Former 'Survivor' contestant raises Texas Longhorn cattle as 'pasture ornaments'
Allegheny Township farmer Chet Welch received a gift on his 50th birthday that keeps on giving.
“I got my dream farm,” said Welch, a former contestant on the CBS series “Survivor,” describing his beloved historic Tunnel Hill Farm in Allegheny Township he co-owns with Bob Cherry, his partner of 16 years.
“It’s truly a dream come true.”
Now, Welch, 62, raises and sells Texas Longhorn cattle for breeding purposes, but primarily as “pasture ornaments” for people seeking a Western “wow” factor on the property.
None are sold for processing or meat.
Cherry said the 120-acre farm purchase happened organically. He describes himself as the “Ava Gabor of Green Acres,” a nod to the very urban wife character played by Gabor in the late 1960s TV series.
“We went to the farm auction to buy some of the contents. We didn’t go with the purpose of buying the farm,” said Cherry, who grew up in Pittsburgh’s Carrick neighborhood.
Welch gained fame and notoriety for starring in the inaugural season of “Survivor” in 2008 in Micronesia.
At that time, Welch was a nationally recognized pageant coach living in Manor Township, Armstrong County.
Shaking a large plastic container filled with horse treats inside the main pasture, his herd of 35 longhorns heard the noise and started toward him.
“Come on, cows,” Welch said. “Here they come.”
Amid loud bellows of mooing, Welch hand-fed some of the herd, a mix of newly born calves and mature cattle.
“That’s very important to me,” Welch said of his policy not to sell the animals for slaughter. “I’ve always loved cattle. My father had a dairy farm in Dayton, Armstrong County. I’m the only one in the entire family interested in cattle and farming.”
Ornamental or pasture ornament cattle, is a growing trend. It involves buying cattle as a pet or decoration for one’s ranch, farm or land.
“I know they’re not going to slaughter, and that’s my personal comfort zone. I grew up never slaughtering,” Welch said.
Welch said the bulk of his buyers are women and couples.
“When I go to these auctions, I always watch the crowd. Thousands are in the crowd, and I look to see who is buying this ornamental cow.
“I always laugh because it usually comes down to the girlfriend pulling on the boyfriend’s jacket, and it’s like, ‘Of course, honey, we’ll get it,’ and I’m seeing a lot of younger couples now getting into farming,” Welch said.
“A lot of executives, country singers and even Terry Bradshaw have a herd of longhorns,” Welch said.
Welch has sold longhorns with prices ranging from $5,000 to $8,000 each.
“They’re pretty. People just like to see them in their front pastures. A lot of places have them just to look at,” Welch said.
Welch said the herd is “easygoing.”
They all have names and are provided several pastures to graze, room to roam and affection.
“They’re not crazy beasts from the Old West, and I think popular shows like ‘Yellowstone’ and the resurgence of the Old West is rallying behind a surge in this popularity,” Welch said. “They’re beautiful animals and have a triple purpose — for beef, for color and for horn.”
After finding success several years ago selling Highlander cattle, Welch added Texas Longhorns into the mix.
“The Texas Longhorns are a craze right now thanks to the internet,” Welch said. “A new generation is embracing these animals. Now these people are watching ‘Yellowstone,’ and they’re liking it. … I do think the show has helped.”
Tunnel Hill Farm began in 1865 as a Civil War land grant.
“The farm is exactly what I knew I would have someday. The other day I was looking out and watching the cattle grazing, and it truly is a dream come true. I didn’t get it until I was 50, but I have it,” Welch said.
The 3-year-old male bull with one job on the farm is Roadhouse, weighing in at 1 ton.
His name is a nod to the popular Texas Roadhouse restaurant chain.
“He’s the herd bull, and his job is to sire calves,” Welch said. “And I’m trying to have an all black-and-white herd. Roadhouse is homogeneous black, meaning he carries only the gene for black coloration and all of his calves will have a black base.”
“It’s just a personal preference,” he said. “I’m partial to black and white.”
It’s not uncommon for the couple to field visits from motorists, who stop to gawk at the unusual sight of a field full of longhorns.
“They stop, stare and it’s quite the tourist attraction sometimes,” Cherry said.
Female longhorns weigh between 1,200 to 1,800 pounds, and their life expectancy can reach into the 20s.
They eat hay during the winter and are excellent foragers and are easy to care for.
Welch sells his cattle at auctions, through his Facebook page or customers contact him privately.
The cattle are delivered to their new home via Welch’s trailer. People buying at auctions usually have their own trailers and can take the animal, but sometimes we have to arrange transportation, Cherry said.
“We call an Uber for the cow. There are driving services that can move cows,” Cherry said.
His “Survivor” stint provided Welch with contacts that have endured, helping him to spread the word about Tunnel Hill Farm’s longhorns.
Welch noted longhorns are popular in the South because the breed likes the heat. He has sold ornamental longhorns to customers in Texas, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Virginia and Ohio.
Cherry goes above and beyond supporting Welch in what he described as a sometimes “Dr. Doolittle” scene on the farm — the longhorns share the farm acreage with a menagerie of more than 300 barnyard animals that include turkeys, peacocks, geese, water buffalo, Scottish Highland cattle, dogs, ducks and chickens.
“The animals are actually very protective of him,” Cherry said of Welch.
The ins and outs of the longhorn business is Welch’s thing, and Cherry praised Welch for his dedication to his side business.
“For me, that’s what I see. He understands the genetics and the horn orientation,” Cherry said. “We’re going to a cow show this weekend. I support him because it’s Chet’s passion.”
Welch is known for spouting his motto on the types of animals he keeps on the farm.
“If I can’t lead it, I don’t need it,” said Cherry of the phrase that Welch subscribes to in keeping friendly animals. “He won’t keep an unruly animal.”
Cherry’s favorite longhorn is a steer named Remington.
“He’s big and dorky and larger than most. Remington’s personality is calm, sweet and approachable,” he said.
Cherry said life on the farm is never dull, and the couple recently built a large addition with Western decor onto their farmhouse.
When asked if more longhorns are in their future, Cherry said he will continue to support Welch.
“It certainly justifies his passion,” Cherry said. “He could throw another cow in, and I would never know.”
Joyce Hanz is a native of Charleston, S.C. and is a features reporter covering the Pittsburgh region. She majored in media arts and graduated from the University of South Carolina. She can be reached at jhanz@triblive.com
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.