Old English hereford genetics vs modern hereford genetics

[townfarmer]

I was wandering the cattle sheds at the RNA beef cattle judging and came across something interesting. These two bulls were quite a fascinating contrast. The bull on the right is bred from old traditional English genetics and the bull on the left is a typical modern Australian hereford. Totally different animals. The big bull is six months older and weighs 2320 lbs. The bull on the right is two years old and weighs 1300 lbs. Performance and growth vs efficiency.

Andrew

 

[JWBrahman]

Thanks for sharing.

 

[jerry27150]

yep ,they sure changed

 

[townfarmer]

yep ,they sure changed

I always thought you'd lose some growth with old genetics but I didn't realize it would be that much. Here's a photo of him standing up next to a younger bull in his class.

Andrew

 

[Duramaxgirl]

Woa that's a huge size difference! Not sure how a 2300+ pound bull would be easy to work with definitely couldn't use him on heifers. But 1300 pounds isn't good at 2+ years old. Not enough steak for me

 

[KNERSIE]

There is a huge difference in how the two was brought out. Not comparable at all. Old English genetics will grow slightly slower than modern genetics, but they make for much more functional and efficient cows.

 

[townfarmer]

There is a huge difference in how the two was brought out. Not comparable at all. Old English genetics will grow slightly slower than modern genetics, but they make for much more functional and efficient cows.

You could make the argument that a lot of our modern Herefords are on the extreme for their large size. Would you consider this bull and others with similar breeding as extreme in the other direction?

Andrew

 

[KNERSIE]

No, not really. He just isn't a good representative for old English genetics. I do agree that Herefords got too big, though. Between a frame 4 and 6 you'll find enough variation to fit every need.

 

[TexasBred]

yep ,they sure changed

Sort of like comparing pro football players of today to those of the 50's.