Galloway

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Anonymous

Am wondering if anyone can give me some info on these cattle. Have land in SW Wisconsin. Lots of Angus here, but have read that the Galloway are very hardy, finish out well on pasture, and have an excellent quality of meat. Also cross well with Angus. Not many out there with them. Any advise!?
 
Ask yourself: with all of the great qualities of the Galloway. why are there not more of them?
 
Ooooh, good answer.

dun


la4angus":4paofqzf said:
Ask yourself: with all of the great qualities of the Galloway. why are there not more of them?
 
I have Galloways, Angus, Shorthorns and Highlands in my herd. We're in a black hide market and some of the best money I make are off my Galloway x calves. Galloways come in white, black, dun, and belted. I have blacks and whites. I would recommend them for their hardiness and for the most part there is not the attitude problem than you find with the Angus. They finish very well on grass and eat far less than my Angus and Shorthorns. So far i have crossed them back to Angus and Herefords and both crosses give a nice deep, feed efficient calf. Another producer up here crosses the belties to a black angus bull and I have heard it gives him pure black cattle. The whites look alot like a British White (white with black points) and they get hammered at the auction mart so we usually grass finish those and sell those as freezer beef. I have no idea what your climate is like down there but my cattle winter in the trees and I live in Manitoba, Canada so i wouldn't think it would be much of a problem where you are
 
Several years ago Mt State University did a study on wintering cattle in cold weather and the Galloway came out on top. Due to their hair and fat layer they used something like 30% less feed to winter.

One drawback I have heard is that their hair gets pretty matted up with mud in the southern feedlots. Something we don't worry about up here because its usually 30 below or 100 above and drought.
 
From what I have read and despite the Angus predjudice, it looks like there might be something there. Our winters are very cold, summers have been very hot and dry also. The land I have is very rugged, lots of pasture, and almost no cropland. An animal that is disease resistant, cold hardy and can be finished out on pasture(especially as people become more concerned with genetically enginered grains) and provide a good quality meat, I'm keeping an open mind about.
 
newbiefarm":3gr51kee said:
From what I have read and despite the Angus predjudice, it looks like there might be something there. Our winters are very cold, summers have been very hot and dry also. The land I have is very rugged, lots of pasture, and almost no cropland. An animal that is disease resistant, cold hardy and can be finished out on pasture(especially as people become more concerned with genetically enginered grains) and provide a good quality meat, I'm keeping an open mind about.
Go for it. You may have something there.
 
We have mostly blk Angus but we do have a few belted galloways kicking around here. Just yester day my husband and I were talking which cow was our most productive. My pick was our 4 year old belted galloway for the fact that she cost less to feed, handles our Canadian winters better and brought in a calf Just about 75 % of her body weight.
The ones with the belt don't sell as high as the angus but you don't need as much cash b/c your cost of the cow is alot less.
 
this is to the two fellas who think the post if they are so good why isn t there any more of them is a good answer , you all are the exact reason why this industry is in the shape it is in right now , shame on you for b eing so closed minded to the genetic potential of other breeds for cross breeding im a 72 year old PHD and have been in the cattle buisness for my whole life including my teaching career and this type of thinking is why american beef producers are in trouble , you two more than likly run angus or black baldies ... am i right ?
The galloway cattle have some very economical traits that are worth looking into , and oh buy the way which breed of cattle have dominated the carcass contests in the US the past four years? heres a clue IT WAS NOTTTTT ANGUS .
 
maggie":y583kpnt said:
this is to the two fellas who think the post if they are so good why isn t there any more of them is a good answer , you all are the exact reason why this industry is in the shape it is in right now , shame on you for b eing so closed minded to the genetic potential of other breeds for cross breeding im a 72 year old PHD and have been in the cattle buisness for my whole life including my teaching career and this type of thinking is why american beef producers are in trouble , you two more than likly run angus or black baldies ... am i right ?
The galloway cattle have some very economical traits that are worth looking into , and oh buy the way which breed of cattle have dominated the carcass contests in the US the past four years? heres a clue IT WAS NOTTTTT ANGUS .
Yes,I do raise Angus.
My question was " with all of the great qualities of the Galloways, why is there not more of them?"
I didn't get an answer.
I do not follow the carcass contest's. So if you would, please give me the answer to what breed of cattle have dominated the carcass contests in the last 4 years.
If the Angus are so inferior to the other breeds why are so many breeders infusing angus bloodlines into their other breeds.
Why are so many breed associations promoting using Angus genetics to turn their cattle black. Are they wanting to capitalize on the black hide to receive a premium for their cattle trying to pass them off as Angus.
Now we have a black hereford breed, a black beef master; beef master is a cross of brahman, hereford and shorthorn; There are many other breeds that
I don't have time to mention that are using angus genetics, trying to turn their breed black. Where did the black color come from all of a sudden after so many centuries of no black cattle in these breeds. No offense but,I think it is people like you that have your head stuck in the sand.
 
They have been available for inclusion in breeding programs for many years. Do you honestly believe that they haven't been tried and found to offer less then other breeds? Maybe you have discovered their hidden secrets and qualities that everyone else is to obtuse to realize.
Other then niche markets the breeds that have been found to get the job done better, like cream, have risen to the top.
What are these "very economical traits" that they have to offer that aren't available elsewhere from a much deeper gene pool?

dun


maggie":yrdr63jj said:
this is to the two fellas who think the post if they are so good why isn t there any more of them is a good answer , you all are the exact reason why this industry is in the shape it is in right now , shame on you for b eing so closed minded to the genetic potential of other breeds for cross breeding im a 72 year old PHD and have been in the cattle buisness for my whole life including my teaching career and this type of thinking is why american beef producers are in trouble , you two more than likly run angus or black baldies ... am i right ?
The galloway cattle have some very economical traits that are worth looking into , and oh buy the way which breed of cattle have dominated the carcass contests in the US the past four years? heres a clue IT WAS NOTTTTT ANGUS .
 
Dun is not an ANGUS Breeder but seems to be about the most knowledegable CATTLEMAN on this board in all aspects of the business. And I think there is many that would AGREE with me.
 
Arrrgggghhhh, ok guys and gals I don't want this to come to "this breed, that breed." My initial request (and I would still love to hear from people who are raising them)was for info AND open minds. I like Angus cattle especially in the form of a nice thick ribeye, but Galloway seem to have some qualities that I admire. Easy births,resistance to disease and cold weather, which can be a factor up here in the north and good meat off pasture. I may run some Angus too. I'll let you know if I do what the final concensus is.
 
Dun

You should know as well as anybody that what is popular in the marketplace today may not be popular tomorrow. Everything that I've read on demographics the last while says that as the baby boomers age they will be looking for smaller portions which should start making the smaller British breeds more popular. As I said before, I have a few galloways and if I had a preference as to dealing with them or my angus in a difficult situaution, I would take the galloways any day. The meat is also, in my opinion better than angus. You also have to consider what your management style and environment are like when you are trying to choose a breed. Herefords up here have a real problem with pinkeye and foot rot. My black galloways when crossed with other breeds will pass as an angus cross so I don't get docked at market. So I get all the benefits of an angus breed without the bad attitude in a very feed efficient package.
 
If you are going to use the galloway then get the solid colored ones. The belted ones have been selected for the belt for to long and not other important traits. The galloway that I have seen need a slight boost in frame and more emphasis placed on production traits. If you can get your hands on some good western stock go for it. I would be tempted to mix black angus into the mix to improve weaning weights. Let us know how you make out.

PAT BATES
 
All of our cows are angus based. There are I think 3 blacks (that will probably be gone this year) the rest are Red Angus, mostly registered but we use them as commercial. We use Polled Hereford bulls and Red Angus bulls on the resulting baldies. We don;t have footrot problems, and our (what we jokingly refer to as ) soil is more rock then dirt, but when it turns to mud it's gumbo or slop 6 inches deep. Hard on feet, but we don't have a problem with feet. The only pink eye we have had in years turned out to be IBR and not pinkeye. We have had a few angus that are a bit dingy, but none that have been raised by us. Only purchased animals from places that only work the cattle from motorized conveyence or horseback. The reason the british breeds do so well is that the can produce a steak that will range between around 11 and 15 inches. The decrease of the baby boomers with a preference for larger cuts (if that preference does actually exist) will be taken up by the younger generation. Lets face it, the population isn't declining. It's much harder to cook a prime rib to the desired point when it's a little skinny thing. The consumer is going to want, demand and deserve a pleasurable eating experience, that's the bottom line.
So it turns out that the great advantages they may have are pretty much available from a much larger gene pool. The larger gene pool equates to a better selection of animals that can contribute balanced traits with higher incidence of accuracy.
If you need long legged animals with the ability to cover a lot of range, there are FS 7 animals available, if you need smaller animals there are FS 4 and 4.5's. The collection of data to contribute to the accuracy of any given trait is much higher with breeds that are more widely used.
But, I've always maintained that one of the first things you should use in determining what breed to raise is that you have to like them. If Buelingo, hays converters or herfsteins is what blows your dress up and they make money, or even if they don't make money, as long as you're satisfied, then that's the way to go.

dun

Cattle Rack Rancher":2uo72ve4 said:
Dun

You should know as well as anybody that what is popular in the marketplace today may not be popular tomorrow. Everything that I've read on demographics the last while says that as the baby boomers age they will be looking for smaller portions which should start making the smaller British breeds more popular. As I said before, I have a few galloways and if I had a preference as to dealing with them or my angus in a difficult situaution, I would take the galloways any day. The meat is also, in my opinion better than angus. You also have to consider what your management style and environment are like when you are trying to choose a breed. Herefords up here have a real problem with pinkeye and foot rot. My black galloways when crossed with other breeds will pass as an angus cross so I don't get docked at market. So I get all the benefits of an angus breed without the bad attitude in a very feed efficient package.
 
Dun

I actually believe that you are headed in the right direction. The market is famous for demanding one thing and just when you think you've got it figured out they move the target. I think that red will be the next popular color. Ideally, I like flexible cows and by that I mean that if I want black calves, I use a black bull, red calves, I use a red bull and baldies, I use a hereford bull. I bet red angus would be exactly the right breed to do that for you. The biggest problem is always that two year lag between when I pick my bull and when I market my calves. This year I'll be using a Red Angus and a Shorthorn-Simm for my two bulls and hopefully at the end of next year when I'm ready to market my calves, red will be the in color.
 
We should all focus on quality before focusing on color. Quality gets more money than color. Mutty looking black calves will never do as good as nice other colored calves.
 

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