipation from each ward. The winning ward will be an- nounced on July 1 during the CMHC SCHL Helping to house Canadians Question habitation complez sur nous 9 | IE | (Canada SEOAT I IOAY IY Di 00 DO YOU QUALIFY FOR $5000 ARRITAY RYE DRO TE [ONY I DN 14 DF LAY I AW IF you are a low-income homeowner, you may be elivible tor up to 55.000. (which may not have to be repaid) to ASSIS you in repairing your home or make it accessible to a disabled person. Funds are made available through CANADA MORTGAGE AND HOUSING CORPORATION. We are now processing applications for the 1992 budget allocation. If you require financial assistance in repairing your home please contact our office to apply for the LSUNTEDI DANE RR § REHABILITATION (RETRY BOE OF i NOTE) IRN Nf 14 IRV I) (GLO U1 DF Bt I DRO SWAY BN DAN I DI 04 14 £9 NY DR 1-416-404-0020 Canada Day festivities at Palm- er Park. The ward will be the re- - cipient of two very special trees which the community can enjoy for years tocome. To date, the response to the contest has been tremendous. "I can't get over the support and dedication from the commu- nity," Scugog Township Canada 125 Committee member Kim Harper told the Port Perry Star. The contest "has been really successful so far." Mrs. Harper would like to re- mind people to phone in their participation. : "There are a lot of residents who are flying flags but have not phoned theirnamein." All residents who participate in the Canada 125 Flag Contest will be eligible for individual prizes which will be drawn at randomon July 1. To register your participation call 986-5335, 986-5599, 986- 5192, or 986-5996. GRADUATE LAURA-LEE TAYLOR Laura-Lee Taylor, daughter of Barbara & Edwin Taylor of Manchester, recently graduated with honours in Law Enforcement at Seneca College of Applied Arts & Technology REIL, 1D PONTIAC BUICK LIMITED 10 Vanedward Dr., Port Perry 0985-8474 SO So i a El