Crossbred Black cow X Reg Angus Bull = Tan calf??

[Arkieman]

I would have thought you'd be guaranteed a black calf? I bought 10 cross-bred black heifers that were bred to registered black angus bulls and so far out of 5 that have calved, I have 2 tan calves. I have reg. Hereford bull for some black baldies, what could I expect out of these two if bred to him??

 

[3waycross]

Unless you are using homo blk sires and damms then there are no guarantees of what you CA get. If a blk animal carries a diluter gene(your yellow) calves are a possibility avery time those cows or Bull are bred.

It's usually pretty easy to turn em black(Angus) But it's also pretty hard to knock the white off em(Charolais).

The only way you can be sure is to pull some hair and have them tested. Then sell the ones who are hetero blk.

 

[Arkieman]

So if the cow is homoz black when bred to Hereford bull, I should get black baldie?

Also, if the heteroz black cow is bred to Herf bull, what are my chances of getting black baldy?

Also, what does it usually run to test one?

Thanks 3 way

 

[Baldie Maker]

Homo black would be BB and red would be bb. all resulting offspring would be Bb or red carriers.
Hetero black would be Bb and red again would be bb. so you'd have a 50/50 split of reds and hetero black calves.
I didn't factor in diluters tho, that takes it to another level.

 

[Willow Springs]

Are all the females black, and the bulls as well? In order to have a dilution gene one or the other should be tan or grey themsleves.

Other than that did you breed the heifers yourself? Maybe they weren't bred to the breed you thought they were?

 

[Arkieman]

Well the females are crossbred black and were bred to Reg Ang bulls when I bought them. I'm really not concerned about the calves they are having now. I have a hereford bull and wondered what type calves they will have off my herf bull?? I want a black baldy not a herford (red) looking calf.

 

[CPL]

How old are the calves?

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

If the cows are BLACK (in color) and the calves are tan, than the sire CANNOT be a reg Angus.
The only way an animal can be diluted is if one of the parents is carrying the diluter gene. If a black animal is carrying a diluter gene - IT HAS TO BE diluted IN COLOR itself.
In other words, she would not be true black, she may be dark grey, light grey, silver, brown, chocolate, etc - BUT NOT BLACK. It is genetically impossible for them to be black in color and carry the diluter gene.
So, back to your question about your Hfd bull. IF these females are true black, you won't get diluted calves, but you may get some reds if the dams are heterozygous black (Bb). The calves will get a red gene from your bull, so if the cow passes a red gene - calves will be red. If the cow passes her black gene, calf will be black.
The two cows that gave you a tan calf are definately Bb (hetero black).

 

[Beefy]

the tan calves may get redder with age. i had a black cow have a white calf this year! not gray either, it was white with a pink nose! watched it be born. just when i thought i had a handle on color genetics.

 

[Cattleman200]

The calves could also be black with the tan/brown hair being just baby hair. I have many calves born here that are homozygous black by pedigree and some are jet black while some are so tan/brown they dont even look black. They turn black as they get older or if you peel their hair out they are usually black underneath. I wouldnt panic just yet.


Circle H Ranch

 

[Beefy]

well on that note, i also had a calf born red that is gray now. lol. go figure.

 

[Arkieman]

Thanks for all the replies - I think Jeanne came closest to what the genetics guru at the U of A said. Basically, these 2 black cows that had tan (he called red) calves carry the red gene. I asked him about the registered BLACK angus bulls that sired these red calves and he said that is not uncommon. Some registered black Angus are Hetero Black (carrying the red gene)(he said that's how we got the red angus). So, he said if I breed these cows carrying the red gene to a Herford bull, there is a 50% chance I'll have a red baldy calf and a 50% chance I'll have a black baldy calf.

 

[WichitaLineMan]

IF the cows are truly black then they were not bred to "REAL" Angus bull.

Sounds like a put together group and the previous owner misrepresented what type of bull they were bred to.

The MOST LIKELY explanation is that the cows were generic BLACK COWS. Some of these cows were heterozygous black and the sire of the tan calves was likely a Charolais bull.

 

[Kingfisher]

Thanks for all the replies - I think Jeanne came closest to what the genetics guru at the U of A said. Basically, these 2 black cows that had tan (he called red) calves carry the red gene. I asked him about the registered BLACK angus bulls that sired these red calves and he said that is not uncommon. Some registered black Angus are Hetero Black (carrying the red gene)(he said that's how we got the red angus). So, he said if I breed these cows carrying the red gene to a Herford bull, there is a 50% chance I'll have a red baldy calf and a 50% chance I'll have a black baldy calf.

Hmm. You might reread Jeanne. You cant agree with what she says and still believe your seller. Peace.

 

[Jeanne - Simme Valley]

The only way the sire was Angus was if the calves are actually just a light red instead of TAN. If they are DILUTED in color (TAN) - no way the sire is Angus.

 

[Stocker Steve]

I have 2 tan calves. I have reg. Hereford bull for some black baldies, what could I expect out of these two if bred to him??

So, what are the odds of a tan or gray cow with the Char diluter gene calving a rat tail when bred English?