what is your favorite dairy breed, and why?

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what is your favorite dairy breed, and why?

  • Ayrshire

    Votes: 2 5.9%
  • Brown Swiss

    Votes: 6 17.6%
  • Dairy Shorthorn

    Votes: 2 5.9%
  • Guernsey

    Votes: 2 5.9%
  • Holstein

    Votes: 9 26.5%
  • Jersey

    Votes: 13 38.2%

  • Total voters
    34
Different systems ALX so different approaches. But when you get paid on volume plus a little bit for BF, Protein and other solids I'll take the holstein that will hit 120-130 lbs. per day with 3.5% BF and 3.2% protein anyday. We use to have a couple of brown swiss as well as well as a few jerseys and at one time had a complete group of jersey/holstein crosses. Loved those rascals. Good producers, high components, quick breedback and seldom any problems. Efficient little cows. If I jus wanted a family milk cow or nurse cow the jersey would probably be my pick.
 
TexasBred":1ecxg46t said:
Anytime you have a jersey that will match a holstein for production you have one he&& of a jersey cow and a sorry a$$ holstein. When you're milking for a living holsteins is the only way to go. The others just add some variety to the picture.
That's the way I look at it as well. I have often heard the argument that Jerseys have higher components. Problem is the percentages are higher but the actual pounds of BF and protein are almost always lower than a Holstein. I get paid for pounds of BF and pounds of protein.
 
3waycross":qlnfotoa said:
redcowsrule33":qlnfotoa said:
Best cow I ever had was a Jersey. Naughtiest cow I ever had was a Jersey. Smartest cow I ever had was a Jersey. Love 'em anyway. :heart: Would love to have a Montbeliarde someday, just for kicks.

Same cow???????????????

Yep. Her name was Honey. I wouldn't have had her any other way.
 
redcowsrule33":2f1d07ct said:
3waycross":2f1d07ct said:
redcowsrule33":2f1d07ct said:
Best cow I ever had was a Jersey. Naughtiest cow I ever had was a Jersey. Smartest cow I ever had was a Jersey. Love 'em anyway. :heart: Would love to have a Montbeliarde someday, just for kicks.

Same cow???????????????

Yep. Her name was Honey. I wouldn't have had her any other way.
Gotta be a real "tale" behind this. :lol2:
 
I would of voted Red Poll because that is what my dad's grandpa milked.
He bought them from JC Penny the guy who started the store.
That was amazing to me when I found out from my dad. :shock:
 
sim.-ang.king":n8lehpb3 said:
I would of voted Red Poll because that is what my dad's grandpa milked.
He bought them from JC Penny the guy who started the store.
That was amazing to me when I found out from my dad. :shock:
Huh?? Penny had a guernsey dairy and an angus beef cow operation. Maybe the red poll was a "sooner" cow.
 
TexasBred":1x0jlt1y said:
Huh?? Penny had a guernsey dairy and an angus beef cow operation. Maybe the red poll was a "sooner" cow
You were right the guerseny's was what he bought, he got the red poll from kanasas.
 
I voted brown swiss, I'm biased by being swiss of course, but they are a good dual purpose breed.. we had a guernsey who was good, but a fussy eater, and she'd walk faster than you could run, neighbors have a jersey who is a sweet cow (jersey eyes?), but some old friends of ours had some that were some sort of nasty.. On a dairy production basis, I can't say much, if you want production out of any breed, you have to give them so much extra grain, etc I don't see the point in it.. What is the average productive lifespan of the cows you folks have?... I once heard that the average productive lifespan of a commercial cow was 3 to 4 years... I don't know what has happened to brown swiss from back in the day, but in switzerland there were lots of 20 year old cows... in my experience, despite total milk production dropping as they get older, the quality of the milk gets better
 
Nesikep":3lf4u81u said:
in my experience, despite total milk production dropping as they get older, the quality of the milk gets better
I've seen the opposite. My older cows tend to be higher producers but the quality is almost always worse with older cows. If I have a cow with somatic problems chances are pretty good it is an older cow. I also heard one time that as a cow ages her component production as a % drops.
 
I have often heard the argument that Jerseys have higher components. Problem is the percentages are higher but the actual pounds of BF and protein are almost always lower than a Holstein. I get paid for pounds of BF and pounds of protein.

We do get paid on components here.
The main argument for Jersey is when you calculate your profit on feed in - milk out, not on number of cows. I can run 4 Jerseys for every 3 Holstein Friesians. There's some increase in costs due to the extra number of individual cows but the feed input is linked to the total weight of livestock. On the same feed (grazed grass) I could have 4 Jerseys doing 350 kg MS or 3 Holstein Friesians doing 450 kg MS (I'll let you work it out). Jerseys are more efficient feed converters. The lower protein:fat ratio of Jersey is the main drawback under our payment system.

I like longevity. Somatic cells often are higher in older cows but it's not a rule - some cows have 'em, some seem to keep them low as they age. I've been told by other farmers that production starts to drop gradually after about age ten but heck, she owes you nothing at that age and probably still producing more than the 2 yr old you'd replace her with.

Productive life on average is held back by heifers that breed once and never again, in this country at any rate. I've almost got to the stage of rolling my eyes at any farmer who tells me what steps they are taking to help their milking heifers breed back. My heifers don't have any more trouble with weight maintenance or breeding back than the older cows. My policy: breed 'em to a Jersey bull for easy calving, grow them well from day one so they arrive in the herd at their full potential weight at 22 months old (I have a good grazier who does most of that for me) - that's it. There's still farmers running big bulls with heifers and pulling calves and wondering why half of them don't breed back, likewise the ones who think they can bring them into the herd at a low condition score and expect them to cycle on schedule.
So when you see it written that an average cow only does three or four seasons, remember that statistic is influenced by the many 2 yr olds who calve once and never again. Of course, some heifers do turn out otherwise unsuitable and get culled young also - temperament, bad udders or mastitis, low production, sickness, BVD PIs.
The oldest cows in herds I've worked with are in their early to mid-teens, after the age of ten there's not that many left. Under US conditions they don't seem to last as long (Should I refrain from knocking the Holstein breed which *is* more susceptible to many ailments than the less highly bred cattle or Jerseys?).
 
You're not knocking holsteins as much as showing the extreme stress most US herds live under. They're pushed much harder for maximum milk over here. On a personal note, I hate jersey cattle. I do love the jersey/holstein cross tho. I seldom had to cull a cow for not breeding back. More often than not it was always related to the feet. You probably can't find a cow in this state that is in her teens and milking daily.....even 7-8 years old for that matter. The attrition level is huge. Most cull anywhere from 30% up every year.
 
I milk some crossbreds in Holland (europe)...Fleckvieh* HF
(better body condition (more muscle), higher protoin, lower cellcount

Started crossbreeding.........from 100 % pure breb HF to......HF* Fleckvieh > F1 * to swedish red = F2
F2 * holstein = F3

Some examples
Foto-FSIYRE8H.jpg

Foto-68VMOOIJ.jpg

Foto-UOU3NYUX.jpg


Youngstock
Foto-PT6XIMQS.jpg


Foto-4YUOHE4G.jpg

50 % swedish red * 25 % Fleckvieh * 25 % HF
 
gerben77":1lt6kkkl said:
I milk some crossbreds in Holland (europe)...Fleckvieh* HF
(better body condition (more muscle), higher protoin, lower cellcount

Started crossbreeding.........from 100 % pure breb HF to......HF* Fleckvieh > F1 * to swedish red = F2
F2 * holstein = F3

Some examples
Foto-FSIYRE8H.jpg

Foto-68VMOOIJ.jpg

Foto-UOU3NYUX.jpg


Youngstock
Foto-PT6XIMQS.jpg


Foto-4YUOHE4G.jpg

50 % swedish red * 25 % Fleckvieh * 25 % HF

Good looking cattle. Dairy crossbreeding is starting to catch on some here in the U.S. but slowly. I don't know why there is so much resistance in some quarters. Seems to me the same priciples would apply to dairy as beef. There are so many other factors that go into making a profitable cow than just production. European dairy producers seem to understand this more than we do here in the U.S.
 
Van there are few things you can breed for other than production but most are not consistent nor that profitable. A cow that gives 130 lbs. of milk a day does eat a lot of feed but also is probably the most also the most effective in feed conversion and may still be giving 70 lbs. when you have to dry her off. You can also feed for higher milk solids. Some are worth the time, money and effort...some not. Typically here in the US you get paid for lbs. of milk, lbs. of protein and lbs. of milk protein along with some other small payments for "other solids" and low somatic cell count. Out of Milk production, butterfat production and protein production I always seemed to be able to get 2 out of 3 but never all three in superior numbers. Like everyone else I bred and fed for high production. I knew I would get paid for that. I could manipulate butterfat fairly easy with feed and get that premium, but protein was usually just a wash or possibly a deduction. The prices for these components also fluctuate considerably and usually bottom out about the time of the year that you begin to get better butterfat and protein production. ....And you have to accept the lab results of the coop for BF and protein without question.

Jersey cattle...very high butterfat and protein but low milk production compared to holsteins and the cost of the cow is usually considerably less. In short..If I were still milking I'd still want maximum milk and butterfat production.

I would compare dairy farming more to row crop farming (many dairymen also row crop) than beef cow operations. First off you don't find anybody dairying as a hobby. You have a very few people trying to produce enough product for a huge number of people while complying with volumes of regulation and all the advocacy groups trying to shut them down.
 
VanC":w77kf2uc said:
Good looking cattle. Dairy crossbreeding is starting to catch on some here in the U.S. but slowly. I don't know why there is so much resistance in some quarters. Seems to me the same priciples would apply to dairy as beef. There are so many other factors that go into making a profitable cow than just production. European dairy producers seem to understand this more than we do here in the U.S.
I am probably biased since I run only Holsteins, but what would be the point of crossbreeding when you are already running the breed which gives you the highest gross income? I would argue that profit and production have connections, especially with feed prices where they are (high production + high feed prices + higher DMI = small margin ; average production + high feed prices + moderate DMI = small margin but with less cash flow to cover bills). I am breeding for better udders, better feet, better fertility, etc. etc. all while staying with a purebred Holstein animal. All the advertising I have seen for crossbreeding are bragging up udders, SCC, feet and fertility. Yes all of those aspects are important in making a cow that will be profitable, but at the end of they day you need to put milk in the tank to survive until tomorrow. I feel there is nothing to be gained by crossbreeding that I cannot achieve by staying straight Holstein.
 
Thanks for the answers, novaman and TB. I will humbly bow to the voices of experience. Fact is I got caught up in the hype on a couple of websites. I should know better.
 
VanC":lh9zuyqw said:
Thanks for the answers, novaman and TB. I will humbly bow to the voices of experience. Fact is I got caught up in the hype on a couple of websites. I should know better.
Van like so many things there is no perfect answer. Different folks have different preferences and they make it work. Got a good friend with an all jersey dairy. Wouldn't have anything else. I can show him dozens of ways to improve his operation. He can give a dozen reasons to not change a thing. ;-)
 
Crossbreeding is huge out here. Holstein-Friesian is most popular breed, followed by crossbred, followed by Jersey.

The HFxJ mix and resulting hybrid vigour does exactly what is needed in our seasonal, grass only dairying systems. I've read that NZ dairy cattle are at the 'strength' extreme and US at the 'dairy' extreme with Aus somewhere in the middle. Under our conditions the same arguments that are made for crossbreeding beef cattle hold true.

I couldn't count how many times older people have told me the crossbred is a great cow but where do you go after that first cross?
Funnily enough, my experience is that the second cross - 3/4 of either Jersey or Holstein Friesian - make real good cows though the hybrid vigour advantage is less. The big issue if you want to maintain hybrid vigour is what third breed will complement the other two? With the BW indexing system in NZ, nearly all other breeds or overseas sires will drop the indexes to the point that the cow has no resale value - idiotic, but that's how it is.

There's the potential for calving difficulty in a crossbred cow - all well and good if she inherits Holstein size and Jersey-type pelvis; if she goes the other way she might not be able to safely breed back to a Holstein.
I did some 3-way crosses to Ayrshire, Shorthorn and Brown Swiss last year but didn't get most of the calves as the cows had to be leased out when I lost my contract. I'm planning using the Shorthorn bull again - saw two very nice calves on one of the farms my cows were leased to.
Those Fleckvieh crosses would probably do great out here, but a bit over-sized for some of the dairies and, as TB comments, my preference. I got to working with 900lb cows and decided that was the easy life.
 

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