How to tell between an Angus and Jersey Fresian Cow/Heifer

[HolsteinMilkCo]

Hi Guys, need your opinion on this issue.

I have some issues with the selection of Jersey Fresian Cow's which I have brought in from Australia that some of them which has calved down from my supposed Jersey Fresian Cow's are looking very Angus looking. I have trouble telling the difference between the Angus and Jersey Fresian. Any tips from any of you experienced breeders out there on how I can select my cow's better? I can hardly tell the difference..

 

[regolith]

1) check your calves for horn buds. Don't have any, chances are they're angus-sired. Polled AI dairy sires should in theory have their polled status indicated in their name.

2) angularity.
I know it can be hard to tell on individual calves. In *general* beef cross calves will show the beef character right from birth, they're much thicker, especially across the rump.

 

[HolsteinMilkCo]

Thanks for the input regolith, any ways to tell between an angus and jersey fresian cow?

 

[Son of Butch]

Hi Guys, need your opinion on this issue.

I have trouble telling the difference between the Angus and Jersey Fresian . Any tips from any of you experienced breeders out there on how I can select my cow's better? I can hardly tell the difference..

In my Opinion you may benefit from taking a more experienced dairyman with you when selecting heifers to purchase.
Not just for telling the breed difference, but to help select which of the Fresian x Jersey heifers have the most potential
to grow into being the best milking cows of the group.

In addition to angularity and dairy character, Holstein x Jersey calves usually do not have a solid colored face,
and angus x jersey calves almost always have a solid colored face.
IF the face has a solid color, check polled or horned, then look for a long dairy neck vs short beefy neck and look at the
rear legs for a flat dairy hock rather than a rounder beef hock.
The holstein should also have a larger, longer head vs shorter head of an angus...but a Jersey can put a cute dished face on either breed.

 

[Son of Butch]

Any tips on how I can select my cow's better?

Practice, practice, practice it's the best way to learn or improve any skill.

Practice dairy judging by visiting Good successful dairy farms.
Evaluate which animals you think are best.
Then ask the owner which they think are the best, to see how you compare.
Ask why.
It's a way of learning to be observant.

 

[WalnutCrest]

Any tips on how I can select my cow's better?

Practice, practice, practice it's the best way to learn or improve any skill.

Practice dairy judging by visiting Good successful dairy farms.
Evaluate which animals you think are best.
Then ask the owner which they think are the best, to see how you compare.
Ask why.
It's a way of learning to be observant.

Asking "why" is crucial. Not everyone has the same goals. One person's favorite could be someone else's least depending on goals and objectives.

 

[regolith]

Thanks for the input regolith, any ways to tell between an angus and jersey fresian cow?

I thought the difficult part was when they're newborn...
if you're buying cows from an honest vendor with their ancestry all in place, this shouldn't be an issue.
Twice in the last five years I've set eyes on an angus cross posing as a dairy cow, both were of unknown parentage and both showed angus character in the shape of the head and lack of dairy angularity... the second one was a beauty, but you could see from her BW/PW indexes (NZ system) that she wasn't milking well. In a well-managed dairy herd there shouldn't be much potential for making this mistake. In genuine uncertainty a DNA test can establish whether the cow's sire is who it should be.

Do as others have suggested - look, look, look at cows whose background you know till you understand what the breed characteristics are and what makes a good cow.
Around these parts, I'd be careful of those experienced dairymen - a lot I know will judge the breed make-up of a crossbred cow only from her colour.