Animal Health & Husbandry
1 November, 2026
Pioneering breeders
CAMPERDOWN farmers Belinda Cardinal and Tony Urek continue to break new ground when it comes to farming the Valais Blacknose breed.
Known across the world as the ‘cutest sheep on earth’ this shaggy, uniquely coloured breed is fast winning the hearts of all those lucky enough to meet them.
Belinda and Tony were the first in Australia to introduce the breed ‘down under’ around five years ago.
“Valais Blacknose are native to Zermatt in Switzerland,” Belinda said.
“Over there they are bred for wool and meat. We were drawn by their cuteness, I mean, who can resist them?
“It took four years of hard work, phone calls and never-ending correspondence before we could even begin on this journey.
“The very first two purebred ewe lambs to be born in Australia were born here on our 10-acre property in April 2021 and since then we’ve been flooded with calls from people wanting to keep them as pets.”
As word spread of the Valais Blacknose’s arrival in Australia, it wasn’t long before Belinda was inundated with requests for lambs.
“It was such an exciting time and such a relief to finally see all the years of hard work result in our goal,” she said.
“After the arrival of our first two lambs, it was only a matter of days before six more were born and so the numbers continued.
“We started a club, which is now an independent entity, and I’d say there’s now over 90 breeders continuing the legacy we began which makes us extremely proud.”
And in another first for the Australian Valais industry, in February last year Omazel, in conjunction with Caproek, successfully exported embryos and semen to the USA.
“This was an exciting opportunity to showcase quality Australian sheep genetics to the world and will hopefully encourage further interest in our Australian Valais genetics, adding value to our relatively new breed and the Australian sheep industry as a whole,” Belinda said.
A visit to Belinda and Tony’s property isn’t complete without taking the time to meet another of their cute inhabitants – their range of miniature goats.
They currently have “about 60” goats covering four breeds – Toggenburgs, LaMancha, Nigerian Dwar and Pigmies.
The introduction of goats started around 15 years ago (while living in Moriac) when Belinda discovered she was allergic to cows’ milk – and her daughter (then three years-old) soon followed.
“I found out I was allergic to cows’ milk and a short time later my daughter began complaining of stomach pain and she was having trouble eating,” Belinda said.
“We discovered we were both allergic to a protein in the milk. While goats’ milk does have that same protein, its percentage is much lower so we were able to tolerate it.”
Belinda’s first goat was a Toggenburg – which produced up to four litres of milk each day.
“With such high productivity, I was busy making cheeses, yogurts, lots of dairy products.
“That was about the time when I started to re-evaluate my life. I left my job and started a goat dairy. Now, living just outside Camperdown, we enjoy a more relaxed lifestyle.
“Our goats and our sheep keep us busy but also keep us grounded.
“We’re thrilled to have introduced the Valais Blacknose to Australia and excited to see where this journey takes us.”