Hereford Holstein cross, why?

[Peace]

Hereford over Holstein or Friesian are the most popular dairy cross, either from "flying herds" or bred from the lower producing cows. These are usually called "Black Herefords" and bred to terminal Aberdeen Angus or Limousin.

Interesting. I read on a forum that was UK/EU based that guys were breeding this cross for sucklers. I'm guessing a suckler is what we call a nurse cow.

I'm guessing the added milk production was a help for the Hereford and the added width was to beef up the Holstein. Either way, I just kind of found it curious that was really the only time I saw that cross. Most of the others used Angus on their 14 to 18 month heifers for calving ease. I think that cross bred to Angus might be a good one .... then again what do I know

 

[Ebenezer]

Makes a whale of a good beef cow mama, too.

 

[Aaron]

Simple. Hereford × Holstein guarantees a black baldy calf. Sell it at 6 months of age and few buyers can tell the difference versus Hereford/Angus baldy. By 10 months though, the dairy characteristics start coming through. Sold them like that through 80s and 90s when family still had Holsteins kicking around.

 

[Buck Randall]

Simple. Hereford × Holstein guarantees a black baldy calf. Sell it at 6 months of age and few buyers can tell the difference versus Hereford/Angus baldy. By 10 months though, the dairy characteristics start coming through. Sold them like that through 80s and 90s when family still had Holsteins kicking around.

Holstein/Hereford crosses won't be easily mistaken for Angus/Hereford by anyone that's seen more than a couple. The Holstein crosses almost always have a lot of white on them, including the front legs and tail switch. They bring slightly more than straight Holsteins at auction.

 

[Aaron]

Holstein/Hereford crosses won't be easily mistaken for Angus/Hereford by anyone that's seen more than a couple. The Holstein crosses almost always have a lot of white on them, including the front legs and tail switch. They bring slightly more than straight Holsteins at auction.

Sure am glad we got the black baldy prices at the time. Dad kept one once because he thought he would make big money keeping it to yearling. Went from a fancy 6-7 month old steer to a horse at 13 months and got less than he would have gotten as a calf.

I still see them pay good money for them these days. Must be because they fit the CAB criteria.

 

[Ky hills]

I wouldn't mind a bit to have a few Hereford x Holstein cows again. They don't hold up as long udder wise as long as a good tight uddered beef cow, but in other ways they are just as good if not better. The ones I've had are fertile and will raise a calf of good size every year, though they may not look as good as a straight beef cow all the time. Thats more than I can say of some fancy looking beef cows that might have 1-2 calves when expected, then go open for a while.

 

[tex452]

We had some jersey Hereford x cows when I was a kid, we bottled them and kept them for cows, you could walk out in the pasture and milk them, very tame.
Raised good calves too.

 

[andybob]

Interesting. I read on a forum that was UK/EU based that guys were breeding this cross for sucklers. I'm guessing a suckler is what we call a nurse cow.

I'm guessing the added milk production was a help for the Hereford and the added width was to beef up the Holstein. Either way, I just kind of found it curious that was really the only time I saw that cross. Most of the others used Angus on their 14 to 18 month heifers for calving ease. I think that cross bred to Angus might be a good one .... then again what do I know

Yes, suckler is the term for beef herds, the use of F1 females and terminal bulls is more common than pure herds.

 

[Warren Allison]

I wouldn't mind a bit to have a few Hereford x Holstein cows again. They don't hold up as long udder wise as long as a good tight uddered beef cow, but in other ways they are just as good if not better. The ones I've had are fertile and will raise a calf of good size every year, though they may not look as good as a straight beef cow all the time. Thats more than I can say of some fancy looking beef cows that might have 1-2 calves when expected, then go open for a while.

When I was growing up in the 60;s, there were a lot of dairies around here, and people bred heifers to Hereford as much as they did Angus. The last dairy in my county shut down in 2000. There's just not any Holsteins around anymore, and what few there are in other parts of Ga, use Angus or Brangus mostly. I remember those Her x Hols though, nice looking cattle and were extremely docile. But them again, they were usually bottle fed, thus the docility. When I was 6 til I was about 10 ( got my first motorcycle and from daylight to dark, I stayed out on the trails, and wasn;t much help! LOL ) my grand father would buy two bottle calves for my brother and me, and a couple of those were Herf x Holst. We kept them inthe pasture at our house with the ponies til about October. The heifers Papa would keep and carry over to the cattle farm. They would have black Angus calves every year, and these looked just like an ang x hereford black baldy.

Best Holstein cross I ever fooled with my whole life, was Holstein x Chianina. Met a man in the late 90's that raised and showed draft horses in competitions. He had a Percheron and a Shore Stallion, and a mammoth jack I sold him...that's how I met him. He also had a team of oxen he showed, as well. They were chiania x holstein. He had 6 Holstein cows and 6 Chianina cows that he AI'd to Chiania and Holstein bulls respectively. He would carry the heifer calves to the sale barn, maybe in 3 days as bottle calves, maybe in 6 mos as weanlings..he really didn;t care, as he was just interested in the steer calves. So, I got to getting these heifers from him every year for 8 years or so. My God, did these make exceptional cows! Chianina are every bit as heat/disease/insect resistant as Brahma, and these gals thrived on our Fescue pastures. We'd breed them to Brangus , and they'd wean a 700+ lb .,, black. polled calf . I guess the Chianina tightened up the udders, because they never had any of the trouble you'd find with Holstein or Holstein crosses used for raising calves. I never kept any of these cows long enough, but people who bought them said they'd get 8-10 calves out of them. When they sold them after they got too old, they'd bring about what the dairy culls cows brought, though.

 

[farmerjan]

Friends in Conn years ago had Chi oxen... pulling machines and they were over 6 ft at the shoulder. Stubborn dispositions. A Chi-Holstein cross is a great one, gets a more tractable disposition it seems and they can pull. The cows do have tighter udders than many other holstein crosses... very protective but not "mean" cows.

 

[Logan52]

In October of 1986 I attended a local graded feeder calf sale where a neighbor who milked a small herd of Holsteins was selling his heifer calves. They were out of his country Holsteins and by a rugged looking Hereford clean up bull. They weighed around 750 pounds right off the cow.
I purchased a pen of 8 of these and brought them home and turned them out with an Angus bull the next spring. The descendants of the two best of these females make up my herd today. I have bred to a lot of different breeds over the years, and the cows produced have been good ones. I really can't say I have improved them any over that original cross. They were thick well marked BWF that were fertile and bred back on time while giving lots of milk. Their udders held up well and I usually sold them for a premium at 9 or 10 years old.
I liked red cattle and some of the best replacements came by a Red Poll bull. My worst mistake was breeding them in 1992 to a roan Shorthorn. Nice calves but a real dock at the stockyards. I still get an occasional roan. This year I had a blue roan steer calf by a Sim-Angus bull that was an outstanding calf but he did not bring the price I thought he should.

 

[Ky hills]

Not any dairies left right around here any more that I'm aware of. Around 30 years ago, it was 50-60 miles to the nearest ones when I was buying calves. I finally got in with a couple dairies and got their calves, one both bulls and heifers, and one just the bulls. Most were straight Holstein, but occasionally some Angus or Hereford cross. I kept those cross heifers for cows.
I bought the last of the dairy cows from the last dairy in operation here in the county, to use as nurse cows, then added some Jerseys along the way, eventually going more towards Jersey.
I used a couple Angus Holstein crosses for nurse cows. Didn't like the look of the Angus Jersey crosses, so brought in a Hereford bull after a while. Those Hereford Jersey cross calves were thicker but ever now and then get a brindle. Those made fine cows and then bred them back to an Angus, those were good calves.
Years ago at one point the thing go do was breed Brown Swiss to Chianinas. Some around here did that, but the demand was evidently short lived.
A cousin got some Chianinas and for a while they were saying they wanted their cattle to be a quarter Chi. Don't know if they are still into that or not.
I'll say one thing a Chianina Holstein cross would be a big boned animal.

 

[Rafter S]

When I was growing up in the 60;s, there were a lot of dairies around here,

Not any dairies left right around here any more that I'm aware of.

Back about 50 years ago Grimes county had so many dairies (and beekeepers) it was called "The Land of Milk and Honey". Now there's just one dairy left; an all Jersey dairy about 1-1/2 miles from my house (there are still plenty of bees).

I raised quite a few Holtstein cross bottle calves when I was younger. The Brahman x Holtstein cows raised a tremendous calf. I was using Simmental bulls back then, and those calves would really mash on the scale.

 

[Warren Allison]

Not any dairies left right around here any more that I'm aware of. Around 30 years ago, it was 50-60 miles to the nearest ones when I was buying calves. I finally got in with a couple dairies and got their calves, one both bulls and heifers, and one just the bulls. Most were straight Holstein, but occasionally some Angus or Hereford cross. I kept those cross heifers for cows.
I bought the last of the dairy cows from the last dairy in operation here in the county, to use as nurse cows, then added some Jerseys along the way, eventually going more towards Jersey.
I used a couple Angus Holstein crosses for nurse cows. Didn't like the look of the Angus Jersey crosses, so brought in a Hereford bull after a while. Those Hereford Jersey cross calves were thicker but ever now and then get a brindle. Those made fine cows and then bred them back to an Angus, those were good calves.
Years ago at one point the thing go do was breed Brown Swiss to Chianinas. Some around here did that, but the demand was evidently short lived.
A cousin got some Chianinas and for a while they were saying they wanted their cattle to be a quarter Chi. Don't know if they are still into that or not.
I'll say one thing a Chianina Holstein cross would be a big boned animal.

Yeah those Chi-Holstein oxen he went to draft horse pulls with were over 3klbs each. Seems like in the early 70's when you couldn't get Chianina cattle, just semen from Canada, they would use the Brown Swiss , I guess, kinda like the other contiennetal breed used other cattle in their "breed up" programs. I guess Brown Swiss looked the most like them. Then they started using Angus, and after the Chi-Angus took off, you didn't see many half Brown Swiss anymore.

I don't know where anyone could find these Chi- Hols crosses, because dairies never used Chianina for their heifers. I guess the only place would be someone like the guy I got them from...somebody that raised oxen for draft animal competitions. No one would have ever purposely bred Hol bulls to Chi either, just to raise brood cows. Most would use another beef breed on the Chis. I did see some Hereford x Chianina once at UGA about 1974. They made the red & white Simmental look like miniature cattle.

 

[Travlr]

When I was growing up in the 60;s, there were a lot of dairies around here, and people bred heifers to Hereford as much as they did Angus. Best Holstein cross I ever fooled with my whole life, was Holstein x Chianina.

I had a Char/SG cross (one of my favorite crosses) and bred her AI to a Chi... and the resulting heifer was awe inspiring. I had every neighbor in the area offering to buy her. A meaty, easy keeping, little Hereford bull jumped the fence and he must have had a step ladder with him because he got her bred. She weaned that first calf at 825 pounds.

If we weaned calves like that as standard procedure they wouldn't have to be backgrounded and could go straight to a feedlot... and they'd finish faster both weight and finish... and we'd all be selling calves for more money per pound because it would be a cost savings to the feedlots. (Well, if we were smart enough to insist on a higher price.)

 

[Rafter S]

I had a Char/SG cross (one of my favorite crosses) and bred her AI to a Chi... and the resulting heifer was awe inspiring. I had every neighbor in the area offering to buy her. A meaty, easy keeping, little Hereford bull jumped the fence and he must have had a step ladder with him because he got her bred. She weaned that first calf at 825 pounds.

If we weaned calves like that as standard procedure they wouldn't have to be backgrounded and could go straight to a feedlot... and they'd finish faster both weight and finish... and we'd all be selling calves for more money per pound because it would be a cost savings to the feedlots. (Well, if we were smart enough to insist on a higher price.)

I know there are a lot of people here who know more about it than I do, so I won't argue with someone who says I'm wrong, but I thought the reason most people got away from those big breeds was because by the time they were finished they were too big.

 

[Travlr]

I know there are a lot of people here who know more about it than I do, so I won't argue with someone who says I'm wrong, but I thought the reason most people got away from those big breeds was because by the time they were finished they were too big.

Yeah, I think that's true of several breeds. And a lot of people don't like huge cows. But I doubt my experience was a one-off. We tend to breed for what the market tells us is wanted... but I could probably crossbreed appropriately and get consistent results, 800+ pound weaning weights and a calf that puts on fat/marbles at 13/1400 pounds if there was a demand.

A while back there was a sudden fad for "baby beef", animals that finished at a thousand pounds or less because people wanted smaller cuts. Personally I like the idea myself and have finished calves smaller. The calf I exampled would have gone that way except I presold him before I knew how he would develop. At least my deal was based on price per pound at weaning and the guy that bought him was very happy.

 

[Warren Allison]

If we weaned calves like that as standard procedure they wouldn't have to be backgrounded and could go straight to a feedlot... and they'd finish faster both weight and finish... and we'd all be selling calves for more money per pound because it would be a cost savings to the feedlots. (Well, if we were smart enough to insist on a higher price.)

Yep/ All calves are weaned on the trailer to the sale barn around here. Ideally, you want a 450-499 lb calf..it brings the most per pound. Some, like the Corr x Brangus caalves, don't reach that until nearly 6 mos..normal weaning time. These Chi cross calves will hit that at 4 mos or a little less. People who run a conditioning operation usually buy them, though. Hell, I guess you could say they are grass-fed beef.

 

[Travlr]

Yep/ All calves are weaned on the trailer to the sale barn around here. Ideally, you want a 450-499 lb calf..it brings the most per pound. Some, like the Corr x Brangus caalves, don't reach that until nearly 6 mos..normal weaning time. These Chi cross calves will hit that at 4 mos or a little less. People who run a conditioning operation usually buy them, though. Hell, I guess you could say they are grass-fed beef.

Isn't it odd how different places have different practices and prices? In Arkansas we wanted 12/1300 pound cows and 600 pound calves... which most people had a hard time producing. In South Dakota we wanted 14/1500 pound cows and still wanted 600 pound calves which were easier with bigger cows. 7 month weaning times in both places. A 500 pound calf isn't docked, but the bigger calves aren't either. 5 to 6 was the sweet spot for prices.

I've been out of it long enough that it makes me wonder if things have changed.

 

[Rafter S]

Yep/ All calves are weaned on the trailer to the sale barn around here. Ideally, you want a 450-499 lb calf..it brings the most per pound. Some, like the Corr x Brangus caalves, don't reach that until nearly 6 mos..normal weaning time. These Chi cross calves will hit that at 4 mos or a little less. People who run a conditioning operation usually buy them, though. Hell, I guess you could say they are grass-fed beef.

I agree that lighter calves bring more per pound, but in my experience adding 100 pounds to weaning weight will still bring more money per calf. The price discount isn't enough to offset the added weight.