Breeds Of Cattle

Cattle : Africander

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Also Known As: Afrikaner (Afrik.)

The Africander is a native South African breed. It belongs to the Sanga type and is used primarily for meat production. The breed is usually red with long lateral horns. Sanga type cattle, in huge herds, were owned by the Hottentots when the Dutch established the Cape Colony in 1652. The animals were obtained by the colonists who improved them for use as draft animals. It was Africander oxen that drew the wagons which carried Boer farmers and families on the Great Trek of 1835 - 36 from the Cape of Good Hope to the Orange Free State, Natal and the Transvaal to escape British rule. the word trek is originally Afrikaans, meaning draft.

The Africander is South Africa's most popular native breed, comprising 30% of the cattle population. Africander cattle exhibit good resistance to heat, a high level of tick resistance, quiet temperament and a satisfactorily high level of fertility under harsh conditions. Mature cows weigh approximately 525 to 600 kg (1150 - 1350 pounds) and bulls weigh 750 to 1000 kg (1650 - 2200 pounds).

The Africander was used with Shorthorn in developing the Bonsmara breed and with Holstein in creating the Drakensberger.

Africander in Australia

The small numbers of Africander cattle in Australia have developed from a relatively small base importation from America. As it belongs to the Bos indicus group, the Africander is mainly found in the hot-tropical-humid and sub-tropical-dry areas of Australia.

The Africander tends to late maturity and yields a carcass with comparatively low fat cover. Through the use of bulls and frozen semen, the Africander has been used in up-grading indigenous cattle in tropical countries as it passes on fertility, docility and excellent weight gains to progeny.

Reference:

Genus Bos: Cattle Breeds of the World, 1985, MSO-AGVET (Merck & Co., Inc.), Rahway, N.J.
Mason, I.L. 1996. A World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties. Fourth Edition. C.A.B International. 273 pp.

Handbook of Australian Livestock, Australian Meat & Livestock Corporation,1989, 3rd Edition

Photographs:

The Afrikaner Cattle Breeders Societ of South Africa, Bus/Box 979 Bloemfontein 9300, South Africa
Handbook of Australian Livestock, Australian Meat & Livestock Corporation,1989, 3rd Edition

Cattle : Blonde d'Aquitaine

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Blonde d'Aquitaine

The Blonde d'Aquitaine breed originated in the Garonne valley and the Pyrenees mountains area in the Aquitaine district of France.

Blondes short smooth hair is usually wheat colored, but can range from almost white to brown. They are known for their lean muscling, high growth rate, docility and calving ease due to a high tail setting, large pelvic area and light bone. The average weight of mature females is 1600-1900 pounds and bulls 2500-2800 pounds. These are big blondes!

They are the third largest breed in France after the Limousin and Charolais breeds. First imported into the United States in 1972.

Cattle : Belted Galloway

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Belted Galloway

The 'Belties', like six other color variants, presumably originated centuries ago from the pure black Galloway. They were mentioned as early as the start of the 19th century.

They are medium to small framed cattle with a broad, flat head. Neck is of medium length. Deep torso with short, clean legs. Fine bone structure. Thick, soft, long hair, especially in winter. The fore and hind-quarters are black with a reddish sheen; the middle of the body is white. Polled. Hardy. Undemanding. Adaptable. Good natured and easily controlled. Outstanding meat quality. Cows calve easily and are good mothers.

Cattle : Belgian Blue

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Belgian Blue

Belgian Blues are medium sized, heavy cattle, sometimes with a massive double muscle structure. Their colors are blue, white, and blue and white. Belgian Blues are small boned with a sloping rump, hidden hips, strong legs and a relatively small head. They are quite robust and healthy.

Belgian Blues produce a cross bred steer with a high yielding carcass dressing out between 65 and 70 per cent. The meat is tender with a minimum coverage of fat with a high proportion of the valuable cuts.

Cattle : Beefmaster

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Beefmaster

Beginning in the early 1930s, Tom Lasater, the breed's founder, developed Beefmasters by crossing Hereford, Shorthorn and Brahman cattle. The exact mixture of the foundation cattle is not known, but is thought to be about 25% Hereford, 25% Shorthorn and 50% Brahman. Lasater's purpose was to develop cattle that would be more productive than existing breeds in the harsh environment of South Texas. The cattle were heavily selected on what has become known as the Six Essentials - Weight, Conformation, Milking Ability, Fertility, Hardiness and Disposition. No selection was made for characteristics that do not affect the carcass, such as horns, hide or color. These Six Essentials became the economic strength of Beefmasters and have made them favorites with ranchers who depend on cattle for a living.

While brownish-red is the most common color, the breed has no color standards. Beefmasters were recognized by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as a pure breed in 1954.

Cattle : Beefalo

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Beefalo is a cross between Bison (buffalo) and domestic or exotic cattle of any breed. The purpose of the species cross was to blend the outstanding qualities of the Bison with outstanding qualities of the bovine breeds of the world.

The cross between the Bison and beef breeds combined the superior hardiness, foraging ability, calving ease, and meat quality of the Bison with the fertility, milking ability, and ease of handling from the bovine.

Cattle : Barzona

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The development of the Barzona began in 1942 when F.N. Bard, an Arizona rancher, decided to develop a breed that would be adapted to their area which was rugged and rocky, with extreme temperatures, sparse rainfall, and scattered feed. He used Hereford, Angus, Afrikander and Santa Gertirudis in more or less equal parts as the basis of the breed. Production records were maintained and a rigid selection was carried out for fertility, rate of gain and mothering ability. Only the most desirable animals were retained for the breeding program. Selection was made for hardiness traits that include good feet and legs and the ability cover rough ground and graze sparse ranges and survive in simi-desert conditions.

Modern Barzona are a hardy medium size beef animal, distinguished a longish horned or polled head. They are generally medium red, but color may vary from dark to light red.

How to Contact the Breed Association:

Barzona Breeders Assn. of America
Box 631
Prescott, AZ 83602
(602) 445-5150

Cattle : Balancers

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Balancers are a hybrid breed created by crossing a purebred Gelbvieh with a purebred Angus. This 50% Gelbvieh - 50% Angus cross combines Gelbvieh's growth, muscle and leanness with Angus's calving ease, moderate size and marbling. Balancers offer the consistency of their parents combined with the hybrid vigor of a crossbred. They are registered with documented parentage and EPD's.

Cattle : Aubrac

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The Aubrac breed is a moderate-framed, highly maternal breed from southern France that was developed centuries ago for production of forage-based beef.

The Aubrac region supports little grain production, so economic reality has propelled selection for productive and efficient beef cattle. As the U.S. industry moves toward more moderate-framed, deeper-bodied and practical cattle, Aubrac have caught the attention of many cattlemen. Developed in an all-forage environment in a remote area of southern France, the Aubrac breed has placed strong emphasis on cows that calve on a regular basis -- or they leave the herd. Maternal calving ease is exceptional. Cows have sound udders and optimal milk production for our major beef producing areas in the United States.

Aubrac cattle will complement British cattle and add muscle in the resulting crosses. They are not as heavily muscled as extreme continental cattle, and therefore avoid the problems associated with those genetics, including calving difficulty and reduced carcass quality.

Cattle : Ankole

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Ankole cattle go back many hundreds of years and its ancestry can be traced back to Europe and Asia as early as 15000 BC. Today Ankole cattle are distributed mostly from Lake Mobutu to Lake Tanganyika in eastern Africa.

They are very hardy animals and can live in very poor conditions with little water and poor grazing. Ankole cattle have a medium-long head, a short neck with a deep dewlap and a narrow chest. Their horns are extremely long and grow outward on either side of the head. They also have fairly large ears through which they lose heat. Most often the coloration is red but fawn, black or pied are not uncommon.

In Africa the animals are highly prized as status symbols, for ceremonial functions and not for their productivity.

How to Contact the Breed Association:

Ankole Watusi International Registry
22484 W. 239th
Spring Hill, KS 66083-9306
(913)592-4050

Cattle : Afrikaner

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Afrikaner cattle developed from the native Hottentot cattle of the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.

Afrikaners are medium-sized cattle with loose skin and large drooping ears. Bulls have the typical Zebu hump. They vary from a light tan to a deep cherry red. The animals have creamy white horns. The low maintenance Afrikaner is heat-tolerant and well adapted to withstand harsh conditions. Tick-resistance is quite adequate. They have a good temperament and are easier to handle than most Brahman-derived breeds.

Cattle : Angus Hybrids

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ANGUS HYBRIDS are black polled composite cattle based primarily on the genetics of American Angus blended with enough Continental Breed genetics to add lean red meat performance to the widely acknowledged Angus carcass quality and maternal characteristics. Angus hybrids have demonstrated the ability to pass on hybrid vigor performance to a wide range of cattle breeds including pure bred Angus cattle.

Angus hybrids have been developed in a number of different combinations using different continental carcass breed genetics to achieve the desired carcass performance. True Angus hybrids are at least 5/8 American Angus and often have as much as 3/4 Angus blood. Data collected over the past 10 years has suggested superior carcass performance can be expected without sacrifice of the normal Angus genetic traits. Most Angus hybrids have the performance data available and some strains have demonstrated a high instance of tenderness and marbling gene markers.

Cattle Today has the information you are looking for about Angus hybrids cattle.

Cattle : Angus

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Angus are solid black cattle, although white may appear on the udder. They are resistant to harsh weather, undemanding, adaptable, good natured, mature extremely early and have a high carcass yield with nicely marbled meat. Angus are renowned as a carcass breed. They are used widely in crossbreeding to improve carcass quality and milking ability. Angus females calve easily and have good calf rearing ability. They are also used as a genetic dehorner as the polled gene is passed on as a dominant characteristic.

The breed arose in north-east Scotland in the counties of Aberdeen and Angus. Excavations have revealed that polled cattle existed there in prehistoric times. Deliberate breeding began at the end of the eighteenth century. The breed was first formally recognized in 1835 with the first herd book published in 1862. The first animals were exported to the USA and other countries in 1878.

The American Aberdeen-Angus Breeders' Association (name shortened in 1950s to American Angus Association) was founded in Chicago, Illinois, on November 21 1883, with 60 members. The growth of the Association has paralleled the success of the Angus breed in America.

In the first century of operation, more than 10 million head were recorded. The American Angus Association records more cattle each year than any other beef breed association, making it the largest beef breed registry association in the world.

How to Contact the Breed Association:

American Angus Association
3201 Frederick Blvd.
St. Joseph, MO 64501
(816)383-5100