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Cow–calf operations are widespread throughout beef-producing countries, [5] and the goal of a cow–calf operation is to produce young beef cattle, which are usually sold. True to the name, farm and ranch herds consist mostly of adult female cows, their calves, and young females, called heifers, which will produce calves once of breeding age.
Often, mentions of dams imply cows which will be kept in the herd for repeated breeding (as opposed to heifers or cows to be sold off sooner). A young female before she has had a calf of her own [ 2 ] and who is under three years of age is called a heifer ( / ˈ h ɛ f ər / HEF -ər ).
Most beef cattle are mated naturally, whereby a bull is released into a herd of cows approximately 55 days after the calving period, depending on the cows' body condition score (BCS). If it was a cow's first time calving, she will take longer to re-breed by at least 10 days. [ 4 ]
Coloration varies with breed; common colors are black, white, and red/brown, and some breeds are spotted or have mixed colors. [6] Bulls are larger than cows of the same breed by up to a few hundred kilograms. British Hereford cows, for example, weigh 600–800 kg (1,300–1,800 lb), while the bulls weigh 1,000–1,200 kg (2,200–2,600 lb). [7]
The pure Holstein Breed Society was started in 1946 in Great Britain, following the British Friesian Cattle Society. The breed was developed slowly up to the 1970s, after which there was an explosion in its popularity, and additional animals were imported. More recently, the two societies merged in 1999 to establish Holstein UK. [10]
The Highland (Scottish Gaelic: Bò Ghàidhealach; Scots: Heilan coo) is a Scottish breed of rustic cattle. It originated in the Scottish Highlands and the Western Islands of Scotland and has long horns and a long shaggy coat. It is a hardy breed, able to withstand the intemperate conditions in the region.
Animal breeding is a branch of animal science that addresses the evaluation (using best linear unbiased prediction and other methods) of the genetic value (estimated breeding value, EBV) of livestock. Selecting for breeding animals with superior EBV in growth rate, egg, meat, milk, or wool production, or with other desirable traits has ...
The Black Hereford is a crossbreed of beef cattle produced in Britain and Ireland with Hereford beef bulls with Holstein-Friesian dairy cows. Black Herefords are not usually maintained from generation to generation, but are constantly produced as a byproduct of dairy farming as a terminal cross .