TexasCountryWoman
No bash from me. It's a fair question. I raise horned cattle. Herefords to be on the mark.
Our animals - as with all Horned Herefords are from a very ancient line - we purchased ours during a herd dispersal from a retiring rancher some years ago. They are quiet, easily managed and massive - both in bone and in muscle. All are purebred - but most are not registered - can't be bothered to spend the additional cash.
My chute run is 32 inches wide and they rub when they walk down the line.
They can handle the cold and the wet. I provide little to no bedding for them in the winter - they sleep on the snow in a thick bush - just like the deer and the moose. They come to a call just like a dog.
We use Pfizer modified live vaccines and follow our veterinarian recommended protocols religiously - herd health is top notch.
We leave our girls out year round and until last year we always calved on snow. Calves do amazingly well. Temps easily drop into the minus 40's. There are other breeds and cross breeds that do this well, but I notice there are a lot of them that have white faces.
They tend to be - best guess - about 10 - 15% larger in bone mass than the average polled Hereford.
They put out a very good calf. Calves last year averaged around 105 pounds - usually no birthing problems with the girls - and the calves gained weight like stink. We do not breed our heifers to Horned Hereford bulls unless they weigh at least 1000 pounds. Usually around 14 months of age. Some do it different - but this is what WE do.
We take the horns off of those that go to market - therefore no money loss there.
They are the original - I believe all polled animals come from horned animals - lots of them (horned) in the western Canadian prairies. They make a darned good - naturally polled cross with Angus.
Genetic polling is fine, but in the end I believe something is lost if it is eliminated. Lots of folks stop by to look at our "horns".
Finally, they will eat absolutely anything. I routinely watch them "walk down" small poplar trees to clean off the leaves. Willow seems to be another favourite. Mine lived on straw, some barley and water for two years during the drought. Come to think of it, I still have the invoice proving I was paying $107.50 for oat straw bales for them to eat - I must frame that invoice! Sometimes I wonder how we made it back then.
Oops - my second finally - We simply like them!
My best,
Bez