Raising mini cows a retirement project and a tribute to WWI regiment

A herd of rare miniature cattle on the Port au Port Peninsula are not only adorable, they're a living, four-legged legacy to a key moment in Newfoundland and Labrador history.

The seven Dexter cows and calves form the bedrock of the Blue Puttees Dexter Farm, owned by recent retireesWayne and Jackie Deaves. The name was inspired by Jackie's late grandfather, Eugene Cornect, who served in the First World War as one of the Royal Newfoundland Regiment soldiers who earned the nickname fromtheir distinctive legwear.

"My grandfather was a Blue Puttee, and to commemorate the 100th anniversary last year, we decided that's what we would name the farm," she said.

"It's something that's obviously very close to my heart."

Taking things one step further, all calves born on the farm are given a namelinked to the First World Waror the Blue Puttees: last year's calves are Arras, named after the Battle of Arras,and Aldershot, after the British Army's largest training base.This year, the Deaves welcomed babies Blue and Beaumont.

The Blue Puttees bovinesmay be small they weigh in about at about half the size of an average beef cow but they have strong family ties, sticking close to one anotheron the farm. Bull Jethrocuddles the new calves affectionately, while a saucy donkey named Zane rounds out the crew.

Fromred serge to rubber boots

The Deavesrecently moved to Jackie's hometown of Cape St. George after Jackie retired from 26 years with theRCMP. Wayneis a retired serviceman from Ontario who was an airborne gunner and geomatic technician with the military.

The pair always dreamed of starting their own hobby farm, but were unsure about exactly how to transition from life in uniform.

"We always had a plan to come to Newfoundland once we retired," said Wayne.

"We originally were going to start with Newfoundland poniesif we could, and we were kind ofhemming and hawing, and then somehow the cattle came into the picture."

Jackie credits a TV show with introducingher to the possibility of raisingDexter cattle a hairy and hardy pint-sized cow breedwith Irish origins.

"I think I was watching The Addams Family, and at end of it there was this little cow and I thought, wow! I want some miniature cattle!," she said.

A rare breed

Finding the miniature cows took a lot more work than just turning on the TV. According to the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, Dextersfaced near extinction in the 1970s, but have since made enough of a comeback to be considered a "recovering" breed.

Months of searching ultimately lead the Deaves to what they called a "serendipitous" moment at an event for veterans in OttawawhereWayne ran into a former military buddy who, coincidentally, was raising Dexter cattle on his farm in Ontario.

"I was talking to him about the cattle and that, and I asked him what he's doing, and he said 'raising Dexters', and I said nah, there's no way. Somebody told you that's what I was looking for!"

A little while later, Jackie flew up to the farm where she purchasedJethro, along with two females Jemima and Jewel, and brought them back to Newfoundland, where they are now the province's only registered Dexter cattle.

The Deaves say they'd like to grow the herd a little larger, but for now they're just enjoying life on the farm. The herd aren't simply pets:the cows are milked and the Deavesdo plan that one day some of them will end up on a plate. And amidthe hard work, they've also found a new retiree community.

"I've found there's a lot of RCMPmembers that go into farming," said Jackie.

"I guess it's just you hang your hat, and then just deal with the animals."