Mixed blessings as farmers get rain and agri show gets drenched
THE West Kerry Agricultural Show enjoyed mixed blessings on Sunday. On the one hand there was the rain, which was welcomed by farmers; and on the other hand there was the rain, which conspired with the World Cup final and the Kerry v Galway match to reduce the number of people attending the annual showcase of country life.
The show, which celebrates and rewards excellence in farm life, its producers and products, was established 53 year ago and it remains an important part of the agricultural calendar in West Kerry. Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Brendan Griffin expressed his delight at being invited to open this “lá iontach i gCorca Dhuibhne”. He thanked the organisers for the “huge work that makes the day possible and has maintained this very important tradition for 53 years”, also giving credit to the local community and businesses for their support.
Farmers from throughout Kerry and beyond presented cattle, sheep and horses at the show, with the prize for Best in Class Mountain Sheep going to Benny Clifford of Keel and Best Overall Lowland Class awarded to James Manning of Dingle. In the cattle section, Colm Murphy of Lios Póil took the prize for Best Dairy Cow.
Meanwhile, people travelled from all over for the dog show, but none travelled as far as the Best in Show winner ‘Sid’ – an Italian greyhound who was rescued in Dubai by his owner Eamn Almehiri from Lios Póil. Sid – a diminutive breed of greyhound – was the first dog of his kind ever seen in Ireland by Martine Moriarty who, along with Lynne Stratton, has judged the dog show for the past 23 years. Over that time they have noticed a big change in the dogs arriving for the show. It used to be the case that most dogs were working animals and more at home in the sheep dog trials. Now more dogs enjoy indoor comforts and people take much more care of them,