CATTLE breeder Mr Douglas Forster liked the "get up and go" of a breed he had not seen before.

And, this week, 20 of his bullocks have got up and gone to be the centre of a breed performance testing scheme.

Mr Forster of Low Houselop Farm, Tow Law, read an article about the old French Bazadaise breed about five years ago.

At the time he was breeding Charolais, but was looking for a change because of problems he had experienced with them, particularly when calving. "I read how the Bazadaise was easy calving with plenty of get up and go and thought they sounded ideal," he said.

He visited a breeder in Silloth and saw three herds where the breed was used on sucklers. "They were all in their working clothes and I was very impressed with them," said Mr Forster.

He then went to Norfolk to see the main breeder and bought two bulls and two heifers. "I have never looked back since then," he said. "The calves when born are narrow and small but after eight weeks they muscle up wonderfully.

"They are fine-boned but grow to be as big as any other Continental; they just grow and grow.

"I am over the moon with them and, because they are fine-boned but still have the weight, they are very attractive to the butcher."

The Bazadaise originate from France where a herd book was established in 1895. They have been successfully reared from the lowlands to the mountain pastures 7,200ft up in the Pyrenees and are a proven, adaptable and hardy breed.

Breeding stock, semen and embryos began to be exported in 1989 to England, Australia, Belgium, Spain and Holland and gained a reputation for fine flavoured low fat and well-marbled meat.

The breed ranges in colour from dark brown to light grey and has exceptional length with excellent conformation.

The average height of a bull is 145cm with an average weight of 1200kg. Cows average 140cm and 750kg. Calves weigh an average 200kg at four months.

They are said to suit any kind of production with weights of 500kg achievable at 12-14 months. The killing out rate is an impressive 63-67pc.

The breed is also said to have proved its worth on all breeds for beef production, achieving vastly improved conformation, weight gains and carcass evaluations.

They are described as ideal suckler sires and Mr Forster has found a steady demand from that sector, particularly where breeders are trying to get rid of the Holstein influence.

Bazadaise are also popular with dairy men, particularly for use on heifers. The calves are good suckler replacements, while the steers are good for quality beef production.

"We sell to both suckler herds and dairy herds; the interest is definitely there," said Mr Forster, who sells store cattle at Tow Law and Darlington.

The 300-acre hill farm with fell rights carries 120 suckler cows - mainly Hereford X and some Continentals - and 24 pedigree Bazadaise.

There are also about 650 ewes made up of 300 Swaledales, 20 pure Texels and the rest are Mules.

Recently, Harper Adams agricultural college approached the British Bazadaise Society to carry out performance test trials on the breed. They selected all 20 bullocks from Mr Forster's farm and collected them on Wednesday - the same day Prince Charles was due to visit the college.

Ten of the bullocks will be given a diet of whole crop and silage fed ad lib and the others will get ad lib barley. They will be tested and weighed right through to slaughter to see how they perform.

At Low Houselop they are fed cake and silage. The farm stands at 1000ft and consequently only one cut of silage is taken.

Mr Forster is delighted to have had his stock selected, considering that he has been involved with the breed for only a relatively short period.

"But interest has and still is growing," he said, "The good thing is that customers keep coming back."

Anyone interested in the breed can contact Mr Forster, who farms with his wife, Marie, and is helped by daughter, Rachel, on 01388 730363.