Cattle Breed and Characteristics

These flashcards cover the definitions, origins, and specific characteristics of various beef and dairy cattle breeds, including English, Continental, and Bos indicus influenced types.

Breed

A group of animals that have certain traits in common such as color, size, body structure, place of origin, and being horned or polled.

Purebred

Animals of known ancestry where all parents and ancestors are of the same breed.

Breed associations

Organizations that register purebred animals, develop markets for those animals, and organize breed shows.

Crossbreeding

Mating animals of the same species, but different breeds, to achieve desired animal traits.

Black Baldy

The specific crossbreed resulting from mating an Angus to a Hereford.

Hereford

An English beef breed that is red and white, can be horned or polled, and is popular in the U.S.

Angus

A black breed with some resistance to pinkeye and cancer eye, known for small cows/calves, excellent conformation, and maturing lighter.

Shorthorn

An English cattle breed categorized as a dual purpose breed for both meat and milk.

Continental Breeds

Breeds originated from mainland Europe that tend to have large frames, late maturity, large yield of beef, and lean beef.

Charolais

A Continental breed originating from France.

Limousin

A Continental breed originating from France.

Simmental

A Continental breed originating from Switzerland.

Gelbvieh

A Continental breed originating from Germany.

Belgian Blue

A Continental breed originating from Belgium.

Bos indicus influenced cattle

Cattle originating from stock in India that are disease resistant and suited for hot and humid climates.

Brahman

A breed that originated from stock in India, known for being disease resistant and thriving in hot and humid climates.

Brangus

A crossbreed consisting of $\frac{3}{8}$ Brahman and $\frac{5}{8}$ Angus.

Santa Gertrudis

A crossbreed consisting of $\frac{3}{8}$ Brahman and $\frac{5}{8}$ Shorthorn.

Beefmaster

A crossbreed consisting of $\frac{1}{2}$ Brahman, $\frac{1}{4}$ Hereford, and $\frac{1}{4}$ Shorthorn.

Holstein

A dairy breed originating from the Netherlands.

Jersey

A dairy breed originating from a small British Island known as the island of Jersey.

Guernsey

A dairy breed originating from the island of Guernsey, located between Britain and France.

Ayrshire

A dairy breed originating from Scotland.

Brown Swiss

A dairy breed originating from Switzerland.