Hey there bovine listeners and welcome back to
the podcast It's great to have you tuning in
today. I've got a story for you And honestly,
it's one of those tales from Holstein history
that just gets better every time you hear it
It's got drama vision a bit of a gamble and a
legacy that quite frankly, is still walking around
in our barns today, woven into the very fabric
of the Holstein breed. We're going back in time,
way back to the 1950s, to talk about a man who
many called the Holstein man's Holstein man.
Say, a breeder whose eye for cattle was legendary,
whose methods were both revolutionary and grounded
in common sense, and who built an empire on the
back of one single, remarkable white cow. I'm
talking, of course, about Frederick Roy Ormiston.
Or Roy as everyone knew him in the incredible
story of Roy Brook Farm. Here it's November 1956.
The air is crisp but specific kind of chilly
you get at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto.
Inside the Coliseum, the lights are bright, the
smell of livestock and tambour king's heavy,
and there's that buzz of anticipation that always
fills the air during the big shows. The edge
cow class is underway, some of the finest Holsteins
in the country vying for that coveted championship,
and then she enters the ring. A stunning, predominantly
White -Holstein. She moves with this incredible
grace, almost like a dancer, commanding attention.
The crowd quiets down, watching the judge make
his rounds. You can feel the tension building.
Finally, the judge pauses, his hand extends,
and points right at her. Champion -age cow. And,
as if that weren't enough, best utter of the
show. Up in the stands. A man named Roy who misses
and watches. He's not jumping up and down. Maybe
just a quiet nod. A look of measured satisfaction.
Because Roy had seen something special in this
Cal Months. Earlier, something others had missed.
You see this magnificent champion? This five
-year -old beauty turning heads at the Royal?
Just a few months before, she was standing in
a modest barn on the road in Bowmanville, owned
by a fellow named Ben Brown. And her perceived
value? A mere $750. That's right. $750. That's
the price Roy Armiston had managed to secure
her for. And get this, it wasn't even a straightforward
$750. Roy Hever, the shrewd negotiator, had offered
the money contingent on the cow testing at least
3 .6 butter fat. He even promised Ben Brown extra
50 bucks if she hit that mark. Talk about a gamble
based on conviction. Has that white cow stood
there? Draped in ribbons basking in the real
spotlight, nobody, maybe not even Roy himself
in his wildest dreams, could have fully grasped
the monumental impact this single animal, this
$750 investment, would have. This wasn't just
a show win. It was the spark that ignited a breeding
dynasty. the cornerstone laid for an empire that
would reshape Holstein genetics across the globe.
This cow, soon to be known simply as the white
cow, was about to become one of the most influential
matriarchs in breed history. But how did Roy
Ormiston get to this point? What gave him the
eye? The confidence to see potential where others
saw just a good, solid cow? Well, like so many
great breeders, his story starts long before
that fateful purchase. Roy Ormiston wasn't just
someone who decided to get in cows. Holstein
heritage was literally in his blood He was born
into it the son of Fred Ormiston himself a pioneering
Holstein breeder family farm Just south of Brooklyn,
Ontario a place that would later become synonymous
with the Roy Brook name Was Roy's first classroom
and it became clear pretty early on that. He
wasn't just learning. He had the eye You know,
that's the innate ability some folks have to
just see cattle differently to understand their
structure or their potential. Legend has it,
when Roy was just 16 years old, he took his father's
show string to the Royal Winter Fair. 16. And
Wesley Duhilly leads them to second prize in
the prestigious senior get of sire class. That's
not just participating. That's showing an early
mastery. But Roy didn't just ride on his father's
coattails. He wanted to forge his own path, deepen
his own understanding. He became a fieldman for
the Holstein Association of Canada, taking over
the East Central Ontario territory from another
well -respected name, Bob Holtby. Now think about
that job for a minute. For seven years, Roy traveled
across the province, visiting countless farms,
seeing the best and maybe the not so best. Animals
talking to breeders, learning about different
management styles, different breeding philosophies.
Can you imagine a better education? for someone
wanting to build a world -class herd. It was
like a seven -year master class in Holstein breeding.
It exposed him to the top bloodlines, sharpened
his evaluation skills, and honed those instincts
that would later set him apart. It's during these
years, I believe, that he solidified his vision
for the kind of cow he wanted to breed. So when
he finally established Raybrooke Farm in 1951,
he wasn't starting from scratch mentally. He
had a plan. And the timing was interesting, wasn't
it? The post -war era saw huge changes in dairy
farming. The biggest, perhaps, was the rise of
artificial insemination, moving from experimental
to commercial reality. This created a whole new
dynamic, sometimes even tension, between the
old -school cow -sensei breeders and the emerging
statistically -driven approaches promoted by
the I .I. studs. Horry found himself right in
the thick of it, establishing his herd in Ontario
County. an area already considered hallowed ground
for Holstein genetics. Names like Montvic, Hiram
K. Pichay, Posh Extra, and Hawkerst, Emperor
Pathfinder B, weren't just entries in a pedigree.
There were legends whose influence was palpable
in the region's herds, where we knew the local
landscape. He drew from this rich genetic pool,
bringing in foundation animals from respected
herds like Gibby, Ujaya, Seymour, Springdale
operation. He built around key females, cows
like Sigis Poshloch and Varn Baroness Hawker's
Pathfinder B. He was carefully assembling the
pieces, laying the groundwork, he was the architect,
sketching out a genetic blueprint. But for a
great structure needs a cornerstone. That one
piece that elevates the entire design from ambitious
to truly legendary. Roy was building his foundation
brick by genetic brick, but the cornerstone,
well that was still waiting to be discovered.
and his discovery would come not through a planned
purchase from a famous herd, but through a keen
observation and a shrewd deal in a neighbor's
barn. Thoughts go back to that summer of 1956,
just before the Royal. The story of how Roy actually
acquired Balsam Bray Pluto Sovereign, the white
cow, is fascinating and tells you so much about
the man. According to Walter Barron, a cattle
dealer from New York who was active in the area.
He and another dealer, Max Height, had already
been to Ben Brown's farm. They saw the cow, liked
her, and offered Brown $700 for her. $700 bucks.
But Brown turned them down shortly after Roy
Ormiston pays a visit. He sees the same cow,
but maybe he sees more. He offers $750. But remember
that condition only if she tests 3 .6 Butterfat
or High. If she does... He'll even throw in an
extra $50. It was clever, it mitigated some risk,
but also showed his confidence in the cow's potential
beyond just her looks. Ben Brown accepted the
deal. And just like that, for a potentially $800
max, Roy Ormiston secured the animal that would
define his life's work, while Sam Bray Pluto
sovereign walked onto the truck destined for
Roy Brook Farm soon to be known simply, affectionately,
and famously as the White Cow. Now this wasn't
some random calve that just happened to good.
Her pedigree was royalty, tracing back through
generations of proven genetics. Her sire was
heinous crest, sovereign tycoon, and excellent
silver metal type sire. And his sire. None other
than the legendary Jean -Pabst Rigg Epilex for
Echik. Okawa's lifetime production was staggering
even then. Over 193 ,000 pounds of milk and nine
lactations. That's serious foundation genetics.
And on the maternal side, her lineage traced
all the way back to a cow named Brema, imported
directly from Friesland way back in 1884. So
the white cow wasn't an accident. She was the
result of generations of careful breeding, a
convergence of superior genetics, just waiting
for the right environment, the right management,
the right vision to unlock her full potential.
And unlock it, Roy almost did, under his care
at Roybrook. The white cow didn't just blow,
she exploded under the scene. We already heard
about her 1956 Royal Triumph, but that was just
the beginning. She was grand champion at the
prestigious Pearlboro exhibition four times between
1956 and 1960. She earned all Canadian nominations
for six consecutive years. Think about that consistency
at the highest level. One of her first three
lactations before Roy bought her weren't officially
recorded. Their lifetime production was still
phenomenal. Over 185 ,000 pounds of milk with
a solid 3 .9 tests, yielding over 7 ,250 pounds
of butterfat. Impressive numbers for sure. But
here's the crucial part, the thing that really
set Royer -Miston's mind working, the unsighted
that changed everything. The white cow's true
magic wasn't just in her own accomplishments,
but in her uncanny ability to transmit that excellence,
that type, that quality, no matter who she was
bred to. Roy saw this developing. There was a
daughter of the white cow that had been left
behind at Ben Brown's farm when Roy bought the
mother. Many people who saw this daughter considered
her truly exceptional, perhaps even better than
the white cow herself in some ways. Roy tried
persistently to buy this daughter from Brown.
But Ben Brown, perhaps now realizing what he'd
let go for $750, wasn't selling. He reportedly
told Roy the price would be a damn sight more
than the $500. Six would be $750 Roy had paid
for her damn. Tragically, this daughter named
Balsam Bray, Pluto governor, died young after
getting into feed room during some kind of emergency
in the farm. A huge loss. But seeing the quality
of that daughter even briefly combined with the
other calves the white cow was producing at Roybrook
solidified a revolutionary idea in Roy's mind.
He later explained it himself. He saw the governor
daughter at Brown's. Then the first calf born
at Roybrook carried in dam was Royal Delight
X7. She was sired by a fairly nondescript bull
from the nearby Aldersley herd. Nothing fancy.
Yet Royal Delight was outstanding. Then came
Roebrook Model ADX3 sired by Roebrook Model.
Another exceptional daughter. That's when the
light bulb went on for Roy. As he put it, it
was then I realized that no matter what she was
bred to, the white cow would always produce a
good daughter. That's when I knew I could line
breed on her. That realization was the key. He
saw that the white cow wasn't just a great individual.
She was a genetic powerhouse, a dominant force
capable of stamping her quality onto her offspring
Overriding the influence of Lesser Cyrus gave
him the confidence to do something relatively
bold for the time. Concentrate her genetics through
line breeding, and her progeny became the pillars
of the Roybrook dynasty. That first daughter
born at Roybrook Royal Delight, she went on to
make history alongside her mother. They became
the only damn daughter pair to ever both win
the best utter class at the Royal Winter Fair.
Think about that genetic potency for utter quality.
And Delight wasn't just pretty. She worked hard
too, producing nearly 180 ,000 pounds of milk
with almost four fat over 10 lactations. Then
there was Roybrook Model Lady, another superstar.
She won her class at the Royal Three Times and
hit the honor list with records topping 25 ,000
pounds of milk. A huge achievement back then.
And talk about longevity. Model Lady completed
12 lactations. producing over 243 ,000 pounds
of milk with a fantastic 4 .9 test, resulting
in nearly 10 ,000 pounds of lifetime fat. That
kind of lifetime production from a high -type
cow would be impressive even today. These incredible
daughters. Along with the white cow's equally
impressive son, Roybrooke Ace X -Dest became
the core group. Roy started strategically lion
breeding, concentrating the influence of the
white cow by mating these closely related superior
animals. Often he would breed maternal half -siblings
together, different sires, but a lot of the white
cow were her best daughters. He was very clear
though, he was lion breeding, not inbreeding.
Whenever inbred, he was aiming to intensify and
fix the desirable... traits of the white cow
family. The type, the udders, the components,
the will to moke, without falling into the trap
of severe inbreeding depression. It was a masterful
balancing act, guided by his deep understanding
of the animals themselves. Axor's genetic concentration
reached a pinnacle, perhaps, when he bred Roy
Burke Model SX -15, who was Model Lass. She was
the result of breeding Royal Delight White Cow's
daughter by the Elder Sly Bull, back to Roy Burke
Model. Sierra of Model Lady. So Model S was intensely
landbred to the white cow. And she in turn would
become the dam of bulls that would take the Roybrook
name and genetics onto the world stage. The foundation
was set. The cornerstone, the white cow, had
proven her worth tenfold. Her daughters and son
were exceptional. Roy Ormiston's vision for land
breeding was crystallizing. The stage was set
for the Roybrook revolution to go global. The
year is 1964. At the national sale, Holstein
breeders are buzzing about a bull calf. Not just
any calf, a six -month -old youngster carrying
the Roebrook prefix. His name, Roebrook Tailstore,
and the price he commanded. A staggering $25
,000. 25 grand for a six -month -old calf in
1964. This wasn't just a high price, it was astronomical.
Headline grabbing news, and it instantly put
the Roebrook breeding program under an international
spotlight. Why the hype? Well, Telstar wasn't
just a random calf from the herd. He was the
embodiment of Roy Ormiston's breeding strategy.
He represented three generations of careful,
focused line breeding. His sire, Roebrooke Ace,
the white cow's son. His dam, Roebrooke Model
S, that intensely line bred daughter of royal
delight we just talked about. Telstar was dripping
with the concentrated genetics of the white cow
family, and his name, Telstar. Remember, Telstar
satellite. launched just a couple years earlier
in 1962. It was the symbol of a new era of global
communication. How fitting, because Roybrook
Telstar the bull was about to broadcast Roybrook
genetics across the globe just as effectively.
Telstar quickly lived up to the expectations.
He became one of the youngest bulls ever to achieve
the coveted class extra rating in Canada. His
proof was phenomenal, especially for the time.
His 709 classified daughters averaged an incredible
83 good plus, or better, earning him a 31 rating
for type confirmation. That's breed -changing
type improvement. But here's the kicker. He wasn't
just a tight bull. He was also plus for production,
six for milk. He delivered the complete package,
validating Roy's emphasis on balanced breeding.
Before his Canadian proof was even fully finalized.
the international demand was immense. Telstar
was sold for what was then a record price for
a Canadian Holstein Bowl to the Federation of
Agricultural Societies in Japan and its impact
in Japan, profound so much so that in 1978, Roy
Armiston himself traveled to Japan. Why? To unveil
a life -size bronze statue erected in Telstar's
honor. Think about that. A bowl. bred on a modest
farm in Brooklyn, Ontario, immortalized in bronze
on the other side of the world. It's a powerful
testament to the reach and impact of those genetics
that started with that $750 white cow. But Telstar
wasn't a one -hit wonder. He was just the first
of a triumvirate of Roybrook sires that would
dominate the breed. Next came Roybrook Starlakes
Extra. Starlight's pedigree was another masterclass
in line breeding, although slightly different.
His sire was the legendary sea -ling Rockman,
one of the dominant bulls of that era. But his
dam, once again, it was Roybrook Motilassi, Telstar's
mother. So Starlight brought in the power of
Rockman, but combined it with the strengths and
consistency of the white cow family through Motilass,
proven at United Breeders Inc. Other precursor
to CEMEX, Starlight became one of Canada's most
dominant production sires. He topped the list
of sirers with daughters on the national honor
list for production three times. His daughters
were moped machines with style. One famous daughter,
Grassell Starlight Madge VG, made history as
the first junior two -year -old in Canada ever
to produce over 1 ,000 pounds of butter fat in
a single lactation. Starlight delivered production
in spades. And the third member of this legendary
trio, Roybrook Tempo X Extra. Tempo's story adds
another layer to Roy's genius, not just as a
breeder, but as a cattle evaluator and selector.
Tempo's sire was Starlight, the production powerhouse
we just discussed, and his dam? They had a cow
named Brewerwood Melissa. Now, Melissa wasn't
originally a Roybrook cow. Roy Miston had spotted
her at the 1968 sale of stars and purchased her
for $7 ,000. What was special about Melissa?
She was a Telstar daughter. So let's break down
Tempo's pedigree. His sire, Starlight, was out
of Model -Lass. His damn Melissa was a Telstar
daughter, and Telstar was also out of Model -Lace.
Roy had essentially bred the son of Model -Lass,
Starlight, to the granddaughter of Model -Lass
and Melissa via Telstar. It was line breeding
layered upon line breeding. concentrating the
strengths of the white cow family while strategically
incorporating the Rockman influence. The result?
Raybrook Tempo. He earned his extra rating in
1979 and became another global sensation used
extensively through AI worldwide. Industry experts
looked at this Telstar Starlight Tempo combination.
particularly the success of crossing Telstar
daughters with Starlight, which produced Tempo's
Dam, for instance, and saw it as undeniable proof
of the power of Roy's line breeding program.
The consistency was remarkable. The daughters
of these bulls filled the Roebrook barns and
herds around the world. Cow's Lake Roebrook Vale
X, who had two honor list records and completed
six lactations exceeding 1 ,000 pounds of fat,
or Roebrook Herriot X, with five records over
1 ,000 pounds of fat. These weren't just high
-record cows. They were cows that did it year
after year, lactation after lactation. They were
the embodiment of the Roybrook ideal. As the
fame of Telstar, Starlight, and Tempo spread,
that unassuming farm south of Brooklyn became
a kind of pilgrimage site for Holstein breeders.
Especially around the time of the Royal Winter
Fair, you'd find buses pulling in, carrying visitors
from Europe, Japan, South America, Australia,
All wanting to see the fountainhead the source
of the genetics that were transforming their
herds back home. For the late 1980s, the respect
for Rora Miston was immense. Holstein World magazine
readers voted him North America's most admired
breeder. Richard Beard, a respected Holstein
expert from the UK, described him almost mystically
as a 20th century murk because of the seemingly
magical consistency he achieved in his breeding
results. So, what? What was the secret? What
was the Armiston method? Was it magic, or was
it something more grounded, something we can
still learn from today? When you peel back the
layers of the Roybrook success story, you find
a breeding philosophy that was remarkably straightforward,
yet incredibly profound. It wasn't based on complex
formulas or chasing the latest fads. It was built
on careful observation. Discipline selection
and an unwavering focus on the fundamentals of
what makes a great dairy cow. Roy himself had
a great analogy. He once said, I like to compare
a dairy cow to a building. If you don't have
a very good foundation, then it isn't going to
stand up too long, especially in a storm, and
that is heavy production. That simple statement
captures so much of his thinking. Genetics had
to build a cow with structural integrity. Sound
feet and legs. while attached to others' strength
and capacity. To withstand the storm of high
milk production, lactation after lactation. Thrift's
focus on the foundations is just as critical
today, maybe even more so, as we push production
levels ever higher. So what were the pillars
of his approach? First and foremost, cow families.
Roy was adamant about this. I always believed
in cow families. He emphasized His discovery
of the white cow's transmitting ability confirmed
this belief. He didn't just randomly pick Cyrus.
He identified the superior maternal lines within
his own herd and concentrated their influence.
He explained his proxy. When the best cows in
the herd traced back to this one, Calvi or Inti
kept those. It got to the point where maybe two
or three other cows weren't of that bloodline.
The next best bred cow had a few progenies but
didn't breed as well as the white cow. So...
They eliminated themselves through culling. It
sounds ruthless, but it was disciplined. He let
the cows prove their worth not just as individuals,
but as transmitters, as founders of families.
This intense focus on elite maternal lines is
mirrored today in genomic programs that identify
top cow families, but Roy did it decades earlier
using his eye, his records, and his intimate
knowledge of his animals. Second, strategic line
breeding. As we discussed, he concentrated the
genetics of the white cow family, but he always
drew the distinction. Line breeding, not in breeding.
He skillfully walked that line to intensify desirable
traits without sacrificing the overall health
and vigor of the animals. Today, we have genomic
tools to manage in breeding coefficients. Precisely,
but Rory achieved a similar outcome through masterful
pedigree analysis and observation. Third, Balance
selection. This is huge. In an era where some
breeders might chase extreme type or solely focus
on milk volume, where I maintained a remarkable
balance. He simultaneously improved udder. Confirmation
room are best udder winners. Component percentages
of that cow herself was 3 .9W model 80 over 4A.
And productive efficiency and longevity. He wasn't
just breeding show cows or milk wagons. He was
breeding cows that excelled across the board.
This holistic view. is exactly what modern indexes
like Net Merit or TPRA or LPI try to capture
with complex economic weightings. Roy was doing
it by eye and by focusing on the complete cow
decades ago. Fourth, emphasis on longevity and
trouble -free cows. This might be one of his
most relevant lessons for today. We talk a lot
now about the declining productive life of Holstein
cows in some systems. Roy Ormiston seemed to
instinctively understand the economic and genetic
value of cows that lasted. The Roybrook herd
was renowned for cows that routinely completed
8, 10, even 12 lactations, producing high volumes
of milk with high components year after year.
Model 80s 12 lactations, Royal Delights 10, these
weren't exceptions. They were the goal. Good
bred cows that were built to last. cows that
didn't cause problems, cows that were efficient
converters of forage into milk over a long lifetime,
and finally, a healthy skepticism of over -reliance
on statistics alone. This is fascinating. Roy
emerged when AI and statistical proofs were becoming
dominant. While he certainly used records, he
was wary of relying only on numbers. He saw the
potential danger of losing cow sense, of letting
statistical models overshadow the importance
of functional type in real -world performance.
Towards the end of the 20th century, he famously
deplored the artificial insemination industry's
increasing reliance on statistics at the expense
of common sense. He even described some of the
complex genetic material being presented as an
insult to the human race. Strong words. But it
came from a man who achieved unparalleled success
by blending observation with data, not by letting
one replace the other. Doesn't that sound familiar?
Even today in the midst of the genomic revolution,
aren't we still having conversations about finding
the right balance? About ensuring that our sophisticated
genomic predictions translate into functional,
durable, profitable cows in the barn? Or Miston's
perspective, born from decades of hands -on experience,
serves as a valuable reminder. Data is a powerful
tool, but it shouldn't replace the breeder's
eye, common sense, and a deep understanding of
the animals. As Roy's active breeding career
began to wind down, the Holstein world was on
the cusp of yet another technological leap. The
genomic era was still a couple of decades away,
but the groundwork was being laid, Ormiston in
his own way. They anticipated many of the principles
that would become central to modern breeding
goals. The focus on balanced performance indices,
that echoes Roy's holistic approach. The increasing
emphasis on health traits, feed efficiency, and
trouble -free cows. that reflects his insistence
on breeding cattle that lasted and efficiently
converted feed into milk. His philosophy wasn't
just for his time. It was remarkably prescient.
The culmination of his active breeding program
came on October 1st, 1990. The Roybrook Dispersal
Sale billed as the Roybrook Retirement Party,
and what a party it was. Over 3 ,000 people flocked
to Brooklyn, Ontario, from all corners of the
globe. There wasn't just a sale. It was an event,
a tribute to a master breeder. 74 lots offered
averaged an incredible $14 ,094. That's nearly
$14 ,000 average. In 1990, and get this, I'm
64, almost two thirds of the animals sold to
international buyers proof of Roy Brooks global
footprint. The sail topper, a son of the popular
Sire walkway chief Mark. Out of none other than
Roy Brooke Bailey, tremendous daughter of the
Telstar Starlight Cross, with 61000 OB fat records,
he sold for $140 ,000 to the KK Tokuchi -A Center
in Japan, bringing the story full circle back
to the nation that had so enthusiastically embraced
Telstar years earlier. The dispersal marked the
end of Roy Armiston's direct breeding activities,
but in many ways it only accelerated the spread
of his genetic legacy. those animals scattered
across the globe, carrying the Roybrook influence
into countless herds. Frederick Roy Armiston
passed away in December 2015, having lived an
extraordinary life that spanned a century of
change in agriculture and Holstein breeding.
He lived to be 100 years old, witnessing the
evolution from the visual appraisal art form.
He mastered to the data -driven science that
breeding has largely become today. His list of
accolades is long and distinguished Master Breeder
Shields from Holstein, Canada in 1963 and again
in 1988. The prestigious Distinguished Cattle
Breeder Award from the U .S. Dairy Shrine in
1989. Induction into the Canadian Agricultural
Hall of Fame in 1999. Honors richly deserved.
But Royal Armiston's true legacy isn't just etched
on plaques or recorded in history books. He lives
on in the pedigrees of thousands upon thousands
of Holstein cows worldwide that trace back to
the white cow to tell star starlight tempo and
the other Roebrooke greats. He focused on in
the urine principles he championed. The focus
on great cow families, the commitment to balanced
breeding, the importance of longevity and structural
soundness, and the wisdom of blending technology
with keen observation. These aren't just historical
footnotes. There are foundational concepts for
successful dairy breeding, regardless of the
era or the technology available. His legacy is
even visible in the community of Brooklyn, Ontario.
Streets bear the names of his farm and his famous
cattle. And in a gesture typical of his character,
he generously donated 25 acres of valuable land
for a new hospital, a lasting contribution to
the community where he built his breeding empire.
or once reflected perhaps with characteristic
understatement. I don't think at first I had
any definite plan. I was interested in Holsteins.
And when you're interested in something, you
want to breed the best. Maybe it's that simple.
Not chasing trends, not getting swayed by extremes,
but maintaining an unwavering focus on breeding
the best. Cows that excelled not just for a single
show season or one high lactation, but contributed
positively over a long, trouble -free, productive
lifetime. Roentz reflected, perhaps with characteristic
understatement. I don't think at first I had
any definite plan. I was interested in Holsteins.
And when you're interested in something, you
want to breed the best. Maybe it's that simple.
Not chasing trends, not getting swayed by extremes,
but maintaining an unwavering focus on breeding
the best. Cows that excelled not just for a single
show season or one high lactation, but contributed
positively over a long, trouble -free, productive
lifetime. In today's world of genomics, SMP chips
and complex algorithms, the story of Roy Ormiston,
and the white cow is more than just a nostalgic
trip down memory lane. It's a powerful reminder
of the fundamentals. That behind all the data,
the ultimate goal remains the same one, pursued
throughout his life, breeding cows that are sound,
efficient, and profitable generation after generation.
Cows built on a solid foundation, ready to withstand
the storm of heavy production. Roy Ormiston was
a visionary. a master craftsman of cattle breeding.
With $750 gamble on a white cow set in motion
a genetic revolution, he choreographed a ballad
of bovine genetics, achieving an elegant balance
between progress and timeless principles. And
the echoes of that dance started over half a
century ago on a farm in Ontario, continue to
resonate in Holstein barns around the world today.
He showed us that sometimes the most revolutionary
act is simply the relentless pursuit of fundamental
excellence or a store -write. Makes you think
about the cows in your own barn, the history
behind them, and the visionaries who shaped the
breed we work with every day. Rory Ormiston truly
was the Holstein man's Holstein man. That's all
the time we have for today here on the Bullvine
Podcast. Thanks so much for tuning in and sharing
this piece of Holston history with me. Until
next time, keep breeding those great cows.