Dairy cattle took centre stage in the judging rings at the Royal Highland Show and Fife and Kinross breeders were to the fore, taking championships and reserves in four out of the five sections.
Brian Weatherup and his son, also Brian, of Parkend, Crossgates, were thrilled to win the Holstein championship and then go on the take reserve interbreed with their home-bred second calver, Parkend Sanchez Tamara.
She was reserve champion last year and then went on to be Super Heifer at Agriscot and also the All Britain Senior Heifer in Milk. She just calved 24 days ago and is yielding 60kg per day with her last lactation around 11,600 kg. The Weatherups milk 160 Holsteins and last won the championship in 2010.
The Ayrshire championship was awarded to Arthur and Susan Lawrie, Cuthill Towers, Milnathort, for their home-bred third calver, Cuthill Towers Miss Blondie 2. She calved in April and is giving 45kg per day having yielded 9,000kg last lactation. She was reserve champion last year.
The interbreed dairy award went to the Red and White, a third calver which class judge, Alan Timbrell, described as outstanding and worth travelling 370 miles from Cirencester for. Dilandy Debonair Tabitha Red was bought as a heifer in a joint deal between Sheila Yates and Caroline Lawrie, whose husbands are both well known in the dairy showing world. This cow was Super Cow at Agriscot in 2012 and is projected to 14,000kg in this lactation, having calved in December.
Taking the reserve spot in the Jerseys was Andrew Wilson, of Carskerdo at Cupar. He runs just 12 Jerseys alongside his 260 Holsteins and Bluegrass Signatures What Is The Question was a recent addition to the herd. She is a second calver and projected to 6100kg.
Adam Lawson has a few Dairy Shorthorns which run alongside his 100-strong Friesian herd at North Cassingray, Largoward, and he has shown Lisnamulligan Whitetail 2nd every year for six years at the Highland. This year she took the reserve ticket, she is now a fourth calver and gave 6,500kg in her last lactation and she was also reserve champion three years ago.