Paddy Whelan & Son in Moone, Co. Kildare is a one-stop shop for all your farm road building, equine and stock fencing, quarry stone, groundwork and landscaping requirements.
Trading for over 50 years, the father-and-son operation has earned an enviable reputation for providing top-quality, value-for-money products and services to the agricultural and equine sectors. Founder Paddy Whelan fronts the business along with his son Paddy Jnr. They are farmers themselves who run a calf-to-beef enterprise in tandem with Paddy Whelan & Son.
“We do a little bit of everything,” Paddy Jnr smiles.
“We’re a long-established family business who have enjoyed a close relationship with the farming and equine communities down through the years. My father is 88, but is still involved in the day-to-day running along with myself and a small, but dedicated team. My three nephews, Nick, Shane and Tadhg Jackman, lend a hand at busy times and we also get great support from my partner Niamh Kinsella, my mother Catherine and sisters Brenda and Dawn, who help with everything from stopping cattle from breaking out to paperwork and invoicing.
“In addition, we run a calf-to-beef system on our farm. We own 140 acres and rent a further 125. We installed a four-station DeLaval calf feeder last year and reared 170 calves on it. We hope to rear 200 on it this year.
“We grew 27 acres of beet last year which we fed to our own stock. We also grew corn and made hay – which was sold to local farmers – but have reseeded 45 acres for extra grazing this year. We supply our beef to Liffey Meats in Hacketstown and have further plans for expansion, including building a new slatted unit, expanding the yard and installing a new cattle-handling unit. So between the business and the farm, there is a lot going on.”
Paddy Whelan & Son have been involved in the equine sector in some way or another for more than half a century. During that time, they have developed and learned special techniques for the construction of arenas and gallops that put the horse and rider at the centre of the design.
Tied in with equine is stock fencing, which is another staple of the business. The Whelans provide many different fencing solutions and can tailor a package to suit the customer in terms of specification and budget.
“We specialise in the equine sector and work with many of the best trainers and stud farmers in the area. It’s what we started out doing,” Paddy Jnr explains.
“We also carry out a lot of contract fencing for beef, dairy and sheep farmers.”
Furthermore, Paddy Whelan & Son have access to their own on-farm quarry. The quarry produces a brown shale type stone / rock that makes it ideal for building farm roads or driveways. It can also be handpicked for decorative wall-facing on houses or garden walls. While predominantly brown, there are also flashes of green and blue. The stone is irregular in shape and most has a cross grain.
The Whelans can build farm roads from scratch or renovate existing ones. They can give you a price for materials or labour, or both. A well-designed, carefully built and properly maintained farm roadway system has many benefits, including less lameness, faster and easier stock movement, less roadway maintenance and more efficient paddock access.
The benefits also include better general animal health, and it keeps runoff away from dry ditches and watercourses. For dairy farms, this also includes less mastitis, cleaner cows and milk with lower sediment and thermoduric levels.
“We opened up the quarry about 30 years ago and that led to us getting into building farm roadways 15 years ago. The shale is softer than limestone which makes it especially suited to dairy farms and cows’ feet. We have a variety of quarried stone, including 3” down, 804 quarry dust and general fill, which can be delivered locally by tractor and trailer, or further afield by truck. We delivered stone as far away as Rosslare last year.
“We also buy and supply sand to the equine sector.”
The south Co. Kildare operation has an array of machinery to carry out groundworks and agricultural contracting. They can cater for everything from digging out foundations for a new house or agricultural building, installation of on-farm tanks to landscaping, lawn preparation, sowing and dump trailer work.
“We’re running two John Deere tractors – a 6510 and a 6165r – as well as four excavators and a JCB 3CX with rubber tyres. We also have a Ford 7610 on a Keenan diet feeder on the farm,” Paddy Jnr explains.
“Our other plant includes two Broughan dump trailers, a Broughan low loader and a Thwaites nine-tonne dumper. We use local hauliers for longer deliveries. We regularly upgrade and maintain all our machines to make sure there are no breakdowns and everything runs smoothly.”
As Paddy Whelan & Son continues to go from strength to strength, they would like to take this opportunity to thank their clients and suppliers for their continued support as well as their professional team for their hard work, dedication and expertise.
Paddy Whelan & Sons
Simonstown,
Moone,
Co. Kildare.
Telephone: 085 767 4813
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.paddywhelan.ie
First published in Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 14 No 1, Spring 2026
