Breeds of Beef Cattle�

Chowchilla Union High School

Agriculture Department

Mrs. Raggio

Angus

• Originated in Scotland
• Solid black in color
• Naturally polled
• Consumer preference led to Certified Angus Beef

Hereford

• Originated in Hereford, England
• Red with white head, legs, and underline
• Horned
• Early maturing
• “Mothering” breed

Polled Hereford

• Developed in Iowa by Warren Gammon
• Naturally hornless
• Red with white face, legs and underline

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Shorthorn

• Originated in England
• Red; red & white or roan in color
• Originally used as a dual purpose breed for meat and milk
• Sometimes called the Durham breed

Simmental

• Originated in Switzerland
• Oldest breed of cattle in the world
• Large, powerful breed
• Brought to the United States in 1971
• Orange/Yellow and white to black in color

Gelbvieh

• Originated in Germany
• Red in color
• Noted for superior fertility and mothering ability
• Tend to be extra fleshy under the throat

Charolais

• Originated in France
• Traditionally white in color
• Long bodied, large cattle
• Heavily muscled
• Coarse looking

Maine Anjou

• Originated in France
• Dark red with white markings or black
• Developed by crossing the Mancelle breed with the Shorthorn breed

Chianina

• Originated in Italy
• One of the oldest breeds of cattle
• Tallest breed of beef cattle
• Short hair that is white to steel gray
• Terminal breed
• Low milk production

Salers

• Originated in France
• Fastest growing breed in the United States
• Mahogany red to black in color
• One of the last breeds to be imported into the United States

Brahman

• Originated in India
• Able to survive on very little, poor feed
• Insect & heat resistant
• Excess skin and large hump on back
• White to gray, red to black

Santa Gertrudis

• Developed on the King Ranch in Texas
• All Santa Gertrudis are descendants of the bull, Monkey
• They were created by crossing shorthorn cows and Brahman bulls
• Good producers in tropical climates

Texas Longhorn

• Developed entirely by nature in North America
• Known for its long horns
• High fertility
• Were near extinction in 1927

Beefmaster

• Early 1930s, Tom Lasater, from a crossing of Hereford, Shorthorn and Brahman cattle.
• His purpose was to develop cattle that would produce and make money during economically hard times in the harsh environment of South Texas.
• Six Essentials - Weight, Conformation, Milk Production, Fertility, Hardiness and Disposition.
• 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.

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Belgian Blue

• Originated in Belgium
• The double-muscling phenotype is a heritable condition which results in the increased number of muscle fibers
• typically blue-grey mottled hair color, however its color can vary from white to black.
• Double-muscled cows can experience dystocia (a difficult birth), even when bred to normal beef bulls or dairy bulls, because of a narrower birth canal.

Dairy Breeds�Chowchilla Union high School�Agriculture Department�Mrs. Raggio�

Holstein

Originating in Europe, bred in what is now the Netherlands and more specifically in the two northern provinces of North Holland and Friesland, and northern Germany.

• Black and White or Red and White color pattern
• Large sized
• Heavy milk producers

Jersey

• Bred on the British Channel Island of Jersey. Descended from cattle stock brought over from the nearby Norman mainland, and was first recorded as a separate breed around 1700.
• Color varies (light gray to a dark fawn being darker around the head and hips)
• Medium sized
• Produces more pounds of milk per body weight than any other dairy breed.

Guernsey

• The Isle of Guernsey, a tiny island in the English Channel off the coast of France, is the birthplace of the Guernsey cow.
• Red (Fawn) and White in color
• Medium sized
• High milk production to feed intake ratio
• Milk is high in betacarotene

Brown Swiss

• The oldest of all dairy breeds, Brown Swiss originated in the valleys and mountain slopes of Switzerland around 4000 B.C
• Solid brown, varying from very light to dark
• Large sized
• Light colored band around the muzzle
• One of the oldest Dairy breeds

Ayrshire

• Originating in South-west Scotland, the Ayrshire Breed was first recorded on an official basis in the 1870's, with formation of the Ayrshire Cattle Society Herd Book in 1877.
• Red and white in color (amount varies)
• Medium sized
• Purebred Ayrshires only produce red offspring
• Average milk production

Milking Shorthorn

• Originated in Great Britain. It developed from the Shorthorn, which itself came from County Durham, Northumberland and Yorkshire in north eastern England.
• Red and white or any combination of red and white
• Dual purpose breed
• Split from the American Shorthorn Assoc. in 1949

Milking Devon

• In 1623, two heifers and a bull from north Devonshire, England, were received by a member of the Plymouth Colony. They were the first importation of cattle from Britain.
• Their immediate value was as draft animals.
• The milk was good for cream and cheese making; and the carcass developed fine beef on poor forage.
• In 1952, the American Devon Cattle Club decided that the breed had to move into a specialist beef market in order to survive.
• Red in color
• Triple purpose
• (Draft, beef, milk)
• Medium sized