This is a Belted Galloway. How I know this is a Belted Galloway is why it makes me smile. And now...the rest of the story.
My Dad was determined that while his daughters may have grown up in a more urban location than he did, they would have a knowledge of and appreciation for farm life. Growing up, we had over an acre of a garden every summer and my parents did their best to teach my sister and me about planting, fertilizing, and caring for crops. Some of my favorite memories from the month of August is going to the State Fair and walking through the animal barns with Dad while he explained the differences of each breed of cow, pig, etc.
After Bobby and I were married, we rented a cabin with both sets of our parents on the outskirts of Gatlinburg. On the way home from this trip, I was in the car with my folks. After we passed a field of cows (that were now out of sight), I said, "Dad, what kind of cow has a white stripe around its belly like one of those pigs?" Dad replied he had never heard of a cow like that followed by, "I never thought one of my daughters wouldn't be able to tell the difference between a cow and a pig!" He continued to tease me about this all the way home. Everyone was convinced I was mistaken about my white-striped cow.
Several weeks later, Dad and his best friend were driving in a more rural part of Jefferson County. As they approached an exit on the Gene Snyder Freeway, off to his right Dad saw a whole field of cattle with a white-stripe around their bellies! He and his friend found the farm and asked what breed this was. When he arrived home, Dad prepared himself a plate of crow and called his eldest. That mea culpa phone call was worth all the teasing I had endured!
That's how I know what a Belted Galloway cow looks like. . . and why they always make me smile.
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