The Tyddewi herd of Welsh Black cattle

Our Welsh Black cattle are, quite literally, part of the family! Sarah’s great grandfather registered two heifers in the first ever edition of the Welsh Black Cattle Society’s herd book and his son, Sarah’s grandfather, kept Welsh Blacks as part of his mixed beef herd. John Beynon, Sarah’s father, founded the Tyddewi Herd on St Davids Day 1976 and the whole family have been regulars on the showing circuit ever since, scooping the Welsh Black Cattle Society’s ‘Male of the Year’ and ‘Female of the Year’ awards on many occasions.

Breeding for the Castlemartin type of Welsh Black (a large bodied animal that produces both meat and milk), the herd gained a strong reputation for top quality cattle with wonderful temperaments.

Now, their role is conservation-based: they spend their days grazing the land to allow wildflower meadows, marshy grassland and Rhos pastures to flourish with flora and fauna. The cattle also graze the adjoining 40 acres of Waun Fachelich, owned by the National Trust, eating the dominant grasses and making space for wildflowers to bloom. The cattle live their whole natural lives with us and are very much friends, well, family members, rather than food.

To keep updated with the Tyddewi Herd’s antics, you can follow Barney the Much Loved Calf’s adventures on his Instagram profile @muchlovedcalf. Sarah is in the middle of writing Barney’s true life story as a children’s book which, when published, will be available in our gift shop.