Missy is one very special bovine beauty.
On Saturday, the Canadian Holstein, whose full name is Eastside Lewisdale Gold Missy, was crowned Supreme Champion of the 2011 World Dairy Expo in Madison, Wis.
The five-year-old cow from the Ponoka area took top honours of all breeds after winning the Grand Champion title of the International Holstein Show earlier in the day.
She is owned by a syndicate that includes Ponoka area residents — Morsan Farms, Van Ruinen Dairy, Gert Andreasen, Georges Uebelhardt — and Wisconsin-based Mark Butz.
Chris Parry of Morsan Farms was among a contingent that took a selection of cows, including Missy, down to the Oct. 4 to 8 show.
Parry said there’s two premiere shows in the world — the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto and then this one in Wisconsin, which has more entrants than its Canadian counterpart.
“For her to travel down there and be not just champion of her breed, but champion of all breeds, that’s (great),” said Parry.
“It’s like a beauty contest, like Miss World.
“And she took the title.”
Indeed, it’s a beauty contest for cows.
Parry said the judging is based entirely on looks.
“It’s how close she is to perfection,” Parry said.
Supreme Champion Cow is awarded the Gregory Blaska Memorial Trophy, plus the recipients receive a $1,500 cash award, a royal blanket and a director’s chair. While the prize may be nominal, Parry said the dividends of winning come up big in promotion.
“Cows like this achieve their value through their marketing of their genetics,” Parry said. “She’ll be in demand for embryos, heifers and bulls all over the world.”
Missy isn’t a stranger to winning international acclaim.
In 2009, she sold in an auction for $1.2 million — the second cow in Canada to fetch over $1 million.
With such a high price tag, Missy hit the news big time, including on the American news network CNN.
ltester@www.reddeeradvocate.com
— copyright Red Deer Advocate