Bygone Days: Death of top Ulster bull Sacombe Edgar

Sacombe Edgar was put down after hurting his back in an accident at Ballycraigy AI Centre.

The pedigree Simmental bull was owned by Bertie Watterson, of Magherafelt.

Mr Watterson said that he was very sorry to see the bull go.

“It is a tremendous loss,” he said. “Edgar was a real champion and the sire of champions. He was the bull which made by herd.

“He was male of the year in the past, and one of his daughters is this year’s female of the year.

“Edgar made Simmental in Northern Ireland,” added Mr Watterson.

And certainly the bull was a real champion. He was supreme champion at Perth in 1977, inter-breed champion at Antrim Show in 1980, Bull of the Year in Northern Ireland in 1981 and champion at numerous other shows in Northern Ireland.

John Wilson, principal livestock officer of the Department of Agriculture for Northern Ireland, said that Edgar had been a great all-rounder.

“Edgar did equally well in pedigree herd or in commercial dairy and suckling herds,” he said. “He had relatively few calving problems.

“Some bulls are up and down breeders; Edgar was a very level breeder.

“He had very good temperament and was very easily worked with in AI.

“Edgar was a very good producer of semen which made him an ideal bull for the commercial AI service.”

Mr Wilson pointed out that many Edgar sons had done well on performance test.

Jimmy Hoy, livestock consultant of Al Services (Nl) Ltd, said that Edgar was “a champion in every sense of the word”.

He said: “Sacombe Edgar was the most outstanding Simmental in the British Isles.

“He made a tremendous contribution to the breed and to livestock in Northern Ireland.”

Mr Hoy pointed out that the useful life of a bull was usually over after eight to 10 years.

“It is very unusual for a bull over 12 years of ago to be active.

“Very few bulls are still producing semen at Edgar’s age. He was a centurion in human terms.”

Mr Hoy said that semen from the bull was still available.

Edgar was 15 years of age . . . which, in human terms, was 99 years.

“Even at this age he was still producing semen,” said Mr Watterson.

It was understood that the oldest producing bull in the United Kingdom at that time was Heywood Ensign, another Simmental.

When Sacombe Edgar had produced 100,000 straws of semen Bertie Watterson had held a celebration dinner.

The bull’s contribution was praised ... and one leading Department of Agriculture official even produced a poem.

It reads as follows:

I’m here in Ballycraigy in bedding to the knee and I’m getting very auld

They have to use the infra-red to save me from the cauld

There’s divil the bull in this fair land was better bred nor me

But I’m stuck in Ballycraigy in clabber to the knee.

Now when I was young in England - t’was fourteen years or so

Mr Borlase decided to America I should go

But I had no intention of settling in the West

A bit of luck blood(y) tests

I took a fit of growing,

Was full of joy and mirth,

And then the boss-man told me that I was bound for Perth

I wasn’t looking forward to snow and ice and damp

But I had my consolation for Bob Vigus made me Champ

To Oakland Bertie brought me to run with females there

And many a summer evening I went on the tare

You all will know the story of the offspring I begot

Andy said and led them and Bertie bummed a lot

Jimmy Hoy came calling and liked the stock he saw

To Wilson he suggested my semen they should draw

So I came to Ballycraigy seven years ago

And with sex being artificial there’s times I’m felling low

Now you will realise life isn’t all milk and honey

I do my best for Ulster while Bertie gets the money

I’ll be in Ballycraigy till my working days are done

But how I miss green pastures and how I miss my fun.