Hereford Cross Opinions?

[KevinN]

As a follow-up to my Lowline cross thread...I would like to know what folks think is the tastiest and most tender cross with a smaller framed Hereford cow. For a grass finished animal.

I have a small operation and the meat is for me and my best friends! So commercial considerations are not as important as calmness, taste and tenderness.

Gcreekrch has already suggested Hereford x Charolais

Thanks, Kevin

 

[Ky hills]

Angus X Hereford is hard to beat. We have our own beef and have used both breeds with great results.

 

[gcreekrch]

I missed the grass finished part. Go with Angus or Shorthorn.

 

[ALACOWMAN]

Occ angus ...

 

[elkwc]

Hereford/Angus

 

[Lucky_P]

Look at some of the sires at Green Garden Angus - they've concentrated on carcass traits and cow efficiency.
Gardens Wave, a bull we used some time back, had it all... 4.5 frame, all the tenderness gene markers, high marbling (top 4% of breed) epd, REA epd in top 25%, $EN in top 4%(top 1% back when we used him, IIRC), high DMI epd. No temperament issues with his daughters here.

Of course, you might also want to consider a Wagyu or Akaushi sire, if you're going for taste and tenderness... though I don't know that those Wagyu crosses will finish adequately on grass...

 

[SPH]

Angus/Hereford cross bred right is the way to go

 

[darcelina4]

If you are wanting premium meat then get premium breeds like belted Galloway, highland, waygu. But these all grow slow. If you want grass fed that will grow fast get red poll. They are smaller, 1100 pounds but mature and grow fast. Be aware of Hereford issues- bad udders, cancer eye, not calving ease.

 

[Boot Jack Bulls]

If you are wanting premium meat then get premium breeds like belted Galloway, highland, waygu. But these all grow slow. If you want grass fed that will grow fast get red poll. They are smaller, 1100 pounds but mature and grow fast. Be aware of Hereford issues- bad udders, cancer eye, not calving ease.

I don't know your location, but in NW WI, those breeds are NICHE breeds and bring anything but a premium. I'm sure there are people using those breeds for a direct marketing program in places, but it's not happening up here lol. My step brother sells grass grown, brewer's by-product finished steers direct marketed. He is using my Lim-flex bulls over his Hereford and Hereford X cows with success. His program is designed to maximize end product on limited input, and do it fast (no 3 year old steers lol). The issues you mentioned Herefords having are easily addressed by proper selection and can be found in almost any breed. Limis have a bad rap for calving issues, yet, I've never had to pull a calf....

 

[darcelina4]

Boot Jack Bulls, the issue I've always herd with limo were attitude issues. I've heard they can clear the pasture. Do you find those to be docile? He said he was raising for personal al use and for friends. Lowlines and anything miniature is a niche too. If he were going to raise salebarn feeders I tell him to breed to black Angus as baddies sell well as feeder calves. Highlands being very hairy, deposit fat in the meat, not on their back to keep warm like other breeds so their meat is nicely marbled. I just got a red poll heifer from my neighbor. Red poll are known for producing good meat on just grass and being very docile. The one we got, we only had 3 days and she was halter broke and you could catch her anywhere. Prior to us getting her at 8 months, she was only touched while run through a chute for vaccines. She is very food motivated which helps with taming. I'm pretty convinced about their docility.

 

[Boot Jack Bulls]

Boot Jack Bulls, the issue I've always herd with limo were attitude issues. I've heard they can clear the pasture. Do you find those to be docile? He said he was raising for personal al use and for friends. Lowlines and anything miniature is a niche too. If he were going to raise salebarn feeders I tell him to breed to black Angus as baddies sell well as feeder calves. Highlands being very hairy, deposit fat in the meat, not on their back to keep warm like other breeds so their meat is nicely marbled. I just got a red poll heifer from my neighbor. Red poll are known for producing good meat on just grass and being very docile. The one we got, we only had 3 days and she was halter broke and you could catch her anywhere. Prior to us getting her at 8 months, she was only touched while run through a chute for vaccines. She is very food motivated which helps with taming. I'm pretty convinced about their docility.

I have had no issues with docility in my Limis. That said, I don't buy or use genetic I can't trust. The vast majority of my bull battery (12-16 head at any given time) are current or former show bulls. They are selected for performance, phenotype, genotype and docility. I have red Angus, Angus, Limi and F1s of the aforementioned breeds. Regardless of breed, they are held to the same standard. When they leave the chute in my barn, there are two options, back to the pens or straight out the loading dock onto a trailer. I put up with zero shyte from them, treat them with respect and demand excellence.

There are tons of people getting into the Highlanders up here. They tolerate the cold and eat next to nothing. They also take forever to finish and are way to small on the rail. The people who breed seed stock and put potloads of steers on the grid in our region want a 1500 pound cow that weans an 800+ pound calf. When a traditional British X Continental cross can produce an excellent carcass for relatively cheap at 12-16 months old (depending on the cross), it makes it hard to justify breeding a cross or breed like a lowline where you can't hope to even get close to that and limit your end game. I agree niche breeds and crosses have their place, but I think they don't fit as many plans as some would like to think....

As for the OP, I would use Angus genetics proven to work on grass and finish the way you want. Certain breeders are renown for their programs aimed at this.... Why re-invent the wheel?

 

[Ky hills]

We currently have predominantly Hereford cows and have been using Hereford bulls over them as well to get replacements. In the past Herefords have had a plethora of issues but this has been worked on and reduced significantly throughout the breed as a whole I believe. That being said there are individual lines out there that are still problematic to an extent. The same can be said for any breed though. We have not had any more or less calving issues with Hereford than with Angus. Pinkeye has not been a major issue for us other than calves from one particular bull. Over probably a 7 year period and somewhere around 50 Hereford and Hereford cross cows we have had 3 prolapse cases which is more than I want to deal with but we weed those out and all of those were commercial stockyards cattle. In my opinion Herefords are probably a good breed for grass finishing and Angus would be the best choice for a bull over them. Unless there is just a heart set on a niche breed. Those Angus cross calves are going to always have a value above the niche breeds if ever selling on the open market.
As to Limousin disposition, yes they had a reputation for being crazy, but gain I think the breeders took correcting that seriously. We have only had one limousin bull and he was probably a calm as any bull of any breed that we have had.

 

[kentuckyguy]

We cleaned up with a very moderate framed Hereford Bull last year and I've been very impressed with his calves. Here's a steer that's less than a month old out of a SimAgnus cow.

 

[KevinN]

Thanks for a lot of interesting information. You folks are experienced commercial cattlemen it seems...and I'm a rookie hobbyist. I'm not too concerned about rail weights or the finishing time...I just want the best beef for my efforts, regardless of the breed or cross. Finishing on grass in the Northeast takes time...I want to start with the correct genetics and not waste time! I would like to talk to someone who breeds Square Meaters and has success grass finishing. Anybody out there?

 

[Dave]

There is no way I would breed to Waygu if you are going to grass finish. They require a bunch of time on feed to get where they need to be. Shorthorn will fatten up on grass.