USA #7 Cattle Breeds

1-Santa Cruz Cattle King Ranch Santa Cruz cattle represent more than seven years of intense research and development aimed at creating a more market acceptable beef animal that produced superior results as both a feeder and seedstock animal. The new cattle are a composite breed, produced by first crossing Santa Gertrudis cows with Red Angus and Gelbvieh bulls. This initial union produces 1/2 Santa Gertrudis and 1/2 Red Angus males and females; as well as 1/2 Santa Gertrudis and 1/2 Gelbvieh males and females. These half bloods are then crossed back on each other to produce a 1/2 Santa Gertrudis, 1/4 Red Angus and 1/4 Gelbvieh composite animal, the finished product. This is King Ranch Santa Cruz, as composites are then bred to composites, fixing the characteristics desired in the cattle and demanded by today's beef market. Stephen J. Kleberg, Vice President of King Ranch, Inc. said that King Ranch Santa Cruz cattle have “excellent conformation, perform extremely well in the feedyard, and obtain maximum results at the packing plant.” Hal Hawkins, King Ranch animal physiologist, described the cattle as "very fertile, both male and female, reaching an early sexual maturity at 12 - 14 months of age. Weaning and yearling weights are excellent, and they are very gentle cattle that demonstrate good mothering instincts." The new breed produces both polled and horned individuals. In color, they range from a light red or honey to a Santa Gertrudis cherry red. Mature weight in cows ranges from 1,100 - 1,200 pounds, while bulls tip the scales from 1,800 - 2,000 pounds. The cattle have proven very heat resistant and adapt extremely well to South Texas' harsh climate and environments. They range far and wide and work the large pastures of King Ranch very well. Early in 1987, the need for a more market acceptable beef animal at King Ranch was the topic of conversation from the working pens to the board room. Top producers in the beef and livestock industry were brought in to aid in the project. Educators from the major agricultural universities across the United States were invited to share their knowledge with King Ranch. Twenty-six professors from fourteen universities participated in the formulation of a master breeding plan. These specialists in the various research fields which undergird progressive livestock operations, like King Ranch, included carcass and meat experts, reproduction and physiology scientists, breeds and breeding selection specialists, geneticists, nutritionists, botanists, veterinary scientists, and climatologists. As a result of these meetings, King Ranch set some short and long term objectives in its breeding plan. Short term objectives included improved production (reproduction and fertility); improved market acceptability (carcass quality - grade and tenderness); and, cull cattle on strict economic considerations. Long term objectives included single breed type mating system using a composite breed; genetic policy that would produce a phenotypic look-alike; and, early sexual maturity with superior carcass quality and grade. The Santa Gertrudis breed was maintained, improved, and made more competitive. Two breeds were selected to add to the Santa Gertrudis to achieve these goals. Gelbvieh were chosen for their fertility, high growth, early maturity, shortened gestation length, and moderate milk production. Red Angus were selected to add early fertility, ease in calving, high carcass quality, efficiency, and polled characteristics. 2-The Santa Gertrudis is a zebu-taurine crossbreed consisting of 3/8 Brahman and 5/8 Shorthorn. The Santa Gertrudis was developed by Robert Kleberg from 1910-1940 on the King Ranch in south Texas. Origin. The Santa Gertrudis breed was developed in Texas, USA in the 1920s following attempts by King Ranch to cross Brahman and Shorthorn cattle to produce animals that would perform well under the local harsh, hot and dry conditions. Santa Gertrudis cattle are a tropical beef breed of cattle developed in southern Texas on the King Ranch. They were named for the Spanish land grant where Captain Richard King originally established the King Ranch. The King Ranch herd was designated as the Santa Gertrudis Foundation Herd. The Santa Gertrudis breed of cattle, named for the Spanish land grant where Captain Richard King first established the King Ranch, were developed to thrive, prosper and gain weight on the native grasses of the South Texas brush country. The first and perhaps the most enduring efforts to produce the rugged breed began in 1910 when the King Ranch decided to systematically crossbreed its Shorthorn and Hereford cattle with Brahman. After a few crosses, the Brahman X Shorthorn cross showed the most promise, and the ranch headed toward a cross of 3/8 Brahman and 5/8 Shorthorn as the optimum blend of the two breeds. In 1920 an outstanding bull calf called Monkey was produced. With a distinctive red color, and an exceptionally deep and well-muscled body, Monkey was the most impressive calf of any breed ever born on King Ranch. In 1923, Monkey was used in a breeding herd of first-cross Brahman X Shorthorn red heifers. His offspring were superior cattle that were well adapted to the harsh environment in which they were developed. Most importantly, the calves made money for the ranch. Highly prepotent, Monkey became the foundation herd sire for the Santa Gertrudis breed. Through many generations his descendants have retained the rapid and efficient growth, solid red color, hardiness and good disposition for which Monkey was noted. 3-The Senepol (aka Nelthropp) began with imported West African N'Dama cattle (initially named Senegal cattle on St. Croix) that were crossed with an imported English Red Poll sire. 4-Shorthorn, also called Durham, cattle breed raised for beef. The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late 18th century. The breed was developed as dual-purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however, certain blood lines within the breed always emphasised one quality or the other. Over time, these different lines diverged, and by the second half of the 20th century, two separate breeds had developed – the Beef Shorthorn, and the Milking Shorthorn. All Shorthorn cattle are coloured red, white, or roan, although roan cattle are preferred by some, and completely white animals are not common. However, one type of Shorthorn has been bred to be consistently white – the Whitebred Shorthorn, which was developed to cross with black Galloway cattle to produce a popular blue roan crossbreed, the Blue Grey. Beamish Museum in north-eastern England preserves the Durham breed. Shorthorn, also called Durham, cattle breed raised for beef. The Shorthorn was developed during the last quarter of the 18th century through selective breeding of local cattle of the Teeswater district, Durham county, in the north of England. It is characterized by short horns, blocky conformation, and colour ranging from red, red with white markings, white, or roan resulting from a mixture of red and white hairs. It is the only roan-coloured modern cattle breed. Shorthorns are three colors: white, roan and red, which may be solid red or have white markings. Solid red Shorthorns are often used to help maintain solid colors in crosses. The whites and roans can be used on black cattle to get both blues and blacks. They can be horned or polled. 5-The Milking Shorthorn of the USA has a long history that arguably dates back to the importation of the Durham (later called Shorthorn) into Virginia in 1783. These cattle were mainly dual-purpose with the emphasis on beef. However in 1893, two cows — ‘Kitty Clay 3rd’ and ‘Kitty Clay 4th’ — were shown at The Chicago World’s Fair and they renewed interest in raising the Shorthorn with an emphasis on dairy. You can compare the Milking Shorthorn of the USA with the Dairy Shorthorn of Great Britain (which is called the Milking Shorthorn in New Zealan 6-The Simbrah is a cross between a Simmental and a Brahman. The Simbrah breed was originally named Brahmental. Originally developed in the hot, humid areas of the Gulf Coast, Simbrah have shown they can Thrive in the Northwest and Northeast regions of the United States where temperatures may range 115 degrees in the summer to 25 degrees below zero in the winter. There is great interest in the breed worldwide. Simbrah are being developed in many areas where Zebu breeding predominates as well as other areas where Simbrah’s unique blend of features is desired. Breeds of Simbrah know the importance of producing practical cattle with economic advantages. Simbrah have been developed to be as functional and trouble free as possible. Breeders stress structurally sound underlines, i.e. a clean sheath teamed with large scrotal size on the bulls and a well-attached udder with small teats on the cows. Many also put emphasis on pigmented eyes, thick muscling, and reasonable dispositions. Some programs produce polled Simbrah. 7,8-Red & Black Simmental In the early 1990’s Simmental breeders in the US sought to change their breed so that it better captured the market essentials important to the cattle industry and the consumer. Simmentals already possessed excellent maternal traits, growth and yield. They added to this the eating quality of Angus, polledness, earlier maturity, no eye cancers and calving ease to create the Black Simmental. One of the Simmental breed’s biggest advantages is its adaptability. Breeders around the world have created animals that uniquely suit their environment or purpose. The origins of Black Simmental were the result of mating Simmental to Angus. Over time a small number of breeders continued to utilise a grading up program from animals possessing the dominant black gene to reach a “pure” Simmental status. Purebred Black Simmentals are black in coat colour, contain at least 15/16 Simmental content and are registered in the society’s Black Simmental register. The breakthrough for these cattle first presented itself in the United States where they became the backbone of an ambitious sire evaluation program aimed at making Simmental acceptable to breeders of Angus commercial cattle. Black Simmental breeders in Australia are experiencing the same acceptance from Angus breeders throughout the temperate cattle areas. Today, Black Simmentals are predominantly sort after for their solid black coat colour and polled attributes. The Black Simmental brings an exceptional boost in weight gain and carcase yield along with the bonus maternal characteristics of extra milking ability and fertility. The emphasis on calving ease and low birthweight are other major benefits of utilising Black Simmental genetics with these traits holding high importance in crossbreeding with the Angus commercial herd. Black Simmental are also the main Simmental strain utilised to produce SimAngus. 9-Like most cattle farms in our area, we traditionally ran a herd of commercial black angus, and we still have plenty of those good ol’ cows. However, when we began to really change our grazing practices to mimic natural rotations and cycles, we learned that we had to change the type of cattle we ran also. We needed cattle that were adapted to our southern heat and humidity and that could handle calving in late spring and early summer. We needed cattle that would thrive on and get fat on grass alone and that did not require a lot of off farm inputs. The South Poll breed, developed very close to us in North Alabama seemed to fit the bill. Known as the “Southern Mama Cow Breed, South Polls are bred to be slick-haired, small-framed cows with emphasis placed on high fertility, longevity, and calm disposition. South Polls are bred to excel on a grass based grazing system. Ultrasound and actual carcass data on the South Poll tells us that they are as tender, or more tender, than straight bred English cattle.” This breed description and more information can be found at the South Poll Grass Cattle breed website. We began running South Poll bulls on our herd in and buying pure bred heifers as the opportunity arose in 2011 and have found that they absolutely perform to the breed description above. Today we have 76 cows that are 1/2 South Poll or better and are continuing to select for and retain the heifers that perform in our environment. The cows get good grass management, a little hay if needed in the winter, and a year around mineral program but no other off farm feed or chemical inputs. We currently calve in April, May, and June though we hope to get that trimmed down in the coming years. 10-The Texas Longhorn, they say, began with cattle that came from Spain – via Mexico – in 1540 and went on to become a true breed in the mid-1800's. (However, they almost died out in the winter of 1886-87.) The Texas Longhorn belongs to the Criollo cattle group. Criollo cattle: Northwestern Blond Iberian Spanish cattle became Canary Island cattle – some of which were brought by Columbus in 1493 to Santo Domingo (which is now the capitol of the Dominican Republic). More and more cattle were brought by Spanish ships and these cattle then spread throughout the islands of the Caribbean and became known as Criollo cattle. It was into Mexico in 1521 that Criollo cattle were brought to the mainland for the first time (supposedly from Santo Domingo) – and it's from Mexico that the Criollo then spread into the Americas.