The coronation of King Charles III will happen today in the United Kingdom. With much fanfare and pageantry the new king will be crowned in front of a live international television audience. In Montgomery County, one family will be paying attention to the event as they own a connection to the royal family. That connection comes with four hooves.
Grimes Hoosier Highland Farm is south of Waynetown and is the home of nearly 25 head of Scottish Highland Cattle. Jason and wife Krystal along with daughter Clair and son Mason work on raising their cows. The unique bovine breed is not found in many places, but the Grimes family are all about educating others about their choice of cattle.
To make the story even more unique, the Grimes family has the records that prove their cattle is from the royal family’s highland herd. It is the same line that the late Queen Elizabeth promoted from the royal family’s farm in Scotland. It is the only line of Scottish Highland cattle with the royal connection in the world.
It is no secret that the Queen was a lover of cattle. In 1953, Queen Elizabeth’s fold of Highland cattle was founded. They roam the 50,000 acres surrounding the Balmoral Castle. She is even considered one of the United Kingdom’s top highland breeders, and some of her cattle’s bloodline can be traced back to the reign of Queen Victoria, who received cows as a gift in 1871.
“Queen Elizabeth was an advocate of the Highland breed and they raised them in Scotland,” Jason said. “We have the records that show our cows come from her line of Highland cattle.”
The family can thank Clair for getting involved with the royal breed. She saw her first Scottish Highland cow about eight years ago. She immediately started her own campaign to get the cows on the family farm which was raising Angus cattle. Finally she won out and Jason decided to switch breeds.
“I was the last holdout about getting into Highlands,” Jason admitted. “But now, I don’t think I would go back. We are really pleased with them.”
One of the holdups for Jason were the horns on the breed. He was hesitant because he didn’t want anyone to get injured. But that fear soon was dismissed when he found out how passive the breed is.
Today Claire is busy feeding the heard twice a day and walking the cows used for shows. Not only do the cows get cattle feed, she also gives them apple treats daily.
“Scottish Highlands are just like big puppies,” Claire said. “They follow you around the pasture and they love being loved on. They are playful and love all types of attention.”
The family was instrumental in getting them in the Montgomery County and Clinton County 4H fair shows. The family will show their cattle in open shows and they hope to have a breed show at the state fair soon.
“Our cows are really popular at fairs,” Krystal said. “People like petting them and asking question which we love. We want to get the word out about how great this breed is.”
Mason is fond of the cows also. He said his favorite part is showing them shows and said raising the cattle is “pretty cool.”
The cattle’s meat is healthy. It is lower in fat and cholesterol then beef. Also there is more protein than beef.
“The meat is really good,” Claire said. “And, I don’t like beef.”
The Highland hair, which is long and soft to the touch and is marketable also. The cattle have two layers of hair to enable them to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
Since having the cattle on their farm which is located on S.R. 32 West, the family often has visitors stop by just to see the cows.
“We will have people stop in the middle of 32 just to take a photo and sometimes they drive up to the house and ask to look at them,” Krystal said. “We love showing them to strangers and we have met some really neat people.”
The family often takes their cows to community events such as Vacation Bible Schools and elementary schools. They will take them to festivals, nursing homes and other events. Some people want photos with the cattle including photos with babies.
“Anyone who would like to request we bring cows to them should go to our Facebook page and send us a message,” Krystal said. “We love getting them out to the public. They are so docile that people love petting them and getting close to them. We have fun showing them and it is a good way to advocate the breed to others.”
For now, the cattle may not realize a new King is being crowned, however, with all the attention they receive, they are treated royally.
