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"Issues in the Future Development of Dexters on the Internet:

 Breeders' Views"

by John Paterson

Extracts from "Dexters Online: The Present Situation and Future Potential for Promoting and Marketing Dexters on the Internet", a paper to the Second World Dexter Congress held in Australia in October 2002 - Previously published in The Dexter Bulletin, Official Publication of the American Dexter Cattle Association, Volume 42, No. 3, Summer 2003,  pages 19-21 and The International Dexter, Issue No. 3, December 2003, pages 26-27 - Revised and Up-dated May 2005

USING THE INTERNET FOR DEXTER CATTLE

Over the period between May and August 2002, I sent e-mail questionnaires to about 50 Dexter breeders in New Zealand, Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Canada. Responses were received from 28, most of them from New Zealand and the United Kingdom. They offered a wide range of reasons why they used the Internet to visit Dexter-related websites. Some had to do specifically with Dexter-related information and services, but some were more generally to do with cattle or farming issues. One of the most popular uses of the Internet was for the buying and selling of Dexters. Advertisements for cattle for sale were placed by some respondents on sites like the American Dexter Cattle Association www.dextercattle.org and Dexter Cattle For Sale www.dextercattleforsale.co.uk. Others consulted these sites to buy cattle, or to check out market trends.

Specific information important to a stud and its breeding programme was often sought on the Internet. A number of respondents looked for pedigree information from the website that has the Canadian stud book www.clrc.ca/dexter.html. One respondent had used the Internet recently to check out Australian AI Sires, another to find out about show results.

Some of the reported use of the Internet had to do with the Dexter community. This included catching up on news, views and helpful hints on discussion boards, checking out news from national organisation websites, and getting information about the then up-coming World Congress. Many had used the Internet out of general interest or curiosity about what was on it concerning Dexters, to look at photos of Dexters, or to learn more about fellow breeders. Two had used it for specific purposes - to find out more about bulldog calves, and to find out about registration regulations in a particular country. One had recently done a general search to find out introductory information about Dexters, as well as information useful to her smallfarming operation in general. Another had recently looked for information about diseases in cattle.

Those who had their own website were generally seeking to promote their stud, by publicising their herd and advertising their stock for sale. Some of these stated that they also had the aim of promoting the Dexter breed in general. One respondent viewed his website as a way to develop contacts with other breeders.

Respondents from the UK and US who had stud websites were usually very positive in the evaluation of their success in attracting customers. This applied also to selling Dexter beef and running accommodation services. For example, Dexter breeder Jody Gabbert estimated that 50 per cent of the business of their Adanal Guest Ranch, Texas, came through their website www.adanalranch.com.

FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS

The breeders who responded to my e-mail questionnaire listed a number of additional things about Dexters that they would like to see on the Internet. In the period between 2002 and 2005, a number of these have been provided. Among the positive suggestions were:

· Global on-line pedigree information. Many respondents were impressed with the value of the Canadian on-line herd book and wished that all national herd books were on-line and accessible to everyone. Since 2002, US and Australian Dexter organisations have started on-line pedigree or herd book pages. 

· Greater use of Dexter discussion boards to exchange information between breeders from different countries. This should in fact occur as more breeders learn to use the Internet and come to see the value of the discussion boards. Since 2002, a number of discussion boards have been active, with the three main ones being Dexter Cattle For Sale  www.dextercattleforsale.co.uk, the New Dexter Bulletin Board www.dakodan.net/dexters/forum, Dexter Cattle 2 http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dextercattle2  and Dexter Cattle Only http://groups.yahoo.com/group/dextercattleonly. 

· Further development of the websites of national organisations. The range of information and services available on the American Dexter Cattle Association and UK Dexter Cattle Society sites make them useful models. Since 2002, most Dexter organisations have revised and expanded their websites.

· Establishment of a worldwide e-mail directory relating to items of relevance to Dexter breeders, such as semen sales, vet knowledge, cattle for sale, and farms available for visits. This development has not taken place.

· Worldwide listing of bulls being used for AI, along with their pedigrees and basic information about their characteristics. The AI Sires listing on the Australian website has proved useful to a number of respondents. Since 2002, some information and photos of some AI bulls have been placed on the Internet but there has been no centralised and usually no national listing of the range of details sought by breeders.  

· National organisations should post news and announcements on their websites so these can be read by members in a more timely way. Some organisations are starting to do this. Since 2002, this has occurred more often, though not by all Dexter organisations.

· More information is needed on the Internet about Dexters, including their potential as a commercial dual-purpose cattle breed, veterinary topics, and information about genetic issues. Since 2002, the Dexter discussion boards have been the main vehicle for this kind of information. A number of Dexter breeders with specialist knowledge - historical, genetic, veterinary, and practical - have generously spent time and energy posting often detailed messages in response to inquiries from other breeders.  

A number of suggestions were made specifically to assist breeders to use the Internet more effectively. For example:

· More publicity should be provided about Dexter websites, such as listings in Bulletins. Since 2002, it has become more common to see lists of useful websites or mention of Dexter websites in Bulletins.

· National organisations should provide some advice to aid members in finding out more about Dexters on the Internet. Most national organisation websites now include a list of useful links.

· Someone should provide a page of useful websites to save the time and frustration involved with personal searching. The development of www.dex-info.net in 2005 was partly to meet this need.

· A website could be developed to provide links to other useful sites. Again, www.dex-info.net has been developed to meet this need as well.

· There should be more links on Dexter sites in general. Individual sites vary in their provision of links and of information about what the links provide.

Among the critical suggestions made by respondents were:

· There should be less repetition on the Internet of the same information about Dexters.

· Websites should not be too complex as this can make it difficult to view them and can put off the novice Internet user.

· More websites should be up-dated more often, especially with different ways of presenting basic information about the breed.

In general, new Dexter websites vary enormously in their quality and complexity, although a number have been of a very high standard.

CONCLUSION

There is no doubt that the Internet will become more important in the future as more people come to use it. However, more effective use of it is just as important. Website developers need to construct easily-navigable sites. Resources like specialist subject directories need to be put together. Internet users need to develop skills and confidence to make use of search tools and discussion boards.

The Internet offers national organisations an opportunity to promote Dexters widely. It offers individual breeders a variety of ways to advertise their cattle, their studs, and their products. It offers the world-wide community of Dexter breeders a means to exchange news, advice, information and research. 

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