Attention Hereford breeders

[VanC]

From another thread:

In a nut shell, Herefords were originally bred as a duel purpose cow. That was to produce both meat and milk and they are more closely related to dairy cows then are Angus,
Where as Angus were only bred as a meat producer.

back then they were known as milking "shorthorns" and you can't get any closer then that.

I don't think this is correct, but I'm not well versed in the history of Herefords, and I can't find anything that directly confirms or refutes these statements. Am I wrong?

 

[Txwalt]

Cut and paste from the site below:

Of British origin, the Hereford evolved from the native red cattle of western England. These early animals were much larger than their easier fleshing, modern counterparts. Always a hardy breed they were able to efficiently convert grazing into body mass making them exceedingly popular in their region and attractive to all cattlemen.

http://www.cattle.com/BreedsofCattle/hereford.aspx

 

[Txwalt]

http://www.orionherefords.com/resources/history.htm

Little more in depth than the above.

Walt

 

[KNERSIE]

From another thread:

In a nut shell, Herefords were originally bred as a duel purpose cow. That was to produce both meat and milk and they are more closely related to dairy cows then are Angus,
Where as Angus were only bred as a meat producer.

back then they were known as milking "shorthorns" and you can't get any closer then that.

I don't think this is correct, but I'm not well versed in the history of Herefords, and I can't find anything that directly confirms or refutes these statements. Am I wrong?

No its not correct, in the years when the herefords originated as a breed in around 1780, most cattle were indeed dual purpose, but the other purpose other than meat was often as being a draught animal. In the case of herefords they were used as an draught animal and mature oxen often weighed 3000lbs +. The industrial revolution and the consequential demand for more beef initiated the refinement into an earlier maturing beef animal