My Breeds

Hopefully everyone is having a good Saturday, today being the day before Mother's Day. Make sure you all thank your mothers for being your mothers.

Down to business. Today, my topic of discussion is my breeds. Breeds of cattle are like breeds of dogs, or horses. All are of the same species, but look different and have different attributes. The two breeds I have are (1) Limousin and (2) Beefmaster.

Limousin Cattle
Limousin Cattle are a French breed that was first imported in 1968. They are golden red in colour and are historically noted for length and extraordinary muscling. In France, the cattle were used as both meat and draught animals, but they were never used for milk production. They originated in the rocky regions of Limousin and Marche, both areas well known for being harsh environments. There was little grain available in the regions, so beef cattle raised there were required to be resourceful and hardy, niches that the Limousin breed filled very well.


A typical European Limousin Bull. Note the heavy, round
 muscle pattern and the extra angle to the hind legs.
http://www.crawfordbrothers.co.uk/limousin/bulls/
(hutch)crawfordS.jpg



Since importing the first animals, Canadian breeders have worked hard to control the docility of their animals. While not overly aggressive, Limousin cattle were known to be rather flighty, and several farmers and ranchers were put off by their ability to jump fences and evade capture. All of that, however, has changed. As one of the only breeds in Canada to have a Docility EPD marker, Limousin have made leaps and bounds (figuratively, of course) toward an increase in docility. While the stereotype still exists, Limousin are much quieter now than they were even ten years ago. It is a testament to this fact that I showed my first Limousin heifer when I was 12, and I have never had a problem with a wild or crazy animal.



An "Americanized" Limousin Bull. Note the different
muscle patterns and the angle of the hind legs.
http://enrightfarms.com/images/2009/jan29/WulfsKlint.jpg



Apart from docility, the Canadian strains of Limousin are well known for being easy keeping, well muscled, moderate sized cattle. Since their importation, they have slowly been "Americanized". Their ribcage is deeper and wider, their head is more attractive and more commonly polled, and their milk production and overall structure is much better than their European cousins. European Limousin are typically, well, European. They tend to be longer made, though shallow through the ribcage, with what we Canadians would refer to as "Hill Hocks"-That is, their hocks have more angle to them than ours do. With their Americanization, Limousin became more adept at marbling, though still boast some of the leanest and most tender meat in the industry. Their overall appearance became more refined, with cows becoming more feminine and the development of polled strains. Polled, or hornless, is the dominating feature in most North American cattle, though it sometimes comes at a price.



Limousin Cattle found out what the price was when the leap was made from predominantly horned to predominantly polled. Some muscling, especially on the bulls, went away with the horns. The switch was made, however, and just in the last 10 years the breed has rebuilt the amount of muscling on the animals. It has also been discovered, in the last few years, that Limousin are one of few breeds to carry the F94L gene, a gene which codes for double muscling. Double muscling is an attribute that increases muscle mass, and more mass means more meat. The advantage that Limousin have over other holders of the gene, such as the Belgian Blue breed, is calving ease. Calving ease always has and always will be a major part of Limousin cattle, because when calving comes easily with no complications, the cow, the calf and the farmer are all a little happier. A more detailed history of Limousin Cattle be found at www.limousin.com

My Other Breed

My other breed is very special. I know that when I say special, a lot of you are going, "oh ya, they're special alright," and they are. I also have Beefmaster Cattle. Beefmaster is not a well known breed in Canada, mostly because there are only two of them in the entire country. I own both of them.



A Beefmaster Bull

http://www.kidscowsandmore.org/wp-content/uploads
/2010/10/Beef-Beefmaster_EMS-Smooth-Cavalier.jpg



As you may have guessed, the history of Beefmaster Cattle in Canada is very short, only about a year long. Their history and origins, however, are much longer. Beefmasters were developed by Tom Lasater in the early 1930's. Lasater was looking for an animal that could survive and flourish in the harsh environment of the Texas brush country. To this end, he began to cross his Hereford females with Shorthorns, and the resulting animals he crossed again with Brahman cattle. The result was a Beefmaster, 1/4 Hereford, 1/4 Shorthorn and approximately 1/2 Brahman, a mixture that proved itself hardy and dependable as well as profitable. 

As the years progressed, Lasater's animals began to garner interest from other producers, and the breed was registered with the USDA as Beefmaster in 1954. Beefmaster Breeder's United was founded in 1961, and is the fifth largest breed registry in the United States today. 



Beefmasters are bred for and were designed based on what are called the Six Essentials. These are traits that Lasater deemed economically vital to any animal, and they are- Weight, Milking Ability, Hardiness, Conformation, Fertility and Disposition. I hope you agree that these traits, combined into one breed, make for a powerful economic force.



A typical Beefmaster Cow
http://www.ansi.okstate.edu/breeds/cattle/beefmaster
/images/beefmaster-web-3.jpg



Although designed in hotter, more demanding climates, my Beefmasters have survived their first Canadian winter with all of their limbs and appendages. This is testament to their hardiness and adaptability, because this past winter was a particularly tough one. Beefmasters are noted throughout the US for combining the carcass merits of the Bos Taurus (European) strain of cattle with the sheer ruggedness of Bos Indicus(Zebu, or tropical styled cattle). This combination produced an animal that, unlike straight Brahman, would marble and grade easily within North American standards while be able to perform in the harshest of conditions. All around, Beefmasters have proven themselves as far South as South Africa and as far North as Canada, and flourish everywhere in between. For more information on Beefmaster cattle, visit www.beefmasters.org

Well, there you have it. A not-so-brief blog about the not-so-brief history of my two breeds. If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to ask me! If you have nothing to ask, tell me what breed of cattle you have or which breed you find most interesting.





Until Later.