DEBRE TABOR UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

COURSE MODULE FOR ANIMAL PRODUCTION AND MANAGEMENT

DEPARTMENT OF ANIMAL SCIENCE

MAY, 2015 E.C

DEBRE TABOR UNIVERSITY, ETHIOPIA

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 UNIT ONE

INTRODUCTION

UNIT DESCRIPTION:

This unit describes the role and function of livestock production and constraints of livestock production
and productivity. To deliver these contents, active learning methods such as brainstorming,
interactive lecture, and group discussion will be used. And also to assess students’ achievement,
continuous assessments such as quiz, test, class activities, assignments and others will be used.

Brainstorming

Q. What are the roles of keeping animals for rural people in Ethiopia?

 DEFINITION OF TERMINOLOGIES
Animal: is any living thing, other than a human being, that can feel and move.

Production: - the action of manufacturing, growing, extracting etc of things especially in

large quantities. (Oil, egg, energy)

Animal Production: - literally means the action of growing or producing animals and it’s
by -products in large quantities, ex.: Animals, eggs, Milk, Beef, and soon. In the
comprehensive explanations, the study of livestock farms and farming systems is known as
animal production.

Animal management may include scientific feeding, breeding, housing, health care of
domestic animals and marketing their products to maximize return. In the comprehensive
explanations, the study of livestock farms and farming systems is known as animal
production and management.

Q. Identify basic terms from the above definition. Define each basic term you have identified.

1.1 THE ROLE OF LIVESTOCK

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The world’s livestock are found primarily in the agricultural systems of developing countries.
The common perception that most livestock are reared intensively in specialized, industrial
systems, a phenomenon of the past 50 years in developed countries, does not apply to the
developing world.

To domesticate- to adapt the behaviors of animals to fit human needs.

Domestication began when early humans had contact with wild animals, which they hunted for
food and skins. Humans then began to confine some of these animals to ensure a steadier supply
of food and clothing. Selection of animals with certain desirable characteristics was also
practiced to use for breeding purpose.

Domesticated animals supplied a surer source of food & clothing and more settled way of life
commenced. Some historians believe- no civilization without domestication of animals.

OR Development of civilization linked & dependent upon use of animals: why? What used
for? Basic Human Needs

 Food - less time for hunting/gathering

- Animals convert inedible human food by-products to animal products (i.e.,

food and fiber) for use by humans -meat, milk, eggs

 Clothing - human population expansion to cold areas

- wool, hair, hides, pelts

 work & power ** - plant much more cropland, travel - trade goods & ideas

- draft, pack, guide & guard

 shelter - hides, manure

 Fuels - fats, oils, manure

 physical well being - animal experiments

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 miscellaneous - entertainment (rodeos, racing, zoo, circus), currency, fertilizers, gelatin,
pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, soaps, lubricants, greases, floor waxes, and many more
products

 Cash Receipts From Livestock & Animal Products

In general animal functions can be grouped in to four categories:-

I. Output function

 Food products
 Non-food products
 Reproduction and growth
II. Input function

 Manure
 Work
III. Asset and security function

IV. Social and cultural function

Q. Realize the reason why people keep livestock?

1.2 . Livestock Production systems

A. Pastoralism: subsistence system based primarily on domesticated animal
production. But there are also some groups specializing on wild herd
animals. Pastoralists are segment of population subsisting primarily via
pastoralism. Pastoralists can be categorized in terms of frequency of
movement as:
 transhumance –practice round trip from home base to pasturemove
herds up into mountain pastures in summer(dry season) and back
to low lands in winter (rainy season)

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 Nomadic pastoralism: Characterized by moving herds to any available
pasture often on opportunistic basis over long distance and with no fixed
pattern.
General features of pastoralism:
 Pastoralism usually practiced in low rainfall areas.
 Pastoralisrts raise a diversified type of animals. These
includes camels, donkeys ,sheep and goat as well as cattle.
 The animals move quickly over the pastures
 Production costs are lower . feed cost accounts the major
fraction of the total production expense
 Labour intensive – the whole social<structure of the
community being concerned and uses about 25% as much
labour for the same number of livestock as used on African
commercial ranch
 Disease risk but also they can avoid disease risk such as tick
infestation b/c they are mobile.
Pastoralism is a way of living in vats arid agro-ecological zones of afar, Somali
and Borena rangelands and in the semi-arid areas of the southern nations,
nationalities and Peoples region. Land holding in most range lands, like the
Somali rangeland, is mostly clan based. Despite their vast size, pastoral areas
are sparsely populated compared to other farming systems.
Crop production is not a feature of the system and subsistence s almost
entirely based on livestock and livestock products. The main source of food is
milk. Consequently, pastoralists tend to keep large herds to ensure sufficient
milk supply and income. Most of the farm animal species, excepting horses
and mules, are reared in this system; it is dominated by goats, cattle sheep and
camels. Water and feed shortage are the most limiting factors of production
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and productivity of the system. Entire sources of feeds are rangelands.
Therefore, pastoralists are forced to move constantly to different areas,
sometimes even into the neighboring countries in search of feed and water for
their animals. Camels are used to transport mobile houses of the herds’ man.
Such movements are considered as the life saving strategies adopted for
decades. However, they have also some undesired effects such as triggering of
conflicts between the occupant of the areas and the new comers. In addition to
several other factors, gradually increasing human and livestock populations
are further deteriorating the productivity of range lands and severe droughts
frequently occurring in the area are worsening the situation
In general, traditional pastoral livestock production in Eastern Africa is
characterized by individual stock ownership, communal use of pastures and
seasonal migrations of herds and households.
Agro-pastoral system: In this system, human pressure on natural resources is
relatively lighter than that observed in higher altitudes. Household land
holding is often greater than in the mixed farming systems. Livestock are
important components of the farming system. Crops are produced both for
subsistence and market. Livestock are kept for draft, sale and generation of
other primary products. All of the major species of Ethiopian farm animals
are possibly found in this system, but with variable species composition. The
lower the altitude the higher will be the proportion of small ruminants,
especially goats. Livestock are mainly kept in communal grazing lands and
use of crop residues and aftermath grazing is not uncommon. The diet of the
people is composed of cereals, vegetables, meat and milk. The use of dung for
fuel is not as intense as in the mixed crop-livestock production system.
Based on the type and quantity of inputs as well as the objective and level of
intensity of production the above systems could be classified into:
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Low input production system: Is a production system where one or more rate
limiting inputs impose continuous or variable severe pressure on livestock,
resulting in low survival, reproductive or output. Out put and production
risks are exposed to major influences, which may go beyond human
management capacity (FAO, 2000). The majority of the country’s current
livestock production system lies in the low input category. It accommodates
more than 95% of the livestock population.
Features:
1 full dependence on natural resources
2 limited demand for inputs
3 found in pastoral, agro pastoral and livestock-crop mixed farming
systems. But more pronounced in pastoral livestock production system
than in others.

Medium input production system

Is a production system where management of the available resources has
the scope to overcome the negative effects of the environments, although it
is common for one or more factors to limit output, survival or reproduction
in a serious of fashion (FAO, 2000)
Features:
the system relatively use different kinds of inputs
in urban and peri-urban areas
consists of about 1% of the cattle and 4% of the chicken population
species with good market opportunities are involved in this system

High input production system

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 Is a production system where all rate-limiting inputs to animal production
can be managed to ensure high levels of animal survival, reproduction and
output. Out put is constrained by managerial decisions (FAO, 2000).
Although the trend is towards high input production and there are few
private poultry, dairy and fattening farms, the system is at the moment not
significant.

B. Ranching:
Major objective of ranching is ensuring year round forage production and
utilizing it at the optimum stage of growth while maintaining the range land in
a productive state or condition approximately one half of the earth’s grazing
lands lie with in the tropics in those regions of the tropics where climate is
moderated by virtue of altitude, it is possible to find established systems of
meat production similar to those of temperate climates.
Commercial ranching is a range- livestock system and it is a labour –extensive
undertaking specializing in the production from a single livestock species of a
marketable commodity, mainly live animals fro slaughter. I.e for meat and
hides
 The primary function is to provide a cash income
 Is carried out on large stretches of land – thousands of hectares
 Thousands of herds
 Fences, watering points and /or dips
Factors for successful ranch:
 availability of vast areas of essentially free land producing suitable
forage
 demand for animal products locally or in a foreign market
 labour requirnement
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  suitable animals for foundation stock
C. Crop- livestock production system: Interaction with cropping systems
 In smallholder systems sheep are usually to graze during the dry
season in fields after the crop have been harvested. Sheep consume
the aftermaths, and their dung and urine fertilize the field. Sheep are
confined at night to prevent losses from predators and theft. Night
confinement also allows collection of manure.
 During the rainy season sheep must be prevented from eating
crops growing in the fields. They cannot be allowed to graze freely
unless the fields are fenced, and this is very unusual. With careful
tethering or shepherding in the rainy season sheep can graze fodder
growing on wasteland and field boundaries, which would otherwise
be wasted. Shortage of grazing land is compensated by use of
residues and aftermath grazing.

1.3. CONSTRAINTS OF LIVESTOCK PRODUCTION AND

PRODUCTIVITY

Generally speaking, constraints to livestock productivity

can be categorized into two major classes: Genetic and
non- genetic.
Genetic factors
Low genetic potential of indigenous livestock is
considered by many to be the major bottle neck in the
sector. However, this is not in most cases true where
available resources are hardly enough to support local
breeds as a result low yielding potential of indigenous

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livestock breeds can only be considered as a constraint in
some sources rich areas or intensive production systems.

Pests and diseases

Sustainability of production systems depends to an
important extent on the control of pests and diseases.
- Prevalence of internal and external parasites
(Morbidity)
( liver fluke, GI parasites, ticks, mites, etc)
- Infectious and non infectious diseases
- Inadequate veterinary service (availability of the
service ,drugs and man power)

Prevention methods such as good management:

appropriately designed buildings, good hygine, proper
animal stocking rates and adequate veterinary services are
important.

Availability of livestock feed resources (Quality and

Quantity)

Ruminants and equines in SSA require 63 million tones of

CP but only 79% of it is available (50 million tones). The
shortage is even more exacerbated by seasonal fluctuation
in the quality and availability of feed. The situation in
Ethiopia is more or less the same even though there are
differences among different agro- ecological zones.
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Socio economic constraints
- Inadequate infrastructure ( e.g. Market)
- Policy constraints – livestock often neglected from
national and/or regional development plans and
lack of clean policies regarding livestock
- Credit
Generally speaking, constraints to livestock productivity can be categorized into two major
classes: Genetic and non-Genetic.

Non-Genetic constraints

 Availability of livestock feed resources (Quantity and quantity)

 Animal diseases and veterinary delivery system

 Prevalence of internal & external parasites, which causes morbidity e.g. liver fluke, g.
parasites, ticks mites, etc

 Infectious and non-infectious diseases

Inadequate veterinary service (availability of the service, drugs & manpower)

Types of loss due to ill health

 Reproduction losses
 Reduced growth rate
 Reduced output of animal products
 Mortality
 Loss of value and exclusion form markets

Socio-economic constraints

Genetic Constraints

Livestock improvement in general and livestock genetic

improvement in particular is aimed at increasing
production of livestock products such as milk, meat egg
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etc. matching with available resources such as feed, land
labor etc. in a sustainable way and / or increasing the
efficiency of production both economic and biological
efficiencies.

How do we improve?
Livestock improvement ca be brought about through non-
genetic and genetic options
Non- genetic – feed and feeding
- Management
- Health
In general genetic improvement should not be considered
in isolation from non- genetic improvement.
So the first step in any livestock improvement program:
 Make an inventory of available resources for animal
production
 Match the animal breeding (genetic improvement)
objectives to the resources

Advantages of genetic improvement:

 Genetic improvement is permanent and additive

 Non- genetic improvement requires constant supply
of input
E.g. Health, feed, etc

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Livestock improvement in general and livestock genetic improvement in particular is

aimed at increasing production of livestock products such as milk, meat egg etc. matching

with available resources such as feed, land labor etc. in a sustainable way and / or

increasing the efficiency of production both economic and biological efficiencies.

How do we improve?

Livestock improvement ca be brought about through non- genetic and genetic options

Non- genetic – feed and feeding

- Management

- Health

In general genetic improvement should not be considered in isolation from non- genetic

improvement.

So the first step in any livestock improvement program:

 Make an inventory of available resources for animal production

 Match the animal breeding (genetic improvement) objectives to the resources

Advantages of genetic improvement:

 Genetic improvement is permanent and additive

 Non- genetic improvement requires constant supply of input

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 E.g. Health, feed, etc

Q. Identify the major constraints of livestock production in Ethiopia.

Reference:

 G.C. Banerjee. 8th edition. A Text Book of Animal Husbandry

Sample Questions
I. Define the following
1. Animal Science
2. Animal production
II. Essay:
1. How genetics is affecting the production performance of animals in Ethiopia?

CHAPTER TWO:
DAIRY CATTLE PRODUCTION AND MANAGEMENT
UNIT DESCRIPTION

This unit deals with dairy cattle production system in Ethiopia, breed of dairy cattle and milk and
milk product patterns. To deliver these contents, active learning methods such as brainstorming,
interactive lecture and self learning will be used. And also to assess students’ achievement,
continuous assessments such as quiz, test, class activities, assignments and others will be used.

Brain storming question:

Q. What type of dairy cattle production you have observed in your area?

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 2.1. DAIRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS IN ETHIOPIA

Major systems of dairy production in Ethiopia can be classified into four.

These are:

1. Pastoralism

2. Highland small holder

3. Urban and Peri-urban dairy production systems (Small and medium scale dairy farms in
backyards and around towns and cities).

4. Intensive dairy farming.

2.1.1. LOWLAND PASTORALIST DAIRY PRODUCTION

This is a milk production system in which well-adapted indigenous cattle are herded in arid and
semi-arid areas by traditional cattle owners who depends on milk to meet part of their
subsistence food requirements.

2.1.2. RURAL HIGH LAND SMALL-HOLDER DAIRY PRODUCTION

In the highland areas agricultural production system is predominantly subsistence smallholder
mixed farming, with crop and livestock husbandry typically practiced with in the same
management unit. In most high lands, there is a decline in share of pasture land for grazing.

2.1.3. URBAN AND PERI -URBAN DAIRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS

Due to their location urban dairy producers are not expected to have access to agricultural or
pasture land, as their operation tasks place is within cities. Peri -urban dairy production system is
mainly operational in areas where the population density is high and agricultural land is
shrinking due to expanding urbanization or non-existence and labor cost is on the increase.

II.1.4. INTENSIVE DAIRY FARMING

This is a more specialized dairy farming practiced by state sector and very few individuals
on commercial basis.

Q. Explain dairy production systems in Ethiopia.

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 II.2. BREEDS OF DAIRY CATTLE
Brain storming question
Q. Have you ever observed exotic and local animal breeds?

 There are two cattle groups, Bos taurus and Bos

indicus
 Bos taurus includes
 all indigenous tropical cattle without humps and
 all the temperate breeds
 Bos indicus includes all humped Zebu breeds
Tropical indigenous breeds for milk production

 No tropical breed can be seen as a specialised

dairy type.
 They are only considered as such because the
produce more milk than the others.
 With good management the best herds of
tropical cows can produce 2000 to 2500 litre
per lactation
 Coupled with low milk production, tropical
breeds exhibit
 late sexual maturity,
 long intervals between calving and
 short lactation’s
 Indigenous cattle are important for their

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  genetic predisposition of disease resistance,
 hardiness,
 heat tolerance and adaptation to local
conditions.,
 resistance to parasites (ticks and tick-borne
diseases in particular) is a valuable trait in
tropical cattle
 Bos indicus breeds are generally good foragers,
which can also be significant under tropical
grazing conditions
 Tropical breeds with dairy potential include:
 Sahiwal,
 Red Sindhi, Tharparker (Pakistan),
 Gir, Kankrej, Hariana (India),
 Sudanese breeds (Kenana and Butana) of
Africa,
Temperate European breeds for milk production

 European breeds can easily produce over 3000

litre of milk per cow per year from available
tropical feeds if
 climatic stress is not too severe and
 the standard of management is high,
 Of the breeds tried in the tropics the following
have all been successfully used,

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  Jersey,
 Friesian,
 Brown Swiss and
Red Danish, particularly when crossed with local
stock
2.2.1. INDIGENOUS CATTLE BREEDS OF ETHIOPIA
Most cattle in Ethiopia are the natural Zebu breeds (Bos indicus) dominate, in most tropical
country which is characterized by:
- Hump
- Are smaller framed
- Produce considerably less milk, meat than European cattle (Bos Taurus)
The common one zebu breeds so far characterized in Ethiopia are:
Borana
Kenyan ranchers developed the Borana from the cattle of the Borana people of southern
Ethiopia.
Ogaden
The Ogaden cattle are described as a strain of the Borana occupying the Ogaden rangelands of
south-eastern Ethiopia.
Barka( Begait)
The Barka come from the area of western Eritrea in Ethiopia and belong to the North Sudan
Zebu group.
Fogera
Inhabits the Fogera plains around Lake Tana, southern Gondar and adjoining areas of Gojjam. 
Sheko
Sheko cattle (also called Mitzan or Goda) are short horned, humpless cattle, which were first
reported in 1929 and later in 1982 in the Shewa Ghimira of the former Kefa region of Ethiopia
adjacent to the Sudanese boarder.
Abigar
The Abgar cattle are classified as 'sanga' and are the sub-type of Nuer cattle found principally in
the border area between Ethiopia and Sudan, with larger extension into Ethiopia covering the
Akobo area of Gambella.
Raya breed

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The breed occupies the eastern escarpment and adjoining rangelands of northeastern Ethiopia
(Tigray and Wollo).
Horro
Horro cattle originated in the Western central highlands of Ethiopia. They are of medium size
and mainly raised for milk, meat and draught purposes
Arsi
Found in the central highlands of Ethiopia, in Arsi, Shewa, Bale, Sidamo and Harar.
2.2.2. EXOTIC DAIRY CATTLE BREEDS
Unlike beef cattle, there are relatively few commercially important dairy breeds. There are
primarily 5 major dairy breeds. These are:
Brown Swiss- It is native to Switzerland and probable one of the oldest breeds in existence. The
most common coat color is brown.
Ayrshire- The country of their origin is Ayrine, Scotland, in Europe. The body color varies from
almost pure white to nearly all cherry red or brown with any combination of these.
Guernsey- Breed of dairy cattle originally raised in the Island of Guernsey, Europe. Their coat
color is reddish yellow or orange fawn with white markings in flanks, face, legs.
Holstein - breed of black and white dairy cattle originated in the Netherlands. It is top milk
producing breed.
Jersey- Is the smallest breed and produces the least amount of milk compared to these dairy cattle
breeds.

Q. Differentiate local and exotic cattle breeds.

II.3. MILK AND MILK PRODUCTS UTILIZATION PATTERNS

Milk and milk products form part of the diet for many Ethiopians. They consume dairy products
either as fresh or in fermented or soured form. Butter is the most widely used consumed milk
product in Ethiopia .Of total milk produced around 40% is allocated for butter while the only 9%
is for cheese. Traditional butter which ferments slowly at room temperature can keep for a year
or longer offering rural consumers a readily storable dairy product.

Factors affecting the yield and composition of milk

Some factors influencing milk yield and composition are in the hands of the farm
manager such as: selection, milking the animals out completely at least twice a day,
regular calving intervals, two months dry periods between lactations, older and larger
cows and cool environment.

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Breeding
There are obvious differences in milk yield and composition between breeds. The most
obvious difference between average milk composition for breeds is fat percentage. The
heritability of milk fat percentage and solids-not-fat percentage is appr. 0.5.

Nutrition
Rations that stimulate milk yield will depress fat percentage(like low roughage, high
grain) and boost SNF percentage. Conversely, any ration that depress milk yield will
increase fat content but depress SNF content. Good levels of feeding tend to stimulate
milk yield and lactose percentage, and lower fat, protein and mineral percentage by
dilution.

Cow age, size and body condition at calving

large cows, as a rule, produce more milk than small cows. Mature cows generally
produce more milk than freshly calved heifers. due to larger body size and the
increased udder development that comes with repeated pregnancies. Milk yield from
individual cows usually increases with advancing age to maturity then steadily
declines. A heifer calved at three years generally gives more milk in the first lactation
than if she had been calved at two years. However, lifetime milk production will be
greater.
Body condition at calving has a profound effect on milk production for the lactation.
Most milk producing cows lose 50 to 100 kg of weight in the early weeks of lactation.
cows that calve in good body condition have more body energy to use for milk
production in the important early lactation period. The increased peak in milk yield
resulting from better body condition at calving is continued through the lactation if
feeding is adequate.
With advancing age and increasing number of lactations there is a gradual decline in
milk fat percentage and SNF percentage (mainly lactose). After the fifth lactation there
is little change. Calving in good body condition tend to produce milk with higher fat
content than cows calving in poor condition.

Stage of lactation, pregnancy and persistency

Milk production commences at a high level, increasing for two to six weeks, Higher
producers take longer to reach their peak yield than low producers. After the peak
yield, milk production gradually declines. The rate of decline is referred to as
persistency, and determines the length of lactation.
In non-pregnant cows the decline in milk yield after peak lactation is very gradual. In
pregnant cows there is a marked drop in milk yield after the fifth month of gestation.
During the eight month of pregnancy there is a marked drying off. However, regular
calving intervals and their stimulation of milk production will greatly outweigh the
negative effects of pregnancy on milk production.
In early lactation the stimulus to secrete milk is very high, and can overcome short-term
feeding and management problems. In later lactation, any adverse conditions will

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greatly reduce milk yield and complete recovery is impossible.
The secretion from the udder immediately after calving, colostrum, is considerably
different from normal milk. In many countries it is illegal to sell milk within five days of
a cows calving, but it has usually returned to normal after five milkings. Colostrum can
be bright yellow in colour, have a strong odour and may have a bitter taste.
Once milk composition has returned to normal after calving, the major constituent
follow a changing pattern through the lactation. Fat and SNF percentages are high in
early lactation. They fall steadily until the second or third month of lactation and then
gradually rise as milk yield falls with advancing lactation. Many of these changes in
milk composition can be attributed to pregnancy.

Length of dry period

A dry period of at least six to eighth weeks between lactation is required for the
regeneration of secretory tissue and to restore body condition. Cows having a shorter
dry period will have a reduced milk yield in the next lactation. A longer dry period
does not improve production in the next lactation, but extends the calving interval and
reduces lifetime production. Part of the effect of the dry period is due to the resulting
body condition at calving. Cows with a sufficient dry period have improved body
condition at calving, which results in both increased milk yield and milk fat percentage
for the first three months of lactation.

Oestrus cycle
Oestrus may depress milk yield temporarily, and conversely, high-yielding cows may
delay oestrus after calving. cows with ovarian cysts may produce more milk, even after
adjustments for non-pregnancy are made.

Milking practices
Even when the udder is fully developed and functional, it depends on milking or
suckling to maintain production. Everything a milker does to a cow causes a response
in the cow’s nervous and hormonal system, causing milk loss or gain.
Cows should be completely milked out at each milking for maximum production. If
some milk will be left in the udder this will lead to a permanent reduction in milk yield
for the lactation, and early drying off.
The first milk removed from the udder is low in fat compared with milk at the end of
milking. Because fat globules are not evenly distributed in milk, incomplete milking
will tend to leave high-fat milk behind. The interval between milking also affects the fat
percentage. The longer the interval, the more milk is produced and the lower is the milk
fat content.

Calf removal
Particularly in Bos indicus breeds where it is the common practice for the cow to be
milked in the presence of the calf, calf death or removal from the cow shortens lactation
and reduces milk yield (16% decrease is calves were removed from the cow at milking
time in study with Hariana).

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Environmental temperature
The body heat produced by lactating animals is double that of non-lactating cows, so
they are more affected by high environmental temperatures. High producers are more
affected by high temperatures than low producers and the effect is especially harmful at
peak lactation. The effect on milk yield and composition depends on breed. Bos indicus
breeds and some temperate breeds, esp. Brown Swiss and Jersey, are more tolerant to
high temperatures than other temperate breeds.

Disease
Anything that causes a loss of health will automatically reduce milk yield. Mastitis,
milk fever, digestive upsets and infectious diseases all lower milk yield for the period of
illness, and may affect lactation or lifetime production. If a cow is in poor health in early
lactation, her peak yield, will be lowered. Mastitis can cause a permanent reduction in
milk yield due to the loss of secretory tissue. Milk from sick cows is usually high in
sodium and chlorine and is discarded because of its salty taste and for aesthetic reasons.
Mastitis alters the permeability of udder tissue, destroying or impairing the milk-
synthesising cells. Milk form mastitic udders is high in sodium, chlorine, globulin and
albumin and low in lactose, potassium and casein. the overall effect is usually lowered
SNF percentage

Drugs
Many drugs, including antibiotics and pesticides used in the treatment of cattle
diseases, are excreted into milk. Milk from treated cattle should be discarded to prevent
the drugs from being taken in by humans.

Milk production patterns

Normal pattern of milk production
A lactation curve, plotting milk production against lactation time, shows a cow’s
pattern of milk production. The normal production pattern for a well-fed, well
managed temperate cow is shown in the figure. Milk production in temperate stock
steadily rises to a peak two to eight weeks after calving and then gradually declines, but
management and feeding can drastically change the shape of the curve. Important
features of a cow’s lactation are the initial yield, the peak yield and the length of
lactation. In tropical areas, especially with a short rainy season, seasonal feed
fluctuations dramatically affect the normal 10-month lactation, reducing potential yield
and lactation length. On many tropical farms cows produce 2 000 litre of milk per
lactation, but the same cows can produce 4000 l with regular, good-quality feed
supplies.

Normal lactation curve and feed requirements

The basic problem in feeding high-producing dairy cows is that in early lactation it is
impossible for the high producer to consume enough feed to meet its energy needs. The

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high-producing cow is energy deficient until the time of peak dry-matter intake. After
about week 14 the cow is in an excess-energy stage. The figure below shows the relation
of milk production, dry matter intake and body weight in temperate regions.

Initial yield
this is the average daily yield for the first three to four weeks of lactation. Total lactation
yield is made or marred in these weeks. For well-fed cows, the total lactation yield is
approximately 200 times the starting yield. To increase lactation yield the whole curve
must be pushed upwards and the rate of decline should be gradual. A good starting
yield is only possible if the cow is in good body condition at calving, if the diet after
calving is adequate in energy and protein and if milk is removed regularly
Peak yield
The timing and level depend on the cow’s genetic potential, her calving condition and
feeding level. Condition at calving is probably the most important factor. At the start of
lactation the impulse to produce is very strong, so the cow draw on her body fat to
produce as much milk as possible. If body reserves are low, peak yield and lactation
yield will also be low. Extra protein is needed in the diet at this time to promote the use
of body fat.
Lactation length (persistency)
In well-managed cows this is 270-300 days. A gradual loss of 10% of production per
month is normal, and yields should not drop below half peak yield before the eight
month of lactation. About 40% of lactation yield is produced in the first 90 days, 50% in
the first 110 days and 75% in the first six months. The response of milk yield to feeding
decreases as the lactation progresses.

Effect of feeding on milk yield

Curves of widely changing pattern are usually due to large dietary changes. Because
milk production in much of the tropics seasonal, milk production and body condition
may be increased at any stage of lactation by a sudden improvement in feed supply
after a period of shortage.

Energy and total feed inadequacy

The likely lactation curve shape when energy resources are insufficient is shown in
figure.
The cow may be in good condition at calving and rise to a peak of production followed
by a sudden collapse when the cow depletes body reserves (around three months).
Conception rate may also be low and solids-not-fat percentage in the milk will reflect
low energy status. Curves of this shape can also be caused by non nutritional factors.
Cows that are well-conditioned at calving, that fail to lose weight but follow this pattern
may have been induced to dry off early. They may have problems with milk letdown
due to temperament, they may be insufficiently stimulated before milking or the milk
may not be full removed. Often there is a combination of poor milking technique and
inadequate energy feeding, producing a low curve with a sudden early drop-off. Low
genetic potential for milking also produces this type of curve.

23
Protein inadequacy

A lactation curve resulting from prolonged protein shortage is shown in the next figure.
The peak yield is absent or poorly defined, and body condition changes little in early
lactation but increases in late lactation. The overall curve height is low. This typical flat
curve can be raised sharply at any stage of lactation by feeding extra protein.

Seasonal patterns
New forage growth at the start of the wet season will rapidly increase milk yield at any
stage of lactation, so that peak yield may even occur as late as six months after calving.
For tropical farms with seasonal rainfall, calving time has a major effect on lactation
milk production. Where the seasonal nature of feeding cannot be altered, it is best to
calve cows at least one month after the start of the wet season. Cows will calve in better
condition, calf weight an early survival is better, early milk yield is improved and the
cow will have a good chance of conceiving again.

Reference:

 P.Venticates & Rao. 2008. Principles of Dairy Management.

Sample Questions
1. Which exotic dairy cattle breed is most widely used in Ethiopia?
2. List at least five local five exotic dairy cattle breeds.

CHAPTER THEE:
BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION
UNIT DESCRIPTION

This chapter deals with sources and systems of cattle fattening, breeds and principles of beef
fattening in Ethiopia. To deliver these contents, active learning methods such as brainstorming,
interactive lecture, and independent learning will be used. And also to assess students’
achievement, continuous assessments such as quiz, test, class activities, assignments and others
will be used.

24
Brainstorming

Q. What do you know about beef cattle fattening?

3.1. SOURCES AND SYSTEMS OF CATTLE FATTENING IN ETHIOPIA

In mixed crop /livestock farming systems, cattle provide most of the drought power for small
holder crop production and are an essential component of national drive towards food self
sufficiency. Meat is not usually produced as a commodity per se. Most young stock are remained
in the herd and cash income is generated from the sale of older oxen and cows which are no
longer required for production.

Q. Explain systems of cattle fattening in Ethiopia.

5.2. BREEDS OF BEEF CATTLE

A breed of livestock may be defined as a group of animals with in a species of that share a
common ancestors and that as a result of breeding and selection possess common inherited
characteristics that distinguish them from another group.

The major breeds of beef cattle are Hereford, Aberdeen Angus, Charolais, Brahman, and
Simmental. Other Important breeds include Devon (originally England but now found in
Australia), Galloway and highland (in Scot land), Limousine, Normandy, Main-Anjou (from
France), and Gelbvih from Germany, Chianina in Italy.

Beef cattle breeds

Africander
Also Known As: Afrikaner (Afrik.)

The Africander is a native South African breed. It

belongs to the Sanga type and is used primarily for
25
meat production. The breed is usually red with long lateral horns. Sanga type cattle, in
huge herds, were owned by the Hottentots when the Dutch established the Cape Colony
in 1652. The animals were obtained by the colonists who improved them for use as draft
animals. It was Africander oxen that drew the wagons which carried Boer farmers and
families on the Great Trek of 1835 - 36 from the Cape of Good Hope to the Orange Free
State, Natal and the Transvaal to escape British rule. the word trek is originally
Afrikaans, meaning draft.

The Africander is South Africa's most popular

native breed, comprising 30% of the cattle
population. Africander cattle exhibit good resistance
to heat, a high level of tick resistance, quiet
temperament and a satisfactorily high level of
fertility under harsh conditions. Mature cows weigh
approximately 525 to 600 kg (1150 - 1350 pounds)
and bulls weigh 750 to 1000 kg (1650 - 2200
pounds).

The Africander was used with Shorthorn in

developing the Bonsmara breed and with Holstein
in creating the Drakensberger.

Africander in Australia

The small numbers of Africander cattle in Australia have developed from a relatively
small base importation from America. As it belongs
to the Bos indicus group, the Africander is mainly
found in the hot-tropical-humid and sub-tropical-
dry areas of Australia.

The Africander tends to late maturity and yields a

carcass with comparatively low fat cover. Through
the use of bulls and frozen semen, the Africander
has been used in up-grading indigenous cattle in
tropical countries as it passes on fertility, docility
and excellent weight gains to progeny.

Angus
In the northeastern part of Scotland lie the
four counties of Aberdeen, Banff,
Kincardine, and Angus. These counties
touch the North Sea and all extend inland
and have some high or mountainous
country. They have been favored through

26
the ages with a temperate climate and good crops, although the topography of the country
is rough. Pastures do well in the area because of well-distributed rainfall. Plenty of grass,
plus a nearly ideal temperature for cattle production, has made the area very suitable for
some of the greatest improvement that has been made in our purebred breeds of cattle.
The county of Angus was early noted for its production of potatoes, grain crops, and feed.
This shire contains a fine expanse of highly cultivated land known as Strathmore, which
is one of the very fine valleys in that part of Scotland and which has become famous in
the history of the Aberdeen-Angus breed. The county of Aberdeen is the most productive
agricultural region in Scotland and depends largely upon crops and livestock for income.
The fishing industry, however, is stressed along the coastline. The tiny counties of Banff
and Kincardine have long been known as livestock centers.

    Northern Scotland, although in a more northern latitude than the United States, has a
more uniform temperature throughout the year. The Gulf Steam tempers the climate in
the winter, and the summers remain cooler than weather commonly experienced in the
United States.

Origin
    There are three distinct and well-defined breeds of polled cattle in the United
Kingdom. These breeds are the Aberdeen-Angus, the Galloway, and the red polled
Norfolk and Suffolk breed that is found in England. Polled cattle apparently existed in
Scotland before recorded history because the likeness of such cattle is found in
prehistoric carvings of Aberdeen and Angus. Historians state that there were hornless
cattle in Siberia centuries earlier. A hornless race of cattle was depicted in Egypt by
sculptors and painters of that ancient civilization. Some historians feel that the Aberdeen-
Angus breed and the other Scottish breeds sprang from the aboriginal cattle of the
country and that the breeds as we find them today are indigenous to the districts in which
they are still found.

Early Scottish Cattle. Although little is known about the early origin of the cattle that
later became known as the Aberdeen-Angus breed, it is thought that the improvement of
the original stock found in the area began in the last half of the 18th century. The cattle
found in northern Scotland were not of uniform color, and many of the cattle of the early
days had varied color markings or broken color patterns. Many of the cattle were polled,
but some few had horns. The characteristics we commonly call polled was often referred
to in the old Scottish writings by the terms of "humble," "doddies," "humlies," or
"homyl."

Foundation of the Breed

27
Two strains were used in the formation of what later became known s the Aberdeen-
Angus breed of cattle. In the county of Angus, cattle had existed for some time that were
known as Angus doddies. MacDonald and Sinclair quote the Rev. James Playfair as
having written in 1797, "There are 1129 horned cattle of all ages and sexes in the parish. I
have no other name to them; but many of them are dodded, wanting horns." This seems
to be the first authentic reference to polled cattle in the county of Angus, apart from
ancient sculptures. In the area of Aberdeenshire, other polled cattle were found and were
called Buchan "humlies," Buchan being the principal agricultural district in
Aberdeenshire. These cattle were apparently early valued as work oxen, as were most of
the other strains of cattle that later acquired various breed names. MacDonald and
Sinclair believed that polled cattle were found in Aberdeen in the 16th century, and stated:
2

The presence of polled cattle in Aberdeenshire 400 years ago is proved beyond the shadow of a
doubt, and it may generally be taken for granted that they were co-existent in various parts of
northeastern Scotland, their purity being contingent on the degree of care exercised in breeding.

Improvement in Scottish Agriculture. Apparently little attention was given to the

breeding of cattle before the middle of the 18th century, but in the last half of that century,
great progress was made in Scottish agriculture. It is not strange that, as farming practices
were improved, men likewise sought to improve the livestock on their farms. It was only
natural that breeders, in improving their cattle, would but cattle of similar kinds from
adjacent areas, and as a result, the cattle of the Angus doddie strain and the Buchan
humlie strain were crossed. Crossing and recrossing these strains of cattle eventually led
to a distinct breed that was not far different from either type, since the two strains were
originally of rather similar type and color pattern.

The Early Herds. By the beginning of the 19th century, the polled cattle of the Buchan
district had attained considerable favor as
market cattle for the production of carcass beef.
Among the polled herds of Aberdeenshire that
were famous for such production in the early
1800s were those of Messrs. Williamson of St.
John’s Wells and Robert Walker of Wester
Fintray. The Williamson herd later supplied the
herd of Tillyfour and, through it, the
Ballindalloch herd with some of their humlies.
In Angus, the herds of William Fullerton, Lord
Panmure, Lord Southesk, and Alexander Bowie
contributed many of the Angus doddies that
later became prominent in the breed. Robert Walker of Portlethen seems to have been the
principal cattle breeder in Kincardineshire.

The Contribution of Hugh Watson. If any one person can be singled out as the founder
of a breed of livestock, Hugh Watson of Keillor, who lived in the vale of Strathmore in
Angus, is worthy of that distinction. If not the first real improver of Aberdeen-Angus
cattle, he was certainly the most systematic and successful. Both his father and

28
grandfather had been buyers and breeders of the Angus doddies. The family is known to
have owned cattle as early as 1735. Hugh Watson was born in 1789 and, in 1808, at the
time he was 19 years of age, he became a tenant at Keillor.

    When Hugh Watson started his farming activities at Keillor, he received from his
father’s herd six of the best and blackest cows, as well as a bull. That same summer, he
visited some of the leading Scottish cattle markets and purchased the 10 best heifers and
the best bull that he could find that showed characteristics of the Angus cattle that he was
striving to breed. The females were of various colors, but the bull was black; Watson
decided that the color of his herd should be black and he started selecting in that
direction.

    Mr. Watson’s favorite bull was Old Jock 126 (1), 3 who was awarded the number "1"
in the Herd Book at the time it was founded. The bull was bred by Watson in 1842 and
was sired by Grey-Breasted Jock 113 (2). The bull apparently was used very heavily in
the herd from 1843 until 1852 and was awarded the sweepstakes for bulls at the Highland
Society Show at Perth in 1852, when he was 11 years old.

    A very famous cow also made considerable history in the herd at Keillor. This cow
was Old Granny 125 (1), who was calved in 1824 and was killed by lightning when past
35 years of age. She is reported to have produced a total of 29 calves, 11 of which were
registered in the Herd Book. A very large percentage of our living Aberdeen-Angus cattle
trace to either Old Granny or Old Jock, or both of these very famous foundation animals,
and most would trace many times if their pedigrees were extended to the foundation of
the breed.

    Hugh Watson practiced the fitting and showing of his cattle more than was common by
other breeders of his day. He made his first exhibition at the Highland Agricultural
Society Show at Perth in 1829. During his long show career, he is said to have won over
500 prizes with his cattle and did a great deal to increase the popularity of the black
polled cattle over the British Isles.

Other Early Contributors. Lord Panmure established a herd of polled cattle in 1835,
and not only operated a private herd but also encouraged his tenants to breed good
doddies. William Fullerton, who was born in 1810, began to breed cattle in 1833. His
most important early purchase was that of another Aberdeen cow named Black Meg.
Black Meg 43 (766) is sometimes referred to as the founder of the breed, since more
cattle trace to her than to any other female used in the origin of the breed. 4 She is the
only cow to surpass Old Granny in this respect. Robert Walker of Porlethen founded his
herd in 1818 and continued to breed cattle successfully until his death in 1874.

Shorthorn Breed Threatens the Aberdeen-Angus. In 1810, the Colling brothers of

England sold the famous Shorthorn bull Comet at $5,000. The publicity resulting from
this sale naturally spread throughout Scotland, and many breeders looked with favor upon
the use of Shorthorn blood in improving the native cattle. Subsequently good herds of
Shorthorn cattle were established in Scotland, and the cattle were used in the

29
improvement of native stock. The use of the Shorthorn cattle on the black native cows
was a very common practice of the period for the raising of commercial stock. This
practice of crossbreeding threatened the Aberdeen-Angus breed with extinction.

    It is often suggested that some Shorthorn blood found its way into the Aberdeen-Angus
breed prior to the time the Herd Book was closed. Alexander Keith, secretary of the
Aberdeen-Angus Cattle Society from 1944 to 1955, takes exception to this opinion by
writing:

The statement has been frequently made that

shorthorn blood was introduced into the
Aberdeen-Angus breed at an early stage of its
existence. There is no foundation whatever for
such a statement. The tribes from which the
Aberdeen-Angus breed were drawn were
supplying England with beef cattle for
generations before what became the beef
Shorthorn was taken across the Border into
Scotland and improved into what is known as
the Scotch Shorthorn. Of the Aberdeen-Angus
pioneers, Hugh Watson had a certain number
of Shorthorn cattle, but it is quite evident from
his won remarks and his insistence upon the
blackness of his Aberdeen-Angus cattle that he would never have permitted mixing them. And
McCombie: when one or two farmers introduced the Teeswater or Shorthorn breed into his
neighborhood he drove them out by completely dominating the local shows with his Aberdeen-
Angus black polls. The feeling of the early improvers of Aberdeen-Angus cattle may be gathered
from the fact that my own grandfather, who was one of McCombie’s friends and associates, would
not allow anything but a black beast on his farm and in his old age when I was a young boy he
would insist that if I ever became a farmer and wished to be a successful feeder of cattle I must
stick rigidly to the Blacks.

Improvement and Expansion of the Aberdeen-Angus

The Great Preserver. William McCombie of Tillyfour is regarded as the preserver and
great improver of the Aberdeen-Angus breed. Fullerton and others had started the
blending of the two types of cattle, which later became known as the Aberdeen-Angus,
but this success was enlarged at Tillyfour. The master of Tillyfour was born in 1805 and
died in the spring of 1880. Like his father before him, he had been a successful dealer in
cattle before he began his operations in 1829 as a tenant farmer. Mr. McCombie is
distinguished in the history of the Aberdeen-Angus breed because of his great foresight in
planning matings, his careful management, his unparalleled success in the show ring, and
in publicizing his famous cattle. Probably his crowning success in the show ring was at
the great International Exposition held at Paris in 1878. There he won the first prize of
$500 as an exhibitor of cattle from a foreign country and also the grand prize of $500 for
the best group of beef-producing animals bred by any exhibitor.

30
Not only did Mr. McCombie show in breeding classes but he also exhibited in steer
classes at the market shows. Probably the most famous steer that her produced was the
famous show animal Black prince, who won at the Birmingham and Smithfield Shows in
1867 when he was four years of age. From the latter show, he was taken to Windsor
Castle for the personal inspection of Queen Victoria, and later her Majesty accepted some
Christmas beef from the carcass of the steer.

The English Crown has long been interested in livestock improvement, and Queen
Victoria paid a personal visit to Tillyfour a year or two after the visit of the famous Black
prince to the castle. Such a tribute to an outstanding breeder naturally attracted great
attention to the already famous herd. McCombie had the further distinction of being the
first tenant farmer in Scotland to be elected to the House of Commons.

    According to the historian Sanders:

    Aberdeen-Angus history may fairly be divided into two periods; the first, before William
McCombie’s time; the second, since. That is as good as any other way of saying that the Master of
Tillyfour-recognized cattle king of his day and generation in Aberdeen-Angusshire and of all
Scotland-stands a very colossus upon any canvas which accurately portrays the original arrival of
black cattle as a factor of world importance in the field of prime beef production.   

William McCombie always had utility in mind in producing his cattle, and his ideal beast
seems to have been one with size, symmetry, and balance, yet with strength of
constitution and disposition to accumulate flesh.

Important Developments at Tillyfour. Although his original stock was gathered from
many sources and his purchases were many, Mr. McCombie’s outstanding acquisition
was probably the good yearling heifer Queen Mother 41 (348) at the Ardestie Sale.

    Mr. McCombie purchased the bull Hanton 80 (228), calved in 1853, from the breeder
Alexander Bowie. This bull was a grandson of Old Jock 126 (1) and was said to have
weighed a ton at maturity. Despite the fact that he had scurs, he was a great show bull and
was exhibited widely by Me. McCombie. The bull’s success, however, was more
pronounced in the breeding pen, and he probably made his greatest contribution to the
breed through his double grandson, Black Prince of Tillyfour 77 (366), calved in 1860.
Few, if any, cattle of the breed are living today that do not trace at least a dozen times to
Black Prince of Tillyfour. It is difficult to say how much contribution Mr. McCombie
made to the Aberdeen-Angus breed through his successes in the show ring, but he
outstripped all of his competition in England, Scotland, and France. Consequently, the
name of Aberdeen-Angus became known on an international basis. It was on the farm of
William McCombie that the Aberdeen-Angus breed really took shape, because prior to
his time, people spoke of the cattle as Aberdeen and Angus. In his herd was found the
justification for leaving out the "and" and replacing it with the hyphen that has become
familiar. At Tillyfour, the master breeder molded the two original strains into one
improved breed superior to either of its components. There is no question but that the
"preserver" of the Angus breed left the breed far better than he found it.

31
The Ballindalloch Herd. Another very famous Aberdeen-Angus herd in Scotland was
that of Ballindalloch, but the origin of this herd is lost in the mists of antiquity. It was
probably first founded by Sir John MacPherson Grant, but it was not until the time the
farm came into the hands of Sir George, a son, that systematic breeding was started. Sir
George drew heavily on Tillyfour cattle in establishing his herd.

    It was very fortunate for the breed that the Ballindalloch herd was kept in the family
for over three generations. The main herd was dispersed on August 8, 1934, but it had
already left a great imprint on the Aberdeen-Angus world. Not only was the Ballindalloch
herd the outstanding herd in Scotland but it mush also be given credit for having
furnished a great deal of very valuable foundation stock to the herds of the United States
and other foreign countries.

The First Angus In America. When George Grant transported four Angus bulls from
Scotland to the middle of the Kansas prairie in 1873, they were part of the Scotsman's
dream to found a colony of wealthy, stock-raising Britishers. Grant died five years later,
and many of the settlers at his Victoria, Kansas colony later returned to their homeland.
However, these four Angus bulls, probably from the herd of George Brown of
Westertown, Fochabers, Scotland, made a lasting impression on the U.S. cattle industry.

When two of the George Grant bulls were exhibited in the fall of 1873 at the Kansas City
(Missouri) Livestock Exposition, some considered them "freaks" because of their polled
(naturally hornless) heads and solid black color (Shorthorns were then the dominant
breed.) Grant, a forward thinker, crossed the bulls with native Texas longhorn cows,
producing a large number of hornless black calves that survived well on the winter range.
The Angus crosses wintered better and weighed more the next spring, the first
demonstration of the breed's value in their new homeland.

Early Importers and Breeders. The first great herds of Angus beef cattle in America
were built up by purchasing stock directly from Scotland. Twelve hundred cattle alone
were imported, mostly to the Midwest, in a period of explosive growth between 1878 and
1883 . Over the next quarter of a century these early owners, in turn, helped start other
herds by breeding, showing, and selling their registered stock.

Barzona
The development of the Barzona began in 1942 when F.N. Bard and his wife, at their
ranch in the intermountain desert area of Yavapai County, Arizona. They hoped to
develop a breed that would be adapted to
their area which was rugged and rocky,
with extreme temperatures, sparse
rainfall, and scattered feed. Said Bard, "I
want to find a breed-or make a breed of

32
cattle, that with the same number, on the same range, will produce more pounds of
salable beef."

In 1946, E.S. "Jack" Humphrey joined with the Bard's and took over the management of
the breeding operations. He combined the genetics of the Africander, Hereford, Shorthorn
and Angus breeds. Africander bulls were bred to Hereford cows. Walter Kruse in
Barzona Cattle estimates that the Barzona carries all four breeds in about equal
proportions.

Production records were maintained a rigid selection was carried out for fertility, rate of
gain and mothering ability. Those animals with the most desirable records were used
back in the breeding program. The best cattle in the developing breed were moved to
Bard Kirkland Ranch in 1948, and in 1959 the entire operation was moved to that ranch.
The ranch was sold and the herd dispersed in 1974. Mrs. F.N. Bard, in correspondence
with the author of Modern Breeds of Livestock, indicates that most of the herd was sold to
breeders in Arizona, but some animals were also sold to the north and southeast.

General Characteristics

Modern Barzona are a medium size beef animal. Actual mature size varies somewhat
with the environment. It is distinguishable by its longish head and may be either horned
or polled. Barzona are generally medium red, but color may vary from dark to light red,
with occasional white on the underline or switch.

Hardiness

The infusion of Africander blood into the Barzona gene pool has much to do with the
breed's exceptional hardiness. A native African breed, the Africander dates back to the
15th century. It is known for feet and legs built to handle rough country, an ability to
utilize a high level of browse, as well as heat tolerance, insect and disease resistance. It is
said that Barzona calves are hardy and exhibit outstanding vigor at birth. In addition,
information from the registry states that
pinkeye and cancer eye are almost
nonexistent in the breed due to their
dark pigmentation and deeper eye set.

Barzona cattle were developed for

rigorous range conditions and have
performed very well under such
environments. The performance in the
feedlot and on slaughter tests have also
been satisfactory. Barzona cows are
considered good mothers and the bulls
are regarded as aggressive in their breeding performance.

33
Selection has been made for hardiness traits that include good wearing feet and legs, and
the ability to walk with ease, graze sparse ranges and survive under arid conditions.

Beefalo
Beefalo is a species cross between
Bison (buffalo) and domestic cattle of
any breed. The purpose of the species
cross was to blend the
outstanding qualities of the Bison with
outstanding qualities of the bovine
breeds of the world.

The bison X cattle cross has been studied

by the Canadians. The ½ bison X ½ cow
cross was found too difficult to handle in
feedlots and the carcass quality was not
as good as beef so further research was discontinued.

D.C. Basolo of Tracy California in 1966 reported the first fertile beefalo bull. The hybrid
bison X cow offspring are sterile like the donkey X horse cross which results in the mule.
These hybrids will produce an offspring one in 10,000 breedings so it is possible to get a
birth from the hybrid. However, when a mule has an offspring it is either a donkey or a
horse never a mule. So if this bison X cow breeding did occur the resulting offspring
would either be a bison or a cow. It appears any combination of genetics of the two
species die in utero. This concept of a 3/8 bison 5/8 cow was a hoax by Basolo and he
reportedly left the country with a considerable amount of money from the sale of the
semen and bull from this enterprise. Many honest people still raise and market Beefalo
cattle and meat to various markets. This is an example of a market easy to sell to the
producer and public which was a hoax but still persists due to public appeal for such a
natural product. The cattle are good gaining cattle and appear to have considerable
Charolais genetics in their background, again the
people selling these animals are honest and do
believe they have bison genetics in their cattle.
Science does not support the basic belief that
this is a breed with 3/8 bison genetics.

Beefmaster
Beefmaster cattle have been developed by the
Lasater Ranch then headquartered in Texas. The
breeding program leading to their establishment
was started by Ed C. Lasater in 1908, when he
purchased Brahman bulls to use on his

34
commercial herd of Hereford and Shorthorn cattle. The first of these bulls that he used
were principally of Gir breeding, although some of the Nelore breed were also used. In
1925 he introduced Guzerat blood into the herd.

 Mr. Lasater also developed a registered Hereford herd in which the cattle had red circles
around each eye. In both his Brahman and Hereford breeding, milk production was
stressed. Following his death in 1930, the breeding operations came under the direction
of his son, Tom Lasater, who began to combine the breeding of the Brahman and
Hereford cattle and also used some registered Shorthorn bulls. After making crosses of
Brahman-Hereford and Brahman-Shorthorn, he felt a superior animal had been produced
and called the cattle "Beefmaster." The exact pedigree of the foundation cattle was not
known. The breeding operations were carried on in multiple-sire herds nd rigid culling
was practiced. The Lasater Ranch estimates that modern Beefmaster have slightly less
than one-half Brahman blood and slightly more than one-fourth of Hereford and
Shorthorn breeding.

 The cattle were handled under range conditions that were often adverse, and a culling
program was started based on disposition, fertility, weight, conformation, hardiness and
milk production. Stress was placed on the production of beef. No selection has been made
to characteristics that do not affect the carcass, such as horns, hide or color.

 The Lasater Ranch breeding program provided an interesting example of the use of mass
selection in reaching a goal. Critics should recall that other breeds have been established
in a similar way - a blending of breeding followed by selection for economically
important points Uniformity in many breeds has been achieved only after many
generations of selection.

 The original concepts of Tom Lasater in developing Beefmaster cattle have continued.
Selection continues for those points which were originally used by Mr. Lasater and are
now known as the Six Essentials - Weight, Conformation, Milking Ability, Fertility,
Hardiness and Disposition. Considerable progress has been made in selecting cattle that
give very satisfactory levels of production under the practical and often severe range
conditions. Satisfaction by ranchers and creditable performance in feedlots indicate the
value of stressing the important utilitarian points in developing breeding herds.

35
  Brahman
The Brahman breed originated from
Bos indicus cattle originally
brought from India. Through
centuries of exposure to inadequate food
supplies, insect pests, parasites,
diseases and the weather extremes of
tropical India, the native cattle
developed some remarkable
adaptations for survival. These are the
"sacred cattle of India," and many of the
Hindu faith will not eat meat from them,
will not permit them to be
slaughtered, and will not sell them. These facts, in conjunction with he quarantine
regulations of the United States, have made it difficult to import cattle from India into
this country.

All the Bos indicus cattle are characterized by a large hump over the top of the shoulder
and neck. Spinal processes below the hump are extended, and there is considerable
muscular tissue covering the processes. The other characteristics of these cattle are their
horns, which usually curve upward and are sometimes tilted to the rear, their ears, which
are generally large and pendulous, and the throatlatch and dewlap, which have a large
amount of excess skin. They also have more highly developed sweat glands than
European cattle (Bos taurus) and so can perspire more freely. Bos indicus cattle produce
an oily secretion from the sebaceous glands which has a distinctive odor and is reported
to assist in repelling insects.

Origin of the Breed

Some 30 well defined breeds of cattle

have been listed in India. Three
principal strains or varieties were
brought to the United States and used in
the development of the Brahman breed
are the Guzerat, the Nellore, and Gir. In
addition, the Krishna Valley strain was
introduced and used to a lesser extent.
The general similarity of the Guzert strain to the cattle selected and developed in this
country would indicate that cattlemen working with the breed have generally preferred
this type.

Introduction into the United States

36
There are conflicting reports as to the
exact manner of the introduction of Indian
cattle to the United States, but the
following account was give to Dr. Hilton
Briggs, author of Modern Breeds of
Livestock, by the American
Brahman Breeders' Association to help
summarize the importations:

The first Indian cattle, of which there is any record, were imported in 1849 by Dr. James Bolton
Davis of Fairfield County, South Carolina, who, it is believed, became acquainted with Bos
indicus cattle while serving as agricultural advisor to the Sultan of Turkey. Although the
descendants of these cattle were spread widely throughout the South, their complete identity was
lost during the Civil War. Two Indian bulls were given to Richard Barrow, a cotton and sugar
planter of St. Francisville, LA., in 1854, by the British Crown in recognition of Mr. Barrow's
services of teaching cotton and sugar cane culture to a British representative who was to take these
arts to India. The offspring of these cattle became known as "Barrow Grade" cattle, becoming
widely known through the Gulf Coast region. The success of these two animals led to the
importation of two more Indian bulls in 1885 by J.M. Frost and Albert Montgomery of Houston,
Texas. By mating these two bulls to the offspring of the Barrow bulls, the first attempt to
concentrate the blood of Bos indicus cattle in the United States was undertaken.

A few animals were imported by circus organizations from time to time, some of the more
desirable ones being purchased by farmers and ranchers. One of the more famous of such
purchases was a red bull named "prince," acquired by A.M. McFaddin, of Victoria, Texas, in
1904, from the Haggenbach Animal Show. Another was the sale of about twelve head of Indian
cattle by Haggenbach, these finally being acquired by Dr. William States Jacobs of Houston.

In 1905 and 1906, the Pierce Ranch of Pierce, Texas, assisted by Thomas M. O'Connor of
Victoria, Texas, imported thirty bulls and three females of several Indian types. These were
personally selected by Able P. Borden, manager of the Pierce Ranch.

In 1923-24, 90 bulls of the Guzerat, Gir and Nellore types were imported from Brazil. In 1925, a
second importation from Brazil, including 120 bulls and 18 females, reached this country. Both
groups were shipped to Mexico and driven overland to the United States.

Eighteen Brazilian bulls were brought to Texas by way of Mexico in 1946.

Breed Development

It is said that during the period from 1910 to 1920, many cattle in the south-western part
of Texas and the coastal country along the Gulf of Mexico showed considerable evidence
of Bos indicus breeding. Naturally, many of the bulls that were used were the result of
crosses with other breeds. Some breeders attempted to keep the stock pure, but they were
in the minority.

Since there are records of less than 300 imported Brahmans, most of which were bulls, it
must be assumed that other breeds supplied the foundation animals for the breed. The
bulls were used on cows of the European breeds and on the descendants of these crosses.
By the fifth generation (31/32) the offspring carried not only a preponderance of Bos
37
indicus breeding but selection pressure had permitted the development of an animal
generally regarded as superior to the original imports for beef production.

Physical Characteristics

 Size. Brahmans are intermediate in size among beef breeds found in the United
States. Bulls will generally weigh from 1600 to 2200 pounds and cows from 1000
to 1400 pounds in average condition. The calves are small at birth, weighing 60 to
65 pounds, but grow very rapidly and wean at weights comparable to other
breeds.
 Disposition. The disposition of Brahman cattle is often questioned. Brahmans are
intelligent, inquisitive and shy. They are unusually thrifty, hardy and adaptable to
a wide range of feed and climate. However, these characteristics also suggest
careful, kind handling methods. Brahmans like affection and can become very
docile. They quickly respond to handling they receive, good or bad. Well bred,
wisely selected and properly treated Brahmans are as easily handled as other
breeds.
 Colors. Brahmans very in color from very light grey or red to almost black. A
majority of the breed are light to medium grey. Mature bulls are normally darker
than cows and usually have dark areas on the neck, shoulders and lower thighs.
 Heat Tolerance. Studies at the University of Missouri found that Brahman and
European cattle thrive equally well at temperatures down to 8° F. They found that
European cattle begin to suffer adversely as the air temperature goes above 70° F,
showing an increase in body temperature and a decline in appetite and milk
production as 75° F, is passed. Brahmans, on the other hand, show little effect
from temperatures up to and beyond 105° F. Although heat tolerance is only one
factor in environmental adaptation of cattle, it is considered the most important.
These are some of the other factors that allow Brahmans to adapt to adverse
conditions.
1. Hair Coat. The short, thick, glossy hair coat of the Brahman
reflects much of the sun's rays, adding to its ability to graze in the
glaring midday sun without suffering.
2. Skin Pigmentation. The black pigmented skin of Brahmans keeps
out the intense rays of the sun, which in excessive amounts will
damage deeper tissue layers.
3. Loose Skin. An abundance of loose skin on the Brahman is
thought to contribute to its ability to withstand warm weather by
increasing the body
surface area
exposed to cooling.
4. Sweating Ability.
Brahmans have

38
 sweat glands and the ability to sweat freely through the pores of
the skin, which contributes materially to their heat tolerance.
5. Internal Body Heat. One factor contributing to the great heat
tolerance of Brahmans, discovered in the Missouri studies, is that
they produce less internal body heat in warm weather than do
cattle of European breeds. Waste heat is produced from feed at the
expense of growth and milk production.

Brahman cattle have been found to fill a unique place in American cattle production. The
Brahman and cattle carrying percentages of Brahman breeding have been found
extremely useful in the southern coastal area of the United States, where they have
demonstrated their ability to withstand hot and humid weather and to resist insects. In
more recent years Brahman cattle have spread considerably from their initial locations
and are now found widely through the United States. They are also good mothers and
produce a very satisfactory milk flow under conditions that are adverse for best
performance of the European breeds. Cancer eye is almost unknown in the breed. They
have established a considerable reputation for a high dressing percentage, and their
carcasses have a very good "cutout" value with minimum of outside fat.

Probably the greatest tribute to the Brahman breed and its breeders is the rapid growth of
the breed outside of the United States. They have constituted a large proportion of our
exports of breeding cattle outside continental North America.

Brahman Breed Associations and Registries

Brangus
Background Information

The Brangus breed was developed to

utilize the superior traits of Angus and
Brahman cattle. Their genetics are
stabilized at 3/8 Brahman and 5/8 Angus.

 The combination results in a breed which

unites the traits of two highly
successful parent breeds. The
Brahman, through rigorous natural
selection, developed disease
resistance, overall hardiness and
outstanding maternal instincts. Angus
are known for their superior carcass qualities. They are also extremely functional females
which excel in both fertility and milking ability.

39
How It All Began

A review of the development of the Brangus breed would take us back beyond the
founding of the American Brangus Breeders Association in 1949; however, registered
Brangus descend from the foundation animals recorded that year or registered Brahman
and Angus cattle enrolled since then. Much of the early work in crossing Brahman and
Angus cattle was done at the USDA Experiment Station in Jeanerette, Louisiana.
According to the USDA 1935 Yearbook in Agriculture the research with these crossed
started about 1932

During the same period, Clear Creek Ranch of Welch, Oklahoma and Grenada,
Mississippi, Raymond Pope of Vinita, Oklahoma, the Essar Ranch of San Antonio,
Texas, and a few individual breeders in other parts of the United States and Canada were
also carrying on private experimental breeding programs. They were looking for a
desirable beef-type animal that would retain the Brahman's natural ability to thrive under
adverse conditions in combination with the excellent qualities for which the Angus are
noted.

The early breeders from 16 states and Canada met in Vinita, Oklahoma, on July 2, 1949,
and organized the American Brangus Breeders Association, later renamed the
International Brangus Breeders
Association (IBBA), with
headquarters in Kansas City,
Missouri, and eventually San
Antonio, Texas, where the
permanent headquarters has been located
since January, 1973. There are now
members in nearly every state,
Canada, Mexico, Australia, Central
America, Argentina, and South
Rhodesia in Africa.

Registered Brangus must be 3/8 Brahman and 5/8 Angus, solid black and polled. Both
sire and dam must be recorded with the International Brangus Breeders Association.
Foundation Angus and Brahman cattle must be registered in their respective breed
association prior to being enrolled with the IBBA. Intermediate crosses necessary to
reach the 3/8 - 5/8 percentage are certified by the IBBA.

In recent years, the major portion of the Brangus registered are from Brangus parents, but
an increasing number of foundation Brahman and Angus are being enrolled as the breed
achieves greater recognition.

Interest in developing breeds of cattle carrying some percentage of Brahman breeding for
the general improvement of the commercial cattle of the United States speaks well for the
apparent advantages that Bos indicus cattle have in areas of high heat and humidity.

40
Research at Louisiana has indicated that Brangus cows increased their weights during the
summer months while Angus cows lost weight, indicating that they were more adapted to
coastal climates. Calves from Brangus were heavier at birth and weaning and for total
pounds produced per cow. The Angus had an advantage in conception rate and calved
earlier, and the calves were more vigorous at birth and survived better to weaning.

The breed have proven resistant to heat and high humidity. Under conditions of cool and
cold climate they seem to produce enough hair for adequate protection. The cows are
good mothers and the calves are usually of medium size at birth. The cattle respond well
to conditions of abundant feed but have exhibited hardiness under conditions of stress.

Charolais
The Charolais originated in west- central to
southeastern France, in the old French
provinces of Charolles and
neighboring Nievre. The exact origins
of the Charolais are lost to us but it must
have been developed from cattle found in
the area. Legend has it that white cattle
were first noticed in the region as early as
878 A.D., and by the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries were well and
favorably known in French markets,
especially at Lyon and Villefranche. Selection developed a white breed of cattle which,
like other cattle of continental Europe, were used for draft, milk and meat.

The cattle were generally confined to the area in which they originated until the French
Revolution. But, in 1773, Claude Mathieu, a farmer and cattle producers from the
Charolles region, moved to the Nievre province, taking his herd of white cattle with him.
The breed flourished there, so much so that the improved cattle were known more widely
as Nivemais cattle for a time than by their original name of Charolais.

One of the early influential herds in the region was started in 1840 by the Count Charles
de Bouille. His selective breeding led him to set up a herd book in 1864 for the breed at
Villars near the village of Magny-Cours. Breeders in the Charolles vicinity established a
herd book in 1882. The two societies merged in 1919, with the older organization holding
the records of the later group into their headquarters at Nevers, the capital of the Nievre
province.

41
The French have long selected their cattle for size and muscling. They selected for bone
and power to a greater extent than was true in the British Isles. The French breeders
stressed rapid growth in addition to cattle that would ultimately reach a large size. These
were men that wanted cattle that not only grew out well but could be depended upon for
draft power. Little attention was paid to refinement, but great stress was laid on utility.

The Charolais of France are white in color, horned, long bodied, and good milkers with a
general coarseness to the animal not being uncommon.

Introduction to the United States

Soon after the First World War, a young Mexican industrialist of French name and
ancestry, Jean Pugibet, brought some of the French cattle to his ranch in Mexico. He had
seen the Charolais cattle during World War I while serving as a French army volunteer
and was impressed by their appearance and productivity. He arranged for a shipment of
two bulls and 10 heifers to Mexico in 1930. Two later shipments in 1931 and 1937
increased the total number to 37 - eight bulls and 29 females. Not long after the last
shipment, Pugibet died and no further imports were attempted.

The first Charolais to come into the United States from Mexico are believed to be two
bulls, Neptune and Ortolan, which were purchased from Pugibet by the King Ranch in
Texas and imported in June 1936. Later imports of bulls were owned by some of the
early "pioneers" in the industry: Harl Thomas, Fred W. Turner, C.M. "Pete" Frost, M.G.
Michaelis Sr., and I.G. "Cap" Yates, all of Texas, J.A. "Palley" Lawton of Louisiana, and
others.

In the mid-1940s an outbreak of Hoof and Mouth Disease occurred in Mexico. As a

result, a treaty between the United States, Canada and Mexico set up a permanent
quarantine against cattle coming into any of these countries from Europe or any country
in which Hoof and Mouth Disease was known to exist. This barred any further
importation of French Charolais on this continent until 1965 when Canada opened the
import doors via rigid quarantine both in France and in Canada.

Development in the United States

Until the mid-1960s, all the Charolais in Mexico, the United States and Canada were
descendants of this initial Pugibet herd. Due to the limited number of original animals
and the import restrictions which were in place, they have been crossed on other cattle in
an upgrading process. Because of the use of the upgrading process few of the Charolais
cattle currently found in the United State are of pure French breeding. With the lightening
of the import restrictions in Canada in the mid-1960's fullblood Charolais were again
imported from France. This allowed for the importation of new bloodlines from France.
This meant new genetic material for tightly-bred Charolais pedigrees of the time. Several
breeding herds were estabilished in Canada, as well as the island of Eleuthera, in the
Bahamas. Japan, England and Ireland also imported purebred Charolais directly from
France. Offspring from these herds were later imported to the United States.

42
American Charolais are referred to as
"purebred" or "recorded"
depending upon the percentage of
known Charolais blood. The term purebred
is used on those that carry 31/32 or more
Charolais blood and those less than
31/32 can be referred to as recorded.
People wishing to develop a herd will still find it possible to upgrade, using purebred
Charolais sires, a foundation cow herd of one of the other cattle breeds or their crosses.
Five generations of purebred bulls are required to produced the 31/32 level for
classification as "purebred". Sires used in the grading-up process must be registered. The
offspring from the first as well as succeeding generations must be registered as
"recorded" until they reach the 31/32 level at which time they are referred to as purebred.

It has been said that no other breed has impacted the North American beef industry so
significantly as the introduction of Charolais. The Charolais came into widespread use in
the United States cattle industry at a time when producers were seeking larger framed,
heavier cattle than the traditional British breeds. The increased use on the range indicates
that the cows have performed well under a variety of environmental conditions. Their
ability to walk, graze aggressively in warm weather, withstand reasonable cold, and raise
heavy calves has drawn special praise from many that have them. Bulls have developed a
well-earned reputation when used in grading-up for herd improvement. This is especially
noted when they are used in herds where size and ruggedness are lacking

Charolais are white or creamy white in color, but the skin carries appreciable
pigmentation. The hair coat is usually short in summer but thickens and lengthens in cold
weather. Charolais is a naturally horned beef animal. But through the breeding-up
program, where naturally polled breeds were sometimes used as foundation animals,
polled Charolais have emerged as an important part of the breed. Charolais cattle are
large with mature bulls weighing from 2,000 to well over 2,500 pounds and cows weigh
from 1,250 to over 2,000 pounds.

Chianina
The Chianina (pronounced kee-a- nee-na)
may well be one of the oldest breeds
of cattle in existence. They were praised
by the Georgic poets, Columella and
Vergil, and were the models for Roman
sculptures.

43
 The breed originated primarily in the
west central part of Italy and was found
in a wide variety of environmental
conditions. Because of this, the cattle
vary in size and type from region to
region. The largest representatives of the
breed, from the plains of Arezzo and
Siena, have supplied most of the
foundation stock that has been used in the
United States and Canada. The name
comes from the Chiana Valley in the province of Tuscany in Central Italy.

 Until recent times the Chianina were used primarily as draft animals in their homeland.
With the advent of modern mechanized farming practices they selection emphasis has
been placed on the breeds ability to produce beef. The earlier selection for work animals
had produced a very large breed with considerable length of leg, good action, and heavy
muscling. Good dispositions were also desired in the draft animals. The later selections
for beef production has maintained the size of the breed and improved the rate of growth.

U.S. servicemen, stationed in Italy during World War II, discovered Chianina. In 1971,
Chianina genetics were introduced to the U.S. when the first semen was imported from
Italy. Diaceto I was the first Italian fullblood bull to be collected. The first Chianina born
in the U.S. was a black half-blood Chianina x Angus/Holstein bull calf. He was born
January 31, 1972, at the Tannehill Ranch, King City, CA.

 For the first few years, Chianina genetics were attainable only through semen. United
States Department of Agriculture regulations prohibited the importation of cattle from
countries having Foot and Mouth disease, and Italy was one of those countries. A private
quarantine station was established in Italy where semen was collected, processed and
shipped to breeders in the U.S. For a one year period, 17 young Chianina bulls were
admitted and their semen collected.

 Another avenue for obtaining fullblood Chianina semen was from Canadian breeders.
Although Italian Chianina were not allowed to move into the U.S. from Canada, U.S.
breeders could import semen. In 1973, Italian fullblood Chianina were exported from
Canada into this country.

Physical Characteristics:

Fullblood Chianina have short hair that varies from white to steel gray in color. Bulls are
often a darker gray around their front ends. Both sexes have black pigmented skin, points
and mucosa. The short horns curve forward and are usually black in the younger animals
but become lighter, beginning at the base, as the animals mature.

 The most noticeable characteristic of the breed is the extensive and well-defined
muscling. The shoulders, back and rear quarters are especially well formed. The legs are

44
longer than most breeds and the bodies are not proportionally as long as some breeds that
have shorter legs. The faces are rather long and straight. These characteristics give a
distinctive appearance

 The breed is often referred to as a "terminal" breed by cattlemen. This infers that the
primary use of the breed is as the sire to animals which will all be marketed. The herds
they are used in are frequently crossbred and the Chianina bulls provide an outstanding
growth rate in the offspring of these crossbred females.

 Cows of the breed often have small udders and are not noted for their milk production.
This is not surprising as they were originally valued for draft and later for meat
production.

Hays Converter
The Hays Converter is the first beef breed recognized as a pure
breed-registerable under the provisions of the Canada Livestock
Pedigree Act and developed by a Canadian Livestock producer.
Since the concept was first developed by Senator Harry Hays of
Calgary, the objective has been to produce superior animals with
the selection based only on performance.

Senator Hays considered the idea for a new beef breed for a long
time. Besides wanting to develop a leaner breed of cow, he
wanted one that gained weight as efficiently as possible. He
aimed at developing an animal that would reach the preferred
market weight at the earliest possible age.

The market demanded a steer in the range of 1100 pounds. His

goal, for maximum economic benefit, was to breed a beef animal that would reach this
desirable market weight during its first year of life - when it could most efficiently
convert feed to meat. Senator Hays set out to develop beef cattle that would be measured
only on their performance as converters of feed to saleable meat - a cow with hardiness
against Canadian winters, fast fleshing ability and calving ease, growthiness, large milk
production for her calves and a trouble-free udder, high fertility, good feet and legs, and
an excellent  carcass.

 From his experience as a dairy farmer, Senator Hays knew that a calf needed plenty of
milk from its mother to ensure maximum growth. Yet farm experience had shown him
that the average beef cow does not produce a sustained supply of milk for her calf after
the initial heavy flow at the beginning of lactation. Aware that it required about nine

45
pounds of milk to produce one pound of meat in an average calf, he began the evolution
of his new beef animal by mixing dairy and beef cattle.

 Senator Hays started his evolutionary quest by carefully combining progeny from three
outstanding animals, each from a different existing breed. Spring Farm Fond Hope was a
Holstein bull weighing 3,120 pounds whose progeny were distinctive for their large size,
rugged constitution and excellent strong feet. His daughters also had a high butterfat test,
good udders and average milk production of approximately 12,000 lbs. Certified Meat
Sire, Silver Prince 7P was a 2,640 pound Hereford bull noted for his ability to transmit
size, length, bone and fleshing ability to his offspring. Jane of Vernon was a 1,600 pound
Brown Swiss cow famous for having what was judged the world's most perfect udder -
she never had her feet trimmed and her milk production held up until the end of lactation.
Her progeny excelled in size, growth and had excellent feet and legs.

 Senator Hays selected eight sons of dairy bull Fond Hope to mate in the autumn of 1957
with his neighboring rancher J. Allen Baker's herd of large Hereford cows and arranged
to buy all the calves produced. From them and successive generations, he would select
only those bulls that weighed at least 1,100 pounds at one year of age; a bull's worth was
also measured by the number of offspring that stayed in the herd over the following
years.  Cows too, were initially selected for their growth performance. But once in the
brood herd, their selection depended on their ability to both produce offspring and
survive. Every one of them had to have a calf annually to remain in the herd; each one
had to become pregnant from the bull's first service, and she had to have the calf
unassisted in the open pasture.  If she any trouble with the birth, or with the nursing of
her calf once safely born, or needed help in any other way - hoof trimming, for example,
or milking out - her tail was bobbed to mark her, and she was shipped off to the
slaughter-house come autumn.

 The evolutionary law of survival of the fittest was followed ruthlessly. Senator Hays
insisted that each cow produce a good supply of milk from the Holstein genes in her body
- that they supply plenty of milk to the calves near the end of lactation when the calves
need it most for growth. He especially admired the qualities of Jane of Vernon - in
addition to having the most perfect udder, she never ever had her feet trimmed. He chose
her primarily because she peaked in milk production in her eight month.

 Two years after the original matings of the sons of Fond Hope and the Hereford cows -
the best females born from these mating (granddaughters of Fond Hope were bred to
Silver Prince. Five of the best bulls from these matings (sons of Silver Prince and great-
grandsons of Fond Hope were selected to mate with their mothers Fond Hope's
granddaughters produced by the original matings with Baker's Herefords). Having
brought together the specially gifted progeny of Fond Hope and Silver Prince, Senator
Hays next introduced the superior genetics of Jane of Vernon's offspring. He mated four
of her great-grandsons with one of the Hereford cows. The female progeny from these
matings were then put into the breeding herd. Now that he had combined the genetic
materials he wanted, the herd was closed to all other outside breeding influence. By 1969
his own breed of cows had been bred to his own breed of bulls regularly and exclusively

46
for seven years, and his work on improving nature's genetics was producing the results he
had anticipated.

 In 1974 a committee appointed by the Canadian Department of Agriculture inspected the
herd. This committee reviewed the breeding program, inspected and nominated
"foundation" animals and in December 1975 the first purebred Certificate of Registration
was issued for Hays Converters.

Hereford
The Hereford breed was founded some
two and one-half centuries ago as a
product of necessity. Thrifty and
enterprising farmers near Hereford in the 
County of Herefordshire, England, were
determined to produce beef for the
expanding food market created by
Britain's industrial revolution. To
succeed in Herefordshire, these early-
day cattlemen realized they must have
cattle which could efficiently convert
their native grass to beef and do it at a
profit.

There was no breed in existence at the time to fill that need, so the farmers of
Herefordshire founded the beef breed that logically became known as Herefords. These
early Hereford breeders molded their cattle with the idea in mind of a high yield of beef
and efficiency of production, and so firmly fixed these characteristics that they remain
today as outstanding characteristics of the breed.

Beginning in 1742 with a bull calf from the cow Silver and two cows, Pidgeon and
Mottle, inherited from his father's estate, Benjamin Tomkins is credited with founding the
Hereford breed. This was 18 years before Robert Bakewell began developing his theories
of animal breeding. From the start, Mr. Tomkins had as his goals economy in feeding,
natural aptitude to grow and gain from grass and grain, rustling ability, hardiness, early
maturity and prolificacy, traits that are still of primary importance today.

Other pioneering breeders were to follow the Tomkins' lead and establish the world-wide
renown for the Herefordshire cattle causing their exportation from England to wherever
grass grows and beef production is possible.

Herefords in the 1700's and early 1800's in England were much larger than today. Many
mature Herefords of those days weighed 3,000 pounds or more. Cotmore, a winning
show bull and noteworthy sire, weighed 3,900 pounds when shown in 1839. Gradually,

47
the type and conformation changed to less extreme size and weight to get more
smoothness, quality and efficiency. 

HEREFORD IMPORTATIONS

Herefords came to the United States in 1817 when the great statesman Henry Clay of
Kentucky made the first importation -- a bull and two females. These cattle and their
offspring attracted considerable attention, but they were eventually absorbed by the local
cattle population and disappeared from permanent identity.

The first breeding herd in America is considered to be one established in 1840 by

William H. Sotham and Erastus Corning of Albany, New York, and for practical
purposes Herefords in the United States date from the Sotham-Corning beginning. The
more densely populated eastern area of the United States, including herds in New
England, was the early home of Herefords and from there they fanned out to the South
and West as the population expanded and the demand for beef increased.

Records of the New York State Fair reveal that 11 Herefords were exhibited there in
1844 and were highly praised. Several breeders were active in exhibiting at fairs and
exhibitions in the East and Midwest where the Herefords met with great success. Perhaps
the greatest early interest in the breed came from the 1876 Centennial Exposition in
Philadelphia where T. L. Miller was awarded a medal for the first-prize herd.

HEREFORDS - THE GREAT IMPROVER

With the end of the Civil War and the coming of the American Industrial Revolution, the
westward expansion continued and so did America's appetite for beef. Western ranching
developed from free land and local longhorned cattle originally brought to Mexico by the
Spanish conquerors and allowed to drift northward into what is now America's great
southwestern cattle country. These cattle were tough and had the bred-in ability to
survive, a trait that enabled their being driven to railhead shipping points and then
transported by rail to slaughter at eastern markets. It was on such cattle that Herefords
proved the great improver. They survived the rough ranching conditions and improved
beef quality in the process. Demand for Hereford bulls boomed.

DEMAND CAUSES INCREASE IN HEREFORD IMPORTATIONS IN 1890's

To satisfy the growing market which developed from the western area cattlemen,
Hereford breeders expanded their herds through heavy importations from Herefordshire.
Whereas only 200 head were imported up to 1880, more than 3,500 head of Herefords
came over during the 1880-1889 period. During this time, breeders of Herefords led by
such men as T. L. Miller, C. M. Culbertson and Thomas Clark, all of Illinois, won hard-
fought battles for breed acceptance in the agricultural fairs and expositions which
furthered the use of Herefords in American beef production.

48
Early Hereford breeder promoters and exhibitors in the 1870's and 1880's included such
names as Earl, Stuart, Fowler, Van Natta and Studebaker of Indiana, and the Swan Land
and Cattle Co., forerunner of the present Wyoming Hereford Ranch. These breeders were
instrumental in the movement of Herefords to Wyoming, other mountain states and the
Northwest. Gudgell and Simpson of Missouri made their start in 1877. Four years later,
they were to gain everlasting renown in the Hereford world through importing and
concentrating on the great young sire Anxiety 4. No other bull comes close to the stature
of Anxiety 4 for he is often credited as being the "Father of American Herefords" and
"the bull that gave Herefords hindquarters." Today, he is the common ancestor of nearly
all Hereford cattle in this country.

The Hereford industry in America passed a great milestone of progress on June 22, 1881 ,
when a few breeders met in Chicago at the Grand Pacific Hotel to lay the foundation for
the organization of the American Hereford Association, essentially for the two-fold
purpose of keeping the breed's records and promoting the interests of Hereford breeders.

For over a century, the AHA has performed its duties with little change in the original
bylaws while providing leadership for the industry that has seen Hereford cattle taken to
every area, region and territory of America and become the greatest influence in the
nation's beef production activity.

HEREFORDS BECOME DOMINANT

It was largely through shows and expositions that Herefords gained their greatest
acceptance among cattlemen of this country and, no doubt, the first great impact was
scored at the 1883 Chicago Fat Stock Show, the forerunner of the famous International
Livestock Exposition which, until closing after the 1975 event, was the premier show for
market animals in America. At this show over a century ago, the Hereford steer Roan
Boy won the grand championship for his exhibitor, C. M. Culbertson. The steer's early
maturity marked the beginning of the end for the previously popular four-year-old steers
-- the big, rough, old fashioned kind. In 1886, a two-year-old Hereford was grand
champion and in 1903 Hereford yearlings won the carlot grand championship. Three
years later a 336-day-old Hereford won the show, the first ever at less than two years old.

Thus, Herefords led the way in revolutionizing beef production in America, largely
through the traits of doing ability and early maturity -- getting fat at an early age and
producing the ideal in "baby beef." While other traits in beef cattle continued to be
important in the cattle breeder's selection program during the ensuing years, there is no
doubt that early maturity and fattening ability were of primary concern because (1) the
market paid the highest price for the cattle that fattened well on forage; thus (2) the
preferred breeding animals were those that demonstrated the ability to fatten readily at a
given age.

To get this early maturity, breeders in the late 1930's and 1940's eagerly sought out the
compact type of conformation -- short, low set, wide and deep-bodied cattle -- as their
preferred breeding stock. By comparison, such cattle were naturally smaller. Their

49
success in achieving such an animal with its abundance of fat and establishing that kind
as the breed's "ideal" proved to eventually be a detriment. The market changes that
surfaced in the 1960's caused such cattle to be penalized in price and discriminated
against.

DEMAND CHANGES HEREFORD TYPE

Following World War II and well into the 1950's, the compact, fat, small type cattle
continued to be favored in the show ring, but quietly and almost unnoticed, there was a
change taking place in the meat-packing industry and in the basic American consumer's
diet which reflected on the demand and price of the favored kind up to that time. The
commercial market for fat or beef tallow declined, plus the fact that consumers were
unwilling to buy the excess fat on cuts from "over done" carcasses. The result was that
beef packers paid less for the overfat cattle and suddenly there was a different type of
animal preferred by the industry -- a trimmer, leaner, less fat and more red meat kind.
The once preferred wide-backed, overfat and wastey cattle were heavily docked in the
market.

This change in market preference was first expressed in Hereford circles at the National
Hereford Conference in Denver in 1963, voiced more loudly in 1967 at a conference in
Kansas City, and in the now famous 1969 conference in Wisconsin this change was very
conclusively demonstrated. Economics in cost of production required faster daily gain at
less cost conversion of feed to muscle instead of fat, and far less loss in offal waste in the
desired market kind. These requirements translated to more size and a different style of
conformation which, in turn, presented the breeder with a tremendous challenge in
modernizing the breed and turning it around to a new kind of Hereford endowed with all
the basic economical traits to encompass total performance -- no desired trait achieved at
the expense of another.

Accomplishing, their objective in a remarkably short time is a great tribute to the

dedication of Hereford breeders, the broad genetic base of the breed, and the ability of
breeders to utilize modern technology along with the practical application of the breeder's
art.

The 1960's saw the beginning of acceptance of the performance era in Herefordom.
Breeders began giving concentrated attention toward applying new-found tools such as
performance testing, artificial insemination, objective measures, embryo transfers,
generation turnover, and sire evaluation to effect more and more rapid genetic change in
the past 25 years than perhaps had been accomplished previously since Benjamin
Tomkins undertook his systematic efforts to make better beef cattle from his native
Herefords.

In 1963, the American Hereford Association embarked on an experimental program to

test sires under practical feedlot conditions through their progeny in feedlot performance
and carcass yield. That program was replaced by the current National Reference Sire
program to identify superior sires. This program led the way for all breeds in sire testing.

50
The beginning of the American Hereford Association's record keeping activity was
expanded to include performance records and initiation of the present Total Performance
Records (TPR) service in 1964. Having been developed over some two decades, often
amended to utilize new technology and to provide maximum service to breeders, the TPR
program that has evolved has proven to be a great service to individual breeders and the
breed in general. Presently, there are some two million records of performance on file in
the AHA computer, stored for use to assist in selecting for improvements in future cattle
generations.

The late 1960's found breeders faced with overpowering evidence that the breed had too
many cattle that simply did not measure up in the modern measures of performance and
with great competition from European "exotic" breeds, Hereford followers sought out
breeders and bloodlines noted for cattle of substantial size and performance.

It was fortunate for the breed that there was an ample and broad genetic base from which
to select when the demand came for larger framed cattle. Breeders found the growth traits
fairly easy to select for. Both 205-day and yearling weights were accurate measures of
growth, fairly easy to obtain, and they were highly heritable.

Within herd selection was a long process when considering the rule of thumb of cow
generation being some seven years. Many breeders began looking for short cuts. They
searched the country for sires with more frame and size, requesting and analyzing
weaning and yearling weights. Leaders in beef cattle education and research stressed
growth as a major criteria of performance, often ignoring or de-emphasizing the most
important economical trait of beef cattle production, fertility.

Breeders often selected for frame score and mature weight, and paid little heed to
fertility, structural soundness, feet and legs. The "yellow and mellow" coloring, a tic of
white in the back or extra white on the legs and underline became less of a selection
criteria. "If big enough, markings and color became less important."

Where and in what bloodlines could these cattle be found to increase the frame and
weight of Herefords? Voices of the speakers at the Madison, Wisconsin, conference in
June, 1969, had barely quieted when breeders started looking. The frame 5 steers at the
conference came from the Northwest. That's where many breeders headed and they found
some bigger-than average framed bulls there. Many were of Evan Mischief, Mark Donald
and Real Prince Domino bloodlines. Some breeders selected bigger framed cattle in
Canada, many of which traced to an American-bred Prince Domino son, Real Prince
Domino 109. Also about this time, breeders found the Line One cattle developed by the
U.S. Range and Research Station at Miles City, Montana.

It was at the Miles City station in 1934 that a selection program commenced and the
development of inbreeding several different lines with selection emphasis on yearling
weights. Of all the different lines developed at Miles City, the most prominent to date has
been the Line Ones.

51
The foundation cows for the Line Ones traced back to stock purchased in 1926 from
George M. Miles. The bulls used in the development of the line were half-brothers,
Advance Domino 20 and Advance Domino 54, purchased in Colorado. These two
foundation sires were strong in Prince Domino blood.

Although the Line One cattle were developed at the Miles City station and they have
remained a prime source of seedstock, a number of other breeders drew heavily on Line
One sires starting in the 1940's, and these breeders became suppliers of the Line One
seedstock in the early 1970's.

The complete and universal acceptance of utilizing performance records was a slow
process and, even today, does not have universal appeal. Different breeders place
emphasis on different aspects.

Because of such difference in opinions in the past, the present, and likely in the future,
Hereford cattle will command the premier spot in the beef cattle industry for years to
come.

Indo-Brazilian
Also Known By: Indubrasil
(Portugese), Induberaba

The Indo-Brazilian is a zebu type breed

which was developed in Brazil from
1910-1930. The breed was
developed from Gir and Kankrej
(Guzerat or Guzera) breeds with some
Ongole also used. By 1946 Indo-
Brazilian cattle were being imported into
the United States and some sources site their contribution to the development of the
Brahman.

The breed is white to dark grey in color. The Indo-Brazilian are generally taller and
lighter muscled than the Brahman. One of the notable feature of the breed are its
extremely large, pendulous ears. It probably has the largest ears of any of the cattle
breeds.

Reference:

Mason, I.L. 1996. A World Dictionary of Livestock Breeds, Types and Varieties.
Fourth Edition. C.A.B International. 273 pp.

Photographs:

52
Eduardo Maitret, Zapata, Tabasco, Mexico

Limousin
The History of Limousin

The history of
Limousin cattle may very
will be as old as the
European continent itself.
Cattle found in cave
drawings estimated to be 20,000 years old in the
Lascaux Cave near Montignac, France, have a
striking resemblance to today's Limousin.

These golden-red cattle are native to the south

central part of France in the regions of
Limousin and Marche. The terrain of the
homeland has been described as rugged and
rolling with rocky soil and a harsh climate.
Consequently, the growing of field crops was
very difficult at best and emphasis was
placed on animal agriculture. Limousin
cattle, as a result of their environment, evolved into a breed of unusual sturdiness, health
and adaptability. This lack of natural resources also enabled the region to remain
relatively isolated and the farmers free to develop their cattle with little outside genetic
interference.

During these early times of animal power, Limousin gained well-earned reputation as
work animals in addition to their beef qualities. Rene Lafarge reported in 1698,
"Limousin oxen were universally renowned and esteemed both as beasts of burden and
beef cattle." At the end of their work life these animals were then fattened for slaughter.

Traditionally, French cattle were kept in a confinement or semi-confinement situation.

However, Limousin cattle spent the majority of their time outdoors in the harsh climate
of the region. This was a source of great pride to the breeders. The cows calved year
round, outdoors, to bring in a regular source of income and the heifers were bred to calve
at three years of age. In the winter, the entire herd was outside and whatever the season,
the cattle were handled on a daily basis.

53
Once in the 1700s and again in the mid-1800s, an attempt was made by a small number
of French Limousin breeders to crossbreed their cattle in hopes of gaining both size and
scale. In 1840 several breeders crossbred their Limousin with oxen of Agenaise variety.

The resulting animals were taller, having more volume of muscling in their hindquarter.
Unfortunately, however, these crossbred cattle proved not to be economical as they
needed a larger amount of feed than could be provided in the majority of the region. Only
near Limoges, where manure and fertilizers were plentiful and growing of field crops was
widespread, did these cattle
prosper.

Limousin breeders admitted their

mistake and then concentrated upon
improving the breed through natural
selection. A leader in the natural
selection movement was Charles de
Leobary and his herdsman, Royer.
Through a very tough, selective process
these two developed an
outstanding herd of "purebred" Limousin. From 1854 to 1896 the de Leobary herd won a
total of 265 ribbons at the prestigious Bordeaux Competition, one of France's finest cattle
shows.

Limousin cattle made a deep impression in French cattle shows during the 1850s. The
first show wins were at the Bordeaux Fair where Limousin took second and third places.
The cattle belonged to the already mentioned de Leobary herd. Furthermore, in 1857, '58
and '59, Limousin animals topped other breeds in some of the first carcass competitions
at the farm produce competition held at Poissy, near Paris. The reputation of Limousin as
meat animals was firmly established. Today, Limousin cattle are still referred to as the
"butcher's animal" in France.

The widespread use of natural selection made it important to record the bloodlines of the
outstanding Limousin bulls and females. So, in November of 1886, the first Limousin
Herd Book was established. Louis Michel presided over the herd book, the objective of
which was to ensure the uniformity of the breed Michel and his 11 fellow herd book
commissioners were extremely rigid in the selections. Between 1887 and 1890, the
commission met six times and out of 1,800 animals presented for registration from 150
different farms, only a total of 674 (117 males and 497 females) were accepted for
registration.

The formation of the herd book had other important consequences. Once established, the
French government then established shows solely for Limousin cattle. As with their
counterparts today, these shows provided tremendous exposure for the breed as the many
valuable traits of these beef cattle were presented for all to see.

54
By July of 1914, the total number of animals registered in the herd book was 5,416. It is
interesting to note the herd book has been reorganized twice since it was founded, once in
1923 and again in 1937. Both times these reorganizations were used to redefine the
characteristics of the breed, making the breeders more selective, thus improving the
quality of the animals.

Through the late 1800s and early 1900s, Limousin breeders paid close attention to
morphological characteristics as the breed developed. The medium size of these cattle as
compared to other European breeds was, and is still, an outstanding breed trait. They also
selected for the dark golden-red hide with wheat colored underpinnings. French records
also show a great deal of emphasis was stressed upon deep chest, a strong top-line, well-
placed tailhead and strongly-muscled hindquarter. The end result was an efficient, hardy,
adaptable animal which was extremely well-suited for its only intended purpose ... to
produce meat.

As the breed developed in France, cattlemen in North America were looking to Europe to
improve their native beef cattle here in the United States. In the late 1800s, English
breeds such as the Hereford, Shorthorn and Angus were imported and crossed on native
cattle, most of them of Spanish background. In the early 1900s Charolais were imported
into Cuba and Mexico and were first introduced into the United States in the early 1930s.

The acceptance of Charolais, combined with the use of crossbreeding as a tool to increase
beef production, lead to the investigation of many other European breeds, including
Limousin, by North American cattlemen. One of the first exposures in this country
concerning Limousin cattle was in the early 1960s in an issue of the Western Livestock
Journal when a Canadian wrote of his impressions after returning from a trip to France.
As more cattlemen traveled to Europe they came back talking about an impressive "new"
beef breed they had seen ... Limousin.

Cattle from France were not eligible for importation into the United States, as France was
a hoof-and-mouth disease affected area. However, the Canadian government did agree to
accept French cattle after they had successfully completed a strict three step quarantine
program. Before the cattle left France they were held in a three-month quarantine, then
once arriving in Canada they were kept on Grosse Isle off the coast of Nova Scotia or St.
Pierre Island in the Gulf of St. Lawrence for another three-month period. Finally, the
cattle were required to successfully pass a 30-day "on the farm" quarantine. Once they
passed the quarantine, semen could be shipped throughout North America.

The first Limousin imported to Canada was Prince Pompadour, a son of Baron bred at the
highly-respected Pompadour Estate of France. Through the efforts of Adrien de Moustier
of France (later to found Bov Import, Inc.) and others, the bull arrived in November of
1968. An impressive bull, Prince Pompadour had been selected by noted French breeder
Emil Chastanet as a herd bull for his operation. After his arrival, Prince Pompadour was
brought to the United States to be part of Limousin exhibitions at various cattle shows
and did much to draw attention to the breed.

55
The first Limousin bulls imported permanently into the United States did not arrive until
the fall of 1971. Until this time, the Canadian government had not permitted any
Limousin bulls to leave the country except for short periods for exhibition purposes and
then only if the owners posted a large bond that was refunded when the animal returned
to Canada. The first U.S. import, Kansas Colonel, was born and raised in Canada and was
imported by Bob Haag of Topeka, Kansas, for a group of Kansas Limousin breeders.

The first Limousin semen was available from Prince Pompadour in July of 1969. After
being evaluated by J. J. "Bud" Prosser at the International Beef Breeders facility near
Denver, semen was picked up by Colonel E.J. Geesen of Agate, Colorado. A retired Air
Force officer, Geesen used the semen on his Angus cows on his ranch east of Denver.

After the importation of Prince Pompadour to Canada, another group of Limousin bulls
followed in 1969. This shipment contained Decor, Diplomate, Dandy, Prairie Danseur
and Prairie Pride. These bulls were the base upon which the breed began its long climb
up and found good acceptance on the part of cattlemen. After ten years, many of these
bulls still rank high in the NALF sire summary.

As the first Limousin cattle arrived in North America, cattlemen interested in the breed
realized the need for an organization to promote and develop the breed in the United
States and Canada. At one of these meetings in the spring of 1968 at the Albany Hotel in
Denver, fifteen cattlemen formed the North American Limousin Foundation (NALF).

First president of the NALF was Bob Purdy of Buffalo, Wyoming. A well-respected
cattleman, Purdy was a strong advocate of performance testing. Through his experience
with Charolais, Purdy knew many of the pitfalls to be avoided in the early days. Purdy
was a capable administrator who gave solid leadership to the Foundation during its
infancy in the three years he served as president.

The man responsible for the actual day-to-day running of the NALF was the first
executive vice president, Dick Goff of Denver. A journalist by profession, Goff's
advertising agency had worked for the Charolais association, and had seen first-hand the
development of a new breed association. He knew the first three to five years of a breed
association's existence were extremely critical and financial stability was the key to
survival.

As a result, Goff was largely responsible for the firm financial base upon which the
NALF was built. He developed the idea to sell 100 founder memberships in the NALF
for $2,500 apiece. Each founder member was entitled to a prorated share of Prince
Pompadour semen, all of which was owned by the NALF. All but one of the
memberships were sold and the combination of excellent cattle, leadership and financial
stability gave the Limousin breed a tremendous start in North America.

From the initial concentrations in Oklahoma, Texas, South Dakota and western Canada,
the Limousin breed has expanded across North America. The tremendous carcass traits of
the breed have attracted the full attention of the entire beef industry. In addition to solid

56
prices for breeding stock, feeders are paying a premium for percentage Limousin because
of their excellent feed efficiency and packers are asking for Limousin by name.

Percentage Limousin steers have had unparalleled success in the show ring. Limousin
steers have won such prestigious shows as Denver, Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio
and Ak-Sar-Ben, not to mention numerous state and county fairs. Besides these on-foot
champions, Limousin steers have won many carcass shows, living up to their reputation
as the "Carcass Breed."

The NALF has grown from the original 99 founding members to over 12,000 active
members. Since NALF began, over 1 million Limousin have been registered through the
organization. Based on annual registrations, Limousin is the largest Continental breed in
the United States.

From humble beginnings in France many centuries ago, these golden-red beef cattle have
now achieved acceptance here in the United States as a major contributor to a more
efficient beef industry.

N’Dama

Boyenca (Guinea-Bissau), Fouta Jallon, Fouta Longhorn, Fouta Malinke, Futa, Malinke,
Mandingo (Liberia), N'Dama Petite (Senegal). Incorrect names that are sometimes used:
Dama and Ndama.

The N'Dama breed is the most representative "Bos Taurus" breed in West Africa. The
origin of this breed is located in the Fouta-Djallon highlands of Guinea (Conakry). From
there the N'Dama has spread in the sudanian and guinean regions.

Being , it has been used for large scale dissemination for grazing savannah
in Congo, Central Africa, Gabon, Nigeria and Zaire, especially in the regions infested by
the tse-tse fly.

57
 Source: Trypanotolemi cattle and livestock development in West and Central Africa (Vol-1) FAO; Rome 1987

The N'Dama is a hardy breed, medium size type (100 cm at shoulder height for cows; 120
cm for bulls) with a large and strong head and with lyre-shaped horns.

Its skin,with short and thin hair, is fawn colored

but varies from sand to black color, sometimes
spotted.

Cows produce only 2 to 3 liters milk per day

during 7 to 8 months. The N'Dama breed is used
for meat and the ratio carcass/liveweight is around
50%. The meat has a very good flavor without
much fat.

Average liveweight for a mature steer varies

between 250 to 300 kg.

In West Africa, to date there are approximately 7

million head of N'Dama.

For the last 65 years, this breed has been

developed in Zaire, where large scale herds have
been improved by permanent selection practices

58
by a private company named "Compagnie J. VAN LANCKEIC' which owns over 40,000
head of purebred N'Dama.

This company has managed to increase, by selection, the average liveweight by 30 to

50kg without reducing the breed hardiness. This company is collaborating with the
I.L.R.I. (International Livestock Research Institute) for an improved genetical analysis
and selection of this breed.

          

Piedmontese
ORIGINS OF THE BREED - ITALY

The Piemonte region of Northwest Italy (razza

Piemontese) is a secluded pocket, naturally
protected by the Alps mountains. Aurochs, (bos
Taurus) ancient European cattle, populated this
region. Some 25,000 years ago, a type of cattle
known as Zebu (bos Indicus) began a massive
migration from Pakistan. The vanguard of this
migration entered the Piedmont valleys and were
compelled to stop. These two distinct breeds - the
Auroch and the Zebu - fused and evolved over 25,000 yrs. of natural selection to become
the Piedmontese breed.

In 1886, the appearance of double-muscling (DM) in Piedmontese cattle attracted the

attention of breeders, who had the foresight to recognize the enormous potential of this
development. The first Herdbook was opened in 1887, and improvement campaign and
standard of merit have led to many years of genetic selection to eliminate detrimental
aspects generally associated with DM.

Registries and Breed Associations

59
Polled Hereford
The Origin and Growth of Polled Herefords

Polled Herefords represent the

development of an idea - an idea spawned
in the minds of a small number of
Midwestern Hereford breeders in the late
1890s who realized that it was both
possible and practical to develop "modern
Herefords minus horns."

These breeders were motivated by the

promising prospect of developing
Herefords with outstanding beef-
producing characteristics, but with the added desirable trait of being naturally hornless.
They planted the seed from which grew a new giant in the American and world beef
cattle industry

The Polled Hereford of today is the result - a modern, practical breed of cattle that has
experienced widespread acceptance and desirability.

Polled Herefords were developed from the horned Hereford breed which was founded in
the mid-18th century by the farmers of Hereford County, England. Among the horned
Herefords an occasional calf would be born which did not develop horns. This change
from parents' characteristics is known as a "mutation." These cattle soon came to be
called "polled," which means naturally hornless.

Warren Gammon, a young Iowa Hereford breeder from Des Moines, originated Polled
Herefords. He seized upon the idea of producing the hornless cattle after seeing some on
exhibition at the Trans-Mississippi World Fair in Omaha, Nebraska, in 1898.

Three years later, Gammon established the Polled Hereford breed registry with 11 head
of naturally hornless whiteface cattle he had located and purchased. These Herefords
were registered in the American Hereford Association, but were not identified as to their
polled characteristic. Therefore, Gammon formed the American Polled Hereford Cattle
Club to maintain a separate record of purebred Polled Hereford registrations.

Thus, in 1901, the Polled Hereford breed came into being with 11 registrations on record.
In 1907, the pioneer breeders of Polled Herefords incorporated their organization, with
headquarters in the Gammon home in Des Moines. Gammon served as executive
secretary until 1921.

Today the Polled Hereford registry is combined with the American Hereford Association.

60
 
 

The photographs and information contained on this page are provided courtesy of
the American Hereford Association, P. O. Box 014059, Kansas City, MO 64101

Red Angus
Seven innovative breeders chose to use
Red Angus in 1954 to establish the
industry’s first performance
registry. Throughout its history, the Red
Angus Association of America has gone
on to make all the tough choices, and all
the right choices. In recent years, the
Red Angus breed has attained a high
level of popularity from
commercial cattlemen, and for all the
right reasons.

The Origin of "Angus"

Like most modern American beef breeds, the Red Angus breed had its beginning in
Europe. In the eighth-century, according to some authorities, hardy Norsemen raiding the
coasts of England and Scotland brought with them a small, dun-colored hornless cattle
which interbred with black native Celtic cattle of inland Scotland, which had upright
horns. A naturally polled black breed was produced, which roughly corresponded to the
black Aberdeen Angus of today, although it was a considerably smaller-bodied animal.
The polled characteristic was very slow to spread inland, and for almost a thousand years
was confined principally to the coastal areas of England and Scotland.

Eric L.C. Pentecost, the noted English breeder of Red Angus cattle, offers a specific and
logical explanation for the introduction of the red coloration into the Aberdeen Angus
breed. In the eighteenth century, the black Scottish cattle were too light to provide
sufficiently large draught oxen, so larger English longhorns, predominantly red in color,
were brought in and crossed with the black native polled breed. The resultant offspring
were all black polled animals, since black is a dominant color, and red a recessive one.
However, all carried the red gene. Subsequent interbreeding produced an average of one
red calf in four, in accordance with Mendel’s law of heredity.

Angus -Red or Black

Early in the development of the Aberdeen Angus, Hugh Watson of Keillor, Scotland

61
arbitrarily decided that black was the proper color for the breed, and thereby started a
fashion. He might well have chosen red instead. Leon J. Cole and Sara V. H. Jones of the
University of Wisconsin Agricultural Experiment Station published a pamphlet in 1920
on "The Occurrence of Red Calves in Black Breeds of Cattle" which contained this
pertinent paragraph:

"One more point should be emphasized, namely that the red individuals
appearing in such stock (Aberdeen Angus)...are just as truly 'purebred' as their
black relatives, and there is no reason why, in all respects save color, they should
not be fully as valuable. The fact that they are discarded while the blacks are
retained is simply due to the turn of fortune that black rather than red became
established fashion for the Aberdeen Angus breed. Had red been the chosen color,
there would never have been any trouble with the appearance of blacks as off-
color individuals, since red-to-red breeds true."

The preceding paragraph, written more than three decades prior to the establishment of
the Red Angus Association of America, shows a true appreciation of the basic strengths
of the reds. This is emphasized by the current revival and popularity of the red strain of
Aberdeen Angus throughout the world.

Early Angus Herdbooks

The first Aberdeen Angus herdbook, published in 1862 in Scotland, entered both reds and
blacks without distinction. This practice is continued in Britain today, as is the case
throughout most of the world. Aberdeen Angus was introduced into America in the 1870s
and soon attained high popularity. The first American herd books, published in 1886 and
1888 respectively, made no record as to the color of individual animals. In 1890, twenty-
two reds were registered in the American Aberdeen Angus Herdbook of some 2,700
individuals entered that year. Finally, the reds and other colors were barred from
registration altogether after 1917. This severe discrimination against the red color in an
effort to assure a pure black strain brought a marked decline in the number of red calves
born in American herds.

62
Rebirth of "Red" Angus
Various cattlemen throughout the United
States understood the outstanding values
of the reds. In 1945, the first of these
cattlemen started selecting and
breeding reds cropped from the best black Aberdeen Angus herds in America. By 1954, a
sufficient number of herds had been established to form a breeder’s organization known
as the "Red Angus Association of America."
With a temporary headquarters in Sheridan, Wyoming, seven innovative cattle breeders
created the Red Angus Association as the first performance breed registry in the United
States. In August of 1954, the Association’s first president, Waldo Forbes, Sr., summed-
up this vision of the founding members:

"The policy of the (Red Angus) Association is to discourage the more artificial practices
in purebred cattle production... and to place its faith instead in objective tests, consisting
for the most part of comparisons within herds of factors of known economic importance
and known heritability... By making this an integral part of the registration system, Red
Angus breeders feel that even faster progress can be made toward the ultimate goal of
more efficient beef production."

From the beginning, performance data was required for registration for all cattle. The
ultimate goal was to initiate a system to objectively evaluate and select cattle based on
traits of economic importance.

The Red Angus Association of America

The RAAA has long been noted for its farsighted vision of beef production. Over a
variety of fronts Red Angus has either led the industry, or been an early adopter of new
technologies. This maverick attitude allowed the RAAA to adopt philosophies and
technologies that were deemed too risky or unconventional by other associations. Here is
a sample of some visionary policies enacted by the RAAA:

A Leader in the Performance Movement

In 1954, when the Association took this bold move to build a "performance registry", the
scientific community had not even settled on using 205 days to serve as the age which
weaning weights would be adjusted to. Although collecting and turning in weaning
weights has become second nature for Red Angus breeders, very few associations require
performance data as a criteria for registration even today when the value and necessity of
the performance data has been so clearly demonstrated.

A Leader in Open A.I.

Artificial Insemination has proven to be one of the most powerful tools in the beef
industry’s genetic progress. However, as this technology became available, most breed
associations enforced strict regulations making the technology impractical for many

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breeders until the 1970’s. However, the RAAA in 1954 set its own course in which A.I.
was open and unrestricted within the Red Angus breed.

A Leader in Performance Data in the Showring

In the decade of the nineties, several breeds have started the use of objective data in the
showring as an additional tool for the judge, besides the traditional visual appraisal of
animals. Red Angus was the first to incorporate performance data in the showring,
holding the first "performance" show in 1956. Although Red Angus is not known as a
"show" breed, the Association does sponsor a National Show each year. How is it run?
You guessed it, the same as in 1956, with the judge being provided all pertinent objective
information such as EPDs.

A Leader in the Promotion of Crossbreeding

As early as 1961, the RAAA developed a pamphlet promoting crossbreeding. This was
approximately ten years prior to the industry even starting to accept crossbreeding as a
tool for commercial cow/calf production. In 1970, Red Angus continued its industry
leadership by starting and promoting an F-1 program. 1999 marked another first as the
RAAA successfully spearheaded a joint-breed promotion extolling the advantages of
heterosis.

A Leader in Offering an Open Registry

In 1980, the RAAA broke ranks from the other British breeds by instituting a category
registration system. This far sighted program still kept the 100%, Category 1-A cattle
separated, but it additionally allowed breeders to develop purebred, Category 1-B cattle
through a process of breeding-up. Furthermore, by instituting a Category II and III, the
Association is able to maintain a performance registry for foundation animals and
composites.

A Leader in Focusing on Commercial Customers

Red Angus has always prided itself as the first breed that focused its primary attention on
customers — the commercial cow/calf producers of the United States. In keeping with
this focus, the American Red Angus Magazine is sent to all Red Angus bull customers.
The Association also started a Commercial Marketing Program in 1994. Believed to be
the second such program in the industry, it offers a wide range of services designed to
enhance the profitability of producers utilizing Red Angus genetics in their commercial
operations.

A Leader in Total Herd Reporting

In the tradition of being the true "performance breed", the Association again broke ranks
with the other breed associations when they implemented an inventory based fee structure
and reporting system in 1995. Total Herd Reporting (THR) requires the production of
every registered Red Angus female to be accounted for every year, as well as the
performance of every Red Angus calf raised through weaning. If a cow and her calf are
not accounted for in a given year, the cow is removed from the registry.

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A Leader in Evaluating Fertility
The RAAA has led the industry with its
commitment to objectively
describing traits related to
reproduction and sustained
fertility. The first of this new class of
EPDs was Red Angus’ Stayability estimate. This EPD ranks animals with regard to the
probability their daughters will continue producing in the herd past six years of age. The
development of of a new Heifer Pregnancy EPD expands Red Angus’ commitment in this
vital area.

A Leader in Genotypic Certification

In 1995, Red Angus unveiled the industry’s first genotypic and source identified
program, the Feeder Calf Certification Program (FCCP). The innovative FCCP has the
honor of being the first program of its kind to be USDA Process Verified, certifying a
calf’s link to the "Angus" gene pool.

A Leader in Value Based Marketing

Red Angus has been at the forefront of the industry’s efforts to move toward a system of
value based marketing. The Association is believed to be the first breed association to
offer its members and commercial customers a value-based pricing grid with a major
packing company.

Leadership Has Made A Difference

Red Angus are Angus; yet the Red Angus breeders’ history of leadership and innovation
have made a profound difference in the red strain. They have avoided the short-term fads
that have negatively affected so many other breeds. Coupled with the long-term
commercial focus of the membership, the Red Angus gene pool also offers many
advantages. Red Angus provides a consistent source of traditional Angus traits, including
carcass quality, maternal characteristics, calving ease, and moderate size. In addition, Red
Angus offer uniformity, good disposition, and an outstanding appetite.

Today, Red Angus are seeing unparalleled popularity both in the U.S. and internationally.
In fact, the growing notoriety of the breed is bringing worldwide demand for breeding
stock from South Africa, Australia and South America, where the majority of the cattle
are red in color. This has led Red Angus to become the leading U.S. beef breed in semen
exports. In the U.S., the number of Red Angus has tripled from the mid-1980’s through
the mid-1990’s. In Canada, where red and black Angus cattle are registered together
(which is the case in most countries), the number of red cattle registered is approximately
the same as the black strain.

The Future

65
Due to the numerous natural advantages with which the Red Angus breed is endowed,
and based off the heritage and continued philosophy of the Red Angus Association of
America, it appears that a great breed is coming into its own. The future of the breed as
the common denominator in progressive cattle producers’ crossbreeding systems is
unlimited. As Joseph Givhan, founding RAAA member, shared in his early publication
on the breed’s history...

"Here is a noble breed that will never die, destined to increase and flourish. It
shall cover the grazing lands of the earth and forever enrich the husbandry of
mankind."

Red Poll
The Red Poll cattle were
developed as a dual-purpose breed
in their native counties in England.
Breeders sought a type that would
fatten readily rather than be of
extreme size. A good milk flow
was also considered important in
selecting breeding stock in the
development of the breed in its
native land.

The counties of Suffolk and

Norfolk in England are the original homes of the Red Poll. These counties, which lie in a
low rather marshy section of England, border the North Sea and have soil that is
generally lacking in fertility. The first general agricultural records of England record a
great interest in dairy, particularly in Suffolk County. However, the farmers did not
specialize in dairy animals but preferred cattle with a combination of milk production and
high quality carcasses.

 No one knows when the first cattle were introduced into Suffolk, but it was thought that
cattle were brought to that area by the Romans.

 In discussing the cattle of Suffolk in 1794, Rev. Arthur Young, in his book The General
View of Agriculture of the County of Norfolk, reported:

This breed is universally polled, that is without horns; the size small, few rise
when fat to above fifty stones (fourteen pounds). . . . If I were to describe the
points of certain individuals . . . a clean throat with little dewlap; a thin clean
snake head; thin legs; a very large carcase; ribs tolerably springing from the

66
centre of the back but with a heavy belley; backbone ridged; chine thin and
hollow; loin narrow; udder large, loose and creased when empty; milk-veins
remarkably large, and rising in knotted puffs to the eye . . . many of these beasts
will fatten remarkably well; the flesh of a fine quality; and in that state will feel
well enough to satisfy the touch of skillful butchers. The best milkers I have
known, have either been red, brindle, or yellowish cream coloured . . . the quality
of milk is very considerable indeed.

The cattle of Norfolk were described in 1782 by Marshall (as quoted in the Red Polled
Herd Book, vol 1, American ed., 1891) as:

a small, hardy, thriving race; fattening as freely and finishing as highly at three
years old as cattle in general do at four or five. They are small boned, short
legged, round barrelled, well-loined, thin-thighed, clean chapped; the head, in
general, fine, and the horns clean, middle sized and bent forward; the favorite
colour a blood-red with a white mottled face . . . and if the London butchers be
judges of beef, there are no better beasts sent to Smithfield market. The two
qualifications, namely the superior quality of their flesh, and their fattening freely
at an early age, do away with every solid objection to their size and form.

It is not definitely known when the two breeds were first crossed, or what infusions of
blood may have been from other breeds. Galloway Cattle and Devons were brought into
the area, and, no doubt, some of this breeding found its way into what later was called the
Red Polled Breed.

The Red Poll In America

G.P Taber of New York State started importing

Red Polled cattle in 1873. His fist importation
consisted of a bull and three heifers; two years
later, he imported four more cows; in 1882 he
brought over three bulls ad twenty-three
additional heifers. In 1882, Messrs. Mead and
Kimball, Randolph, Vermont, imported a bull and ten females. Importation was a thriving
business for a few years but after 1902 practically no more Red Polls were brought over.
The breed was established in the United States on only about 300 head that were brought
in from Britain. The breed spread from the United States into Canada

 Current selection criteria on Red Poll in the United States is primarily for beef
production.

 The first Red Poll Association was organized as the Red Poll Cattle Club of America in
1883. The association was re-incorporated in Nebraska in 1947, and the name changed to
the American Red Poll Association in 1975.

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  Simmental
A History of the Simmental Breed

The Simmental is among the oldest and most widely distributed of all breeds of cattle in
the world. Although the first herd book was established in the Swiss Canton of Berne in
1806, there is evidence of large,
productive red and white cattle found
much earlier in ecclesiastical and secular
property records of western
Switzerland. These red and white animals
were highly sought because of their
"rapid growth development;
outstanding production of milk, butter,
and cheese; and for their use as draught
animals." they were known for their
imposing stature and excellent dairy
qualities.

As early as 1785, the Swiss Parliament limited exports because of a shortage of cattle to
meet their own needs. The Swiss "Red and White Spotted Simmental Cattle Association"
was formed in 1890.

Since its origin in Switzerland, the breed has spread to all six continents. Total numbers
are estimated between 40 and 60 million Simmental cattle world-wide. More than half of
these are in Europe. The spread was gradual until the late 1960s. Records show that a few
animals were exported to Italy as early as the 1400s. During the 19th century, Simmental
were distributed through most of Eastern Europe, the Balkans, and Russia, ultimately
reaching South Africa in 1895. Guatemala imported the first Simmental into the Western
Hemisphere in 1897, with Brazil following suite in 1918 and Argentina in 1922.

There are reports from a variety of sources indicating that Simmental cattle arrived in the
United States before the turn of the
century. Simmental were reported as
early as 1887 in Illinois, according to one
source; in 1895 in New Jersey; and in both
New York and New Mexico around
the 1916 to 1920 period. An ad in an
1896 issue of the Breeder's
Gazette, published in Chicago, also made
reference to "Simmenthal" cattle.
However, those early imports did not
capture the attention of the
American cattleman and the
Simmental influence died quietly away until the late 1960s.

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The breed made its most recent appearance in North America when a Canadian, named
Travers Smith, imported the famed bull "Parisien" from France in 1967. Semen was
introduced into the United States that same year, with the first half-blood Simmental calf
born in February of 1968. The American Simmental Association was formed in October
of 1968. Simmental spread to Great Britain, Ireland, and Norway in 1970 and to Sweden
and other Northern European countries shortly thereafter. The first purebred bull
imported into the United States in 1971 and Australia received Simmental semen and live
animals in 1972. The World Simmental Federation was formed in 1974. In 1976
Simmental cattle were shipped to the Peoples' Republic of China.

The breed is known by a variety of names, including "Fleckvieh" in Germany, Austria

and Switzerland as well as many other European countries."Pie Rouge", "Montbeliard",
and "Abondance" in France; and "Pezzata Rossa" in Italy. The Simmental name is
derived from their original location, the Simme Valley of Switzerland. In German, Thal
or Tal means valley, thus the name literally means "Simme Valley".

The amazing growth of Simmental cattle in North America is really a reflection of what
has already occurred in most agricultural countries of the world. Presently, the American
Simmental Association registered about 80,000 cattle annually into the Simmental and

Beef cattle Feed and nutritional management

- three general forms:
1. dry feeds
ex. Hays, grains, oilseed meals, straw, stover, corn cobs, corn husks, SB hulls, SB mill feeds,
cottonseed hulls, peanut hulls, oat hulls, rice hulls

2. green feeds

ex. Pasture and green chop(feeds are roughages chopped daily in the feed and brought to
livestock for feeding)

3. high moisture feeds

ex. High-moisture grain, haylage, wet byproduct feeds, roots & tubers, fresh milk, silage

Two groups of Feeds

Roughage Concentrate
- are feeds that are high in fibre and low in - are feeds that are low in fibre and high in
TDN TDN
- contain above 18% CF when dry - contain below 18% CF when dry

Legumes Grass
- have on their roots nodules containing - include timothy, brome grass, orchard
bacteria that fix nitrogen from the air grass, blue grass, sudan grass, millet hay, oal
hay, etc.
- include alfalfa, clovers, peanut hay, SB hay
etc.

69
- corn, oats, barley, grain sorghum, wheat

b) Supplement feeds
- include protein feeds, minerals and vitamins

Protein feeds
animal origin Plant origin Urea & other nonprotein
tankage, meat scraps, meat & SBM, SB, cotton seed meal, products are also
bone meal, fish meal, dried peanut oil meal, corn gluted supplements, neither animal
skim milk, blood milk, meal, sesame oil meal, nor plant sources
feather milk, etc. sunflower meal, seed meal,
etc.

Mineral feeds
- are used to provide the mineral needs of the animal
- are of two types: Macro- and Micro Minerals

Vitamin supplements
- are available to provide necessary vitamins in the ration
c) Byproduct feeds
- from the milling & brewing are used in the feeding
- include wheat bran, rice bran, molasses, brewer’s grain, beet pulp, malt sprouts, whey, etc.

Important Feed Components

1. Carbohydrates 4. Minerals
2. Lipids (Fats & Oils) 5. Vitamins
3. Protein 6. Water
1 & 2 are Energy sources

It is necessary to match the nutrients provided by the feeds to the requirements of the animal to
have a properly balanced ration
Properly balanced rations are necessary to maximize growth, production and economic return.

Energy Nutrients
Energy terminology

Calorie (cal) measures the amount of heat energy required to raise the temperature of 1 kg water
from 14.50C to 15.50C.
1 cal = 4.2 Joules
Kilocalorie (Kcal) = 1000 calories
Megacalorie (Mcal) = 106 calories

Gross Energy (GE)

- is the total amount of heat released when a substance is completely oxidized in a bomb
calorimeter under 25 – 30 atmospheres of oxygen.
- Units are Kcal/kg or Kcal/lb of feed

70
  DE, ME, or NE cannot exceed the GE value of a given feed.

Digestible Energy (DE) = GE – Energy in Feces

Metabolizable Energy (ME) = GE – Energy in Feces, Urine, & Gaseous products of digestion

Heat Increment (HI)

is that proportion of the ME, which is used for digestion, or metabolism of absorbed nutrients
into body tissue

Net Energy (NE) = ME – HI

- is used for growth, maintenance, production, work, fetal development, & heat production

GE
DE Energy in Feces
Energy in Urine & ME
gaseous products of
digestion

Fig. Utilization of dietary energy by the animal

- the level at which each nutrient is required by an animal depend on whether the animal is
being fed for
 maintenance
 maintenance + production
 maintenance + production + reproduction

- most nutrients can be fed in excess, but if any nutrient is not present in an adequate amount,
the performance of the animal will be limited

Requirements for maintenance

- is the amount of feed that must be fed to keep an animal at a particular weight without any
significant change in body composition
- is that amount of feed needed to maintain essential body functions such as respiration, heart
rate, eating, keeping warm, etc.
- includes also the feed needed to replace the nutrients that are excreted daily from the body
 tissue of the body are constantly undergoing breakdown and repair, therefore
nutrients are required to replace this loss

Requirements for production

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- are met after maintenance requirement
- are the amount of feed needed for growth or milk production
- need large quantities of feed

Requirements for reproduction

- are very important in a cow-calf operation

- are the amount of feed needed above that for maintenance, for the cow to conceive and
produce a healthy fetus and calf

Relationship among maintenance, production and reproduction

Feed
↓
.
.
.
Reproduction
Production
Maintenance

Factors determining the level of nutrient requirement:

- breed - overall balance of nutrition

- age and sex - stress from the environments
- level of production - hormonal and physiological activities

 In cow-calf nutrition the objective is to formulate balanced rations that supply all the
required nutrients:
 at adequate level
 in a proper balance and
 at minimum cost.

 The cost of feed is a major part of the total cost of production in a cow-calf operation
 Proper feeding during gestation period, b/n calving & breeding are essential for good
reproductive performance & calf productivity
 Inadequate nutrition can result in lowered reproductive performance, which is reflected
in the number of calves born & the CI
 One must provide enough feed to meet the herd’s requirements without providing so
much feed that the cost of production rises to uneconomical level.
 Supply the animals with a balanced ration that will give them sufficient nutrients to
promote optimum efficiency in performance at a reasonable cost

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  Adequate nutrition means providing the animal with specific level of the nutrients
required for maintenance, production, & reproduction. These nutrients should supply the
animal with energy, protein, minerals, vitamins & water.

FEED ANALYSIS

Feed analysis is necessary due to the variation in feed quality between fields or pastures within
the same area or the same year. Forage maturity will influence fibre, energy and protein
concentrations in the forage.

Research has indicated that even the time of day forages are cut will influence their relative
feeding value. Effective utilization of low quality forages are dependent upon adequate protein.
A feed analysis is more cost effective than over supplementing expensive protein.

Feed testing determines the Energy (NE, DE, or TDN via ADF levels), Protein and Mineral
content of feeds. Other analysis such as NDF can help determine animal intake of questionable
forages and in the case of heated forages, ADIN will determine the fraction of protein no longer
available to the animal. Anti-nutritive factors, such as nitrates and molybdenum levelscan also be
determined in feedstuffs.

Feed analysis, in conjunction with Ration Balancing and Body Condition Scoring can ensure
an adequate supplementation program, that reduces over or under-feeding while determining a
minimum cost formulation.

Energy Nutrients
- carbohydrates and lipids are the major sources of energy in livestock rations
- some energy is also derived from the protein in the ration

 of these sources, carbohydrates are the most important because they are:
 readily available
 easily digested in great quantities
 lower in cost

 lipids (fats and oils) are the second most important sources of energy for livestock
 disadvantage: in warmer climate it is difficult to store feeds that are high in fat
content because they tend to become rancid
o this makes the feed unpalatable
o in some cases, rancid feed may cause digestive disturbances

 lipids contain 2.5 times as much energy as carbohydrates

Energy
- is usually the most limiting nutrient in a ration

73
- is the fuel that animal burns for maintenance of body functions, for movement, for growth,
for work, for production, etc.

A deficiency of energy caused by under feeding results in;

 reduction or cessation of growth
 loss of weight
 failure to conceive
 increased mortality (due to lowered resistance to disease)

Overfeeding (supplying too much energy, is wasteful because it increases feed costs. It can also
adversely affect reproductive performance by causing calving difficulties since increased fat
deposition around the reproductive tract reduces the area of pelvic opening

Sources of energy
Concentrates Forages Byproducts
Shelled corn, Corn & cob Corn silage, straws, corn Dried citrus pulp, dried beet
meal, Ground snapped Stover, pasture pulp, potato meal, sweet
corn, corn starch & oil, potatoes, dried whey
oats, oats grouts, barley,
wheat, wheat bran, grain
sorghum, rice, rice bran

Fats Molasses
- are concentrated water solutions of sugar,
hemicelullose, & minerals
- ex. Cane or black strap, beet, citrus, wod,
etc.
- slower growth in the young - a loss of body weight
- a delay in the onset of puberty - a higher mortality rate
- a decrease in milk yield in lactating animals - a lowered resistance to diseases & parasites
- a shortened lactation period - weakness, generally poor condition
- reproductive problems: reduced fertility, - a loss of subcutaneous fat
delayed estrus
A reduction in levels of blood glucose, calcium
and sodium
 internal organs & soft structure of the body are composed of primarily of proteins

- in the food chain originate from plants that combine simple sugars and CHs (produced by
photosynthesis) with nitrogen and small amounts of phosphorus, sulphur & iron, to form
amino acids
- of plant origin when digested by the animals provide the amino acids, which are used in the
body to form animal protein
- of plant origin is mostly found in the leaves, petioles, & seeds
 in addition to proteins, plants contain simpler nitrogenous compounds called non-protein
nitrogen (NPN)

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 Crude protein refers to all the nitrogenous compounds found in a feed, i.e. protein and NPN
(ex. Urea & ammonium salts {nitrates, nitrite, NH3)

- the nitrogen content of protein averages 16%, thus the amount of CP in the feed is found by
determining the nitrogen content and multiplying by 6.25 (i.e. 100/16)
- not all CP in a fed is digestible
 feeds sometimes contain substances such as hair, hooves & feather, which contain
nitrogen but are not digestible
 Digestible protein-is a rations approximate amount of protein available for use by the
animal
-is the difference b/n protein content of the feed &what is found in the
feces
 10 amino acids are essential to monogastrics, whereas ruminants only need a source of
nitrogen, from which the microbes in the rumen can then construct the essential amino
acids

Functions of Proteins
- necessary for all plants & animals life b/c they’re an essential part of all living tissue
- the muscles, cartilage, ligaments, nerves, brain, blood cells, internal organs, skin, haur,
wool, feather, hooves, horns, and bones of animals all contain protein
- secretions in the body including enzymes, hormones

Functions of Proteins
- proteins are necessary for all plants and animals life b/c they’re an essential part of all living
tissue
 the muscles, cartilage, ligaments, nerves, brain, blood cells, internal organs, skin, hair,
wool, feather, hooves, horns, & bones of animals all contain protein
 secretions in the body including enzymes, hormones, mucin, & milk all require specific
amino acids
- protein is required for fetal development during the gestation period
- while protein is needed for maintenance, finishing, work, & wool production, the greatest
needs is for growth, reproduction and lactation

 there is no other nutrient that can replace protein in the diet

Protein deficiency / beef cattle

- appetite depression, which results in reduced energy intake

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  causes delayed or irregular estrus in breeding females
- a loss of weight, slower growth, & reduced milk production

Protein as energy source

- when more protein is included in the diet than needed for body functions, the excess may be
used as energy source
- b/c protein feeds are generally more expensive than energy feeds, this is not an economical
source of energy

Minerals
- when an organic material, such as feed, is burned, the ash that is left is the mineral content
- are inorganic substances needed in very small amounts by animals

Macro/Major Minerals Micro/Trace Minerals

- needed in large amounts - are necessary for the well being of the
animal.
- are needed in sufficient quantities to
promote health & to optimize pn. & repn.
- are all toxic when fed in excessive amount
- ex. Calcium, Phosphorus, Magnesium, - ex. Copper, Zinc, Manganese, Selenium,
Potassium, Sulphur, Salt (NA & Cl) Iodine, Cobalt,

- many of them normally occur in sufficient quantities in the feeds while others must be
supplemented in the ration
- trace minerals like copper, manganese, zinc and selenium are necessary to promote health
and maximize growth rate of cattle. They help boost the immune system against disease
which leads to greater productivity and fertility
- phosphorus is an important macro mineral influencing fertility levels in nursing beef cows.
By using loose salt mixed with the phosphorus mineral, the cows have a better chance of
receiving the necessary amount of phosphorus. This applies to all other minerals as well. In
addition, cattle consume more salt in the loose than block form.
- To design a trace mineral supplementation program, one needs to know:
 the cattle requirements for minerals,
 the feed or pasture mineral level and
 the nutrient content of supplement

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Functions of Minerals
- provide material for the growth of bones, teeth & soft tissues
- regulate many of the vital chemical processes in the body
 aid in muscular stimulation and activity, reproduction, digestion, repair of tissue, &
release of body heat for energy
- help to regulate the acid-base balance
- are essential for the utilization of some vitamins in the body

Deficiency symptoms
- a lack of iron in the blood reduces its ability to carry oxygen to the body cells
- when Ca & P are deficient, the bones and teeth do not form properly
- inefficient feed utilization, poor gains & lower meat, milk, egg production
- physical problems such as anemia, hypocalcemia (milk fever), goiter, or death

Minerals in the ration

- are usually added to the ration either by feeding them free choice or including them in the
mixed ration
- salt, Ca & P are the minerals most likely to be needed in the rations of farm animals
 about 70% of the mineral content of an animal’s body is Ca & P

Vitamins
- are organic compounds required in minute amounts by the body
- are essential to metabolism and some must be supplied in the feed
- required by cattle are A, D & E.
 B-vitamins and vitamin K are produced by rumen microorganisms

Water
- is the main constitute of the animal’s body , constituting 50-80% of the live weight,
depending on age and degree of fatness
- an animal may lose almost all of its fat and about 50% of its body protein and survive.

77
  but the lose of 10% of its body water can be fatal

Water functions
- to help eliminate waste products of digestion and metabolism
- regulate blood osmotic pressure
- as a major component of secretions (milk, saliva)
- in the thermoregulation (evaporation, respiration etc.)

Water sources for cattle

- free drinking water
- water contained in feed
- metabolic water produced by metabolic activities

Water consumption requirements depends on

- kind and size of animal
- physiological state
- level of activity
- level of dry matter intake
- physical form of diet
- quality of water
- temperature of the water offered
- surrounding air temperature
3.3. PRINCIPLES OF BEEF CATTLE PRODUCTION

Growth: making the animal fattened within a short period of time. But development takes a long
time to fatten the animal starting from young to mature. The animal must be deprive of feed and
water for at least 12 hours to avoid contamination and also to reduce the effect of gut content
before slaughter.

78
The slaughter animal must be stun (make unconscious) then it must be slaughter in a clean area.
And it is better to transport animals early morning with enough resting time to improve carcass
quality.
Q. Point out the principles of beef cattle fattening.

Reference:

 Delegins.3rdedn. Beef production.

Sample Questions
1. Which system of beef cattle production provides most cattle to be
slaughtered in the country?
2. List important exotic and local breeds of beef cattle.

CHAPTER FOUR:
SHEEP AND GOAT PRODUCTION
UNIT DESCRIPTION

79
This unit describes distribution and zoological classification of sheep and goats, attributes of
sheep and goat, criteria for breed classification and sheep and goats breeds. To deliver these
contents, active learning methods such as brainstorming, interactive lecture, and independent
learning will be used. And also to assess students’ achievemen t, continuous assessments such as
quiz, test, class activities, assignments and others will be used.

Q. What do you think people keep sheep and goats?

Brainstorming

4.1. ORIGINS AND DOMESTICATION

The origin and classification of goat
Domestication is associated with 3 of the oldest civilizations: the Nile in north-east Africa, the
Tigris-Euphrates in western Asia and the Indus in the Indian sub-continent. From these centers of
domestication people migrated to other parts of the world. The goat is a hollow horned, even
toed ruminant of the family Bovidae and either of the genera Capra or Hemitragus.

External features that differentiate goat from sheep:

 beard and odoriferous tail-glands of the male
 absence of face glands and hence lachrymal pits in the skull
 absence of foot glands (at least in the hind feet)
 Heteronymous nature of the horns
 body covering
 tail is upright (hanging in sheep)
 feeding system
Q. Distinguish origin and domestication of sheep and goats.

METHODS OF CLASSIFICATION
 Origin. (European, Oriental, Asiatic or African).

 Ear shape and length. More applicable for sheep, but a lot of variation in
goats as well. Function.(milk, meat, fiber of skin). Not applicable for all-

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 purpose animals Body size. Most widely used. e.g. Dwarf goats

 Height at withers. Divides goats in three groups:

SHEEP & GOAT BREEDS

Sheep breeds
Sheep belong to the sub-family Caprinae. The genus Ovis includes all sheep. The process of
domestication brought about a number of morphological and physiological modifications in
sheep.

Systems of classification
Domestic sheep vary in size, shape of the body, nature of coat cover, productive ability,
reproductive capacity, adaptability, size and shape of horns, tail, ears and profile, as well as
many trademark or special breed characteristics, and they defy complete categorization.
Different classification systems are used for temperate breeds. But it cannot always be applied to
tropical sheep which are usually much less clearly defined.

Tail type Adali (or Afar) Red Sokoto (Maradi)

Long thin-tailed Goat Breeds West African Dwarf

Short thin - tailed
Methods of classification West Agrica Langlegged
Fat tailed
Origin
Fat rumped East Africa
Ear shape and length.
Small East African
 Indigenous Sheep Function(milk, meat, fiber
Breeds of skin). Somali

Height at withers. Divides Central Africa

Abyssinian
goats in three groups:
Akele guzai Bantu
Northeast Africa
Tucur South Africa
Nubian
Menz
Boer
Arusi-Bale Sudan Desert
Temperate breeds in the
Blackheaded Somali West Africa tropics
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Anglo-Nubian

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 Q. Describe some sheep and goat breeds.

Functional roles of goats and sheep

Meat
 Tropical peoples consume virtually all offals, including skins in some countries
 No religious objection, in contrary

Milk
 Goats are most important milk producers
 Importance of sheep milk underestimated because most sheep milk which is consumed in
pastoralist camps and remote villages goes unrecorded
 Goat`s milk is nutritionally similar to cow`s milk, but the high proportion of small fat
globules facilitates easy digestion
 Sheep milk possesses a higher content of fat, crude protein and non-fat solids

Skins
 Sheep skins are more important than goat skins in the Tropics
 Certain goat breeds produce premium quality skin (ex. Red Sokoto, Mubende and Black
Bengal --- these goat skins are well known for their superior quality and command a
premium in world markets)
 Tropical Sheep skins coming from haired or only lightly wooled animals are much thicker
than those from the temperate-type fine-wooled breeds
 Apart from their monetary value in world commerce goat and sheep skin have many local
uses (ex. As containers for water, milk and other liquids; for making bedding; locally
produced handicrafts.)

Hair and Wool

 Goat`s hair is used locally for making coarse bags and rope, but mohair (fleece of Angora
goats) and cashmere (very fine under coat of the Cashmere--pashmina) are speciality
fibres commanding a premium price on world market
 Tropical sheep low quality wool. (5% of world production) often hairy or hair/wool coat.

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  Limited amount of hair-wool is collected/processed locally into natural coloured rugs,
etc.

Importance of goats and sheep in rural communities

In pastoralists and agriculturalists subsistence societies both species may be kept as a source of
investment and as an insurance against disaster.

 Slaughtered at ceremonies/feasts
 Payment of social dues
 Religious importance to Islam
 Manure is primary reason for keeping in some areas (also in Ethiopia)
 Rump and tail fat used as a cooking fat
 Ram fighting (Indonesia)
 Experimental animals

Small ruminant production systems

Traditional systems of sheep production have developed in response to the climate and other aspects of the
environment. In the dry part of the tropics flocks are large and often travel long distances. These flocks are known as
extensive flocks. At the other end of the scale, in the wet tropics, flocks are usually small and secondary to crop
production. These flocks are called intensive flocks. Types of sheep production systems are shown in the table
below.

Table: Types of sheep production systems

Sheep production systems

Traditional Modern
Migratory Smallholder Ranching Finishing Unit

Migratory
Nomadic Transhumant

System depends highly on environmental conditions (humid tropics smallholders, arid tropics migratory)

The number of sheep that can live on an area of land is known as the carrying capacity. Carrying capacity increases
with rainfall as shown in table 2.2, because the amount of fodder available depends on the rainfall. This does not
mean that there are large numbers of sheep in areas with high rainfall because here it is possible to grow crops for at
least part of the year, and other animal production systems may be more profitable than sheep production.

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In areas with a dry season the vegetation grows mostly during and shortly after the rains. During the dry season the
feeding value of the vegetation falls. Its digestibility, energy content, protein content and mineral content all become
very low. Soon after the beginning of the rains, the grass grows rapidly and it has a high feeding value.
Table: Fodder production and carrying capacity of lowland tropical Africa
Average annual rainfall (mm) Annual production of fodder Carrying capacity (sheep/ha)
(kg dry matter/ha)
200 150 0.7
400 300 1.3
600 450 2.0
800 530 2.3
1000 620 2.7
1400 780 3.4
1800 960 4.2

Migratory systems in the dry areas

Flocks which move to different areas at specific times of the year are said to be migratory. Migratory flocks are
found around the Sahara in Africa, in the horn of east Africa, in the drier parts of Kenya and Tanzania, in Botswana
and Namibia, in the Middle East and in Thar Desert of India and Pakistan. People who keep flocks and herds in dry
areas are known as pastoralists.
Migration is not an aimless wandering, but movement along established routes. Most migratory
societies have traditional land-use rights. Migratory flocks do not observe political boundaries,
and may move from one country to another.
In the tropics migratory systems are usually between very dry areas and wetter areas. The word migration is also
used for flocks which move up and down mountains in response to temperature, as is seen in the Himalayas and the
Alps.
The reasons why lowland tropical flocks migrate are to get reasonable quality food and water throughout the year,
and to avoid flooding in wet areas. In the dry season, flocks graze in areas of higher rainfall, or in river valleys or
around lakes where there is green vegetation and when water is available for drinking.
Migratory flocks may graze on fields, which have been cultivated during the wet season. Sheep eat the aftermaths of
crops and in return give manure that is needed for the next year’s crop.
When the rains come migratory flocks move out to make use of seasonal vegetation in very dry areas. Traditionally
flocks move on foot, travelling 10 to 20 km each day, but in the Middle East transport on lorries between the wet
and dry season grazing areas is increasing.
Migratory sheep are usually found together with goats, cattle and camels. Each species has its own requirements.
For instance, sheep tend to eat short grass, whereas cattle eat long grass and goats eat shrubs.
Grazing of small ruminant is usually for 10-12 hours daily. They may not be taken to water every day, so that on
days when they are not watered they can graze far away from watering points to better pasture. Nomads travel with
their animals.

Some of their responses to catastrophe are:

 Herd diversification; different species with different grazing habits
 Loaning animals and sharing herds

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 Movement of herds

There are two main types of migratory system: nomadism and transhumance. Nomads are people who have no
permanent home but move from place to place with their herds and flocks. Transhumance are people who have a
permanent home to which they return each year, but some of the members of the society take the flocks and herds
away from the permanent settlement for a large proportion of the year. Sometimes young animals and does in
lactation are kept in the sedentary village and the males and dry females are kept in camps several kilometres away.
Flock size in nomadic and transhumant migratory systems are typically between 50 and 200.

Smallholders flocks

In areas with enough rainfall to grow crops, flocks of sheep are often a small but important part of the farming
system. Typically the number of sheep on each farm is less than ten, so that this type of system is known as
smallholder production. A variety of types of daily management are found:
 Free grazing; Flocks graze freely, thus the labour input is very low. The sheep are let out of their enclosure
in the morning and shut in again at night. Disadvantage of unsupervised grazing is that the sheep are likely
to eat vegetation they are not supposed to, such as vegetables in the neigbours’ garden. Losses from theft
and predators may also be high.
 Shepherding; requires the highest labour and this can be a serious problem where labour is also needed for
cultivation, weeding and harvesting, as well as normal household jobs such as carrying water and grinding
grain. One way to reduce the labour input is to amalgate flocks for grazing. Either members of each sheep-
owning family take it in turns to look after the combined flock for a day, or someone is paid to look after
the flock along with other flocks.
Because sheep like to stay together, they are relatively easy to shepherd, and old people
or children can do shepherding. Now that more children go to school, there is less labour
available for shepherding. Some flocks are shepherded only in the afternoon, after the
children come back from school.

 Tethering; requires relatively little labour, but sheep should be tethered on areas of good quality fodder and
should be moved two or three times each day so they can eat enough vegetation.
 Stall-feeding; is traditional in some intensively cultivated areas. A sheep requires between 5 and 10kg of
fodder every day, depending on the size of the sheep and the type of fodder. The time taken to collect and
carry this fodder is considerable, and it is easy for stall-fed sheep to be underfed.

Interaction with cropping systems

In smallholder systems sheep are usually to graze during the dry season in fields after the crop have been harvested.
Sheep consume the aftermaths, and their dung and urine fertilise the field. Sheep are confined at night to prevent
losses from predators and theft. Night confinement also allows collection of manure.
During the rainy season sheep must be prevented from eating crops growing in the fields. They cannot be allowed to
graze freely unless the fields are fenced, and this is very unusual. With careful tethering or shepherding in the rainy
season sheep can graze fodder growing on wasteland and field boundaries, which would otherwise be wasted.

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In Ethiopia and especially Tigray, high concentration of animals. Shortage of grazing land is compensated by use of
residues and aftermath grazing.

Sheep production under tree crops

Sheep are reared under many tree crops (oil palms, cocoa, coconuts, cashews, rubber, coffee, etc.). Sheep eat the
weeds under the trees and so reduce the labour required for weed and brush control.
Sheep are preferred to goats in plantations because goats chew the bark of the trees and to cattle because they cannot
reach as high with their mouths and cause less damage to the soil. Weed is in this way controlled and sheep can
benefit from the shade offered by the trees. However, often problem with internal parasites because of damp shady
climate under the trees.

Ranching

Rotational grazing and creep grazing (young animals first)

In ranching systems there is scope for controlling the grazing of the flock. In particular, grazing can be restricted to
certain parts of the ranch so that other parts are ungrazed for a while. This is known as rotational grazing. Also
lambs can be given access to better pasture than that allowed to older sheep. This is known as creep grazing.
Table: Management systems for goats in Asia
Production system Ecozone Annual rainfall
(mm)
Tethering Sub-humid, Humid 1,200

Extensive production (highlands) Arid 500

Extensive production (lowlands) Semi-arid 500-1,200

Intensive production Sub-humid, Humid 1,200

Integration with cropping system Semi-arid, Sub-humid, Humid

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Sheep and Goat Housing

Housing of goats

Arid environments > shelter during the day in order to reduce the effects of heat
Humid tropics > protection from rain (pneumonia)
Without housing: heat stress > increased endocrine function, excessive excretion of sodium and potassium and water
loss.
Indigenous goats are less affected. More care has to be taken with exotic breeds.

Types of housing

Housing design and materials can be kept simple.

Hosing should be light, well ventilated, well drained and easily cleaned.

Ground level housing

Common in most parts of the tropics, particularly in semi-arid and sub-tropical regions where rainfall is not
excessive.
Lean-to type: shed is attached to existing buildings. Height 2-3 m sloping to 1-1.5 m.
Single building are used for larger flock sizes. In more modern houses, a double cone roofing is used to increase
ventilation.

Stilted housing
Floor raised 1.5 m above ground level to facilitate easy cleaning and collection of dung and urine. Good ventilation.
Especially seen in high rainfall areas in Asia.
The spaces between the slatted floor should be about 2 cm.

Corals
Found in central America for large flock of goats (500-2000) that are reared under extensive conditions.

Floor-space requirements

Floor space requirements depend mainly on the size of goats. Tropical goats are generally
smaller than temperate.

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 Category Requirement per animal (m²)

Kid 0.3
Doe (non-pregnant) 1.5
Doe (pregnant) 1.9
Buck 2.8

Housing and handling facilities for sheep

The same as for goats, housing only needs much attention in sedentary flocks and the more intensive systems of
production.
Wooled sheep don't need shelter from cold and in semi-tropics, overhousing may even be a problem.
Haired animals in arid Tropics require no protection other than natural shade, except when held in relative
confinement.
More elaborate folding facilities, apart from a roof should have several partitions to facilitate division of the flock on
occasion and to conduct special operations (weighing, milking, disease treatment, shearing, castrating, docking and
lambing). Other special features are water and feed troughs, a crush and dipping vats.

In most cases the housing is more important to keep thieves and predators out than the livestock in.

Floor space requirements for medium-sized breeds

With yard Without yard

Adult 0.20-0.40 0.40-0.80

Ewe with lamb 0.30-0.50 0.60-1.00
Young sheep 0.15-0.20 0.30-0.40
Ram 0.50-0.75 1.00-1.50

If the sheep are able to get out during daytime on a yard (2-3 m²/head) they don't require much room in the shelter.
The minimum height of fences is 1 m, as tropical sheep have remarkable jumping ability.
Wired fences should be spaced at intervals of 5, 10, 10, 15, 20, 20 and 20 cm (going upwards from ground level).
Barbed wire should not be used as it is ore expensive to buy, no more effective and is difficult to handle. It can also
cause injuries to sheep.
Wire netting is preferable. Posts should be spaced at intervals of 5-10 m, depending on how solid they are, the type
of fence used and the density of stocking in the yard.
It is important to provide gates of sufficient width (> 2m) so as to reduce the jostling that inevitable takes place
when sheep leave or enter the yard, and which can cause ewes near the end of gestation to abort.

Additional facilities may be:

 Sorting pens
 Lambing unit

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 Hospital area
 Dips/spray races
 Foot baths

CHAPTER FIVE:
POULTRY PRODUCTION
UNIT DESCRIPTION

This unit deals with the role of poultry production, poultry production systems, poultry breeds
and poultry production and management. It will be delivered through brain storming, self
learning, interactive lecture and self learning. And also to assess students’ achievement,
continuous assessments such as quiz, test, class activities, assignments and others will be used.

Brainstorming

Q. what do you think why people keep poultry?

5.1 ROLE OF POULTRY PRODUCTION

Poultry play a significant role in the livelihood of the rural and urban population of Ethiopia.
Besides being a valuable source of income it has the following advantages.

 Small investment such as feed cost, space requirement low cost of the animal etc.
 Stock numbers can easily be increased as needed due to their fast reproduction rate.
 Poultry can easily be sold off at time of economic difficulty.
 Chickens could be maintained on a limited amount of feed during feed scarcity.
 Poultry farming do not cause land degradation i.e. erosion.
 Poultry production is more suitable to areas where there is land scarcity for grazing
 Poultry rearing creates rural employment (for women, children and men) improves
nutritional status of the people.

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 5.2 POULTRY PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
There are three systems
 extensive (unlimited access to grass land)
 Semi-intensive (restriction to a certain amount of grassland)
 Intensive (confined and no access to grass at all)

Q. Differentiate poultry production systems.

5.3 BREED AND STRAINS OF POULTRY

The majority of breeds used today by commercial poultry keepers are hybrids that have been bred by the
large - scale international poultry breeding corporation.

Choice of breeds or, strain depends on

- Aptitude (meat, egg, a mixed)

- Hardiness
- Productivity/maximal performance in meat /egg laying
- feed efficiency, low feed consumption
- Presence or absence of broodiness
- Quality of products.
Examples of chcken breeds (exotic)

- White leghorn (Italy, USA) _ best layer of white eggs

- Whit wayand otte (USA) _ very hardy breed of mixed aptitude
- Rhode Island Red (USA)_ mixed breed, red colour
- New Hampshire (USA) _ red plumage, red plumage
- Light Sussex (Bntish)_dual purpose breed
- Barred phymouth Rock (USA)_ good layer, relatively small size
- Cornish white (England)_meat breed, laying capacities reduced
- Local breeds_broody, hardy (Example, Nech, Melata, Gebisima, tikur)
Examples of indigenous breeds

 Tikur - black

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  Netch – white
 Kai - red
 Gebsma – gray
 Naked neck
5.4. POULTRY PRODUCTION AND MANAGEMENT

5.4.1. Incubation

Incubation can be achieved either by natural means using broody hen or by artificial means.
Natural incubation
Natural incubation is practiced under scavenging system of poultry keeping.
5.4.2. Managing young and growing chicks

Management of chicks from 1 day to 8 week of age

Before the day old chicks are received. Make sure that the following are in order.
 If it has been used remove old litter
 The floor, walls and roofs thoroughly cleaned
 All holes and cracks should be patched
 Disinfect the house, allow the house to dry
 Add at least 5cm litter material for the first time, the litter should be clean and dry.

5.4.3. Managing layers and broilers

Layers kept on litter floor use laying nest to lay their eggs. There are two types of laying nest
namely individual nest and communal nest. The individual nest should be 30 cm wide, 35 cm
long and 40 cm high. Allow one nest for every 4-5 layers. Communal nest which can be used by
10-15 birds at the same time is not generally suitable for tropical condition since it is difficult for
the birds to get rid of their body heat very well.

 Place laying nests, at least one per 5 laying birds.

 Place enough nests on time, at least 2-4 weeks before the onset of egg laying.
 Collect floor eggs as frequent as possible.
 Prevent roosting birds.
 Keep nests as dark and cool as possible.

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  Maintain a thick good letter in the nests.
 Make sure that the nests can be reached easily, do not forget to install jumping perches.

Management of broiler (meat type birds)

The term broiler is applied to chicks of the species Galus domesticus that have been bred
especially for rapid growth so that they will on average reach a weight in excess of 2 kg at eight
weeks of age having consumed only 2 kg of feed for each kg of live weight increase.

The strains of birds are very different from the types used for egg production, which are normally
based on the white Leghorn. Broiler strains are based on crosses between Cornish whiter, New
Hampshire and white Plymouth Rock.

Q. Explain poultry production and management.

Reference:

 Tom Newson. 1999. Principles and Practice of Poultry Husbandry.

 Wilson.2010. A Hand Book of Poultry Practice.

Sample Questions
1. An exotic chicken breed which is termed as best egg laying is _____________
2. List at least five local chicken breeds.
3. Discuss how layers should be managed.

CHAPTER SIX:
BEEKEEPING

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UNIT DESCRIPTION

This unit deals with history and significance of beekeeping, organization of bee colony, systems
of beekeeping in Ethiopia and hive products and their uses. To deliver these contents, active
learning methods such as brainstorming, interactive lecture and self learning will be used. And
also to assess students’ achievement, continuous assessments such as quiz, test, class activities,
assignments and others will be used.

Brainstorming

Q. What do you know about beekeeping?

6.1. SHORT HISTORY AND SIGNIFICANCE OF BEEKEEPING

Honey, the natural food of the honeybee, has many times been described as man's sweetest food.
The credit must never go to man but to the honeybee, which may be called "the golden insect"
The honeybee is well distributed over the globe except in the sever cold of the Polar Regions.

Honey is collected from tree branches, hollows and crevices in several regions of the continent.
Keeping bees in beehives as practiced in Egypt, Kenya and Tanzania is not well known in other
parts of Africa. Even in these countries, traditional beekeeping does not make use of the correct
equipment and modern techniques.

6.2. ORGANIZATION OF A BEE COLONY

A bee colony has three castes. There are two sexes, the female and the male, but the former is
subdivided into two castes. In the average colony, there are
1. One fertile queen, whose main activity is egg-laying,
2. From 20,000 to 80,000 sterile female worker bees, which do almost
everything that needs to be done in the colony, and
3. From 300 to 800 fertile males, generally called drones.

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In addition, there are about 5000 eggs and 25-30000immature bees in various stages of their
development, called the brood. Of these, some 10000, newly hatched, are the larvae, which have
to be fed by the workers, while the remainder, after the larval stage are pupae, sealed into their
cells by the workers to mature. They are called the sealed brood.

Q. explain how the bee colony is organized.

6.3. SYSTEMS OF BEEKEEPING IN ETHIOPIA

In Ethiopia there are 4 recognized systems of honey collection or bee-keeping which are as
follow:
6.3.1. HONEY HUNTING
The collection of honey from honey bee colonies nested in hollows and crevices. This is still a
common practice in the lowland regions of Tigray and other parts of Ethiopia. In the Tekeze
River basin there are an estimated million or so honey bee colonies.

6.3.2. TRADITIONAL BEE-KEEPING

This activity has been practiced for possibly 5,000 years or longer in Ethiopia. It makes use of
hives made from cheap local materials such as gourds, pots, grass, logs, cow dung, mud and
straw. All traditional hives are placed high in trees around dwellings in order to attract the bees
which are left alone for some time.

6.3.3. INTERMEDIATE BEE-KEEPING/TOP BAR HIVE

This involves low-cost, traditional technology often using the Kenya Top Bar beehive.
Management of these hives is much easier and allows the hive products to be harvested without
the bees being killed. Usually top bar hives are made from wood which is a problem in Ethiopia
owing to the shortage of wood.

6.3.4. FRAME HIVE BEE-KEEPING

This is the most intensive system which needs comparatively expensive inputs and relatively
skilled manpower to manage the colonies successfully. The hives are more complex and difficult
to build but they are easily transportable and generate greater quantities of better quality honey
which will command higher process.
Q. Distinguish the different systems of beekeeping in Ethiopia.

6.4. BEE PRODUCTS AND THEIR USES

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Brain storming question

Q. What type of hive products did you know?

a) Honey: Honey is a fluid, viscous or crystallized substance, produced by bees from the
nectar of blossoms or secretions of pests living on plants that bees collect, transform or
combine with substances of their own, which they then store and leave to mature.

Uses of honey
 In nutrition – honey is high energy carbohydrate able to quickly and easily digested
 Honey in commercial –keep the shelf life of packed goods
 Honey in Alcoholic drinks
 Honey in Cosmetics for skin, hair, face, hand, and body cream preparation
-For preventing and curing rough and chopped hands and lips
-Preserves hair color unchanged making lotion and shampoos cream etc
 Honey for medical purpose for dressing of wounds, serve as good appetizer
b) Bee wax – is secreted by four pairs of wax glands on the ventral side of Abdomen of worker
bees about two weeks of Age & synthesized from reducing sugars of elementary organ

Properties of wax

 Contracts on cooling
 Insoluble in water
 Melt at about 64oc & highly inflammable ( 65-66.7oc )
 Readily absorb volatile chemicals
Uses of wax

A. In apiculture
 For smearing of top bars and hive walls
 An attractant for swarm
 For foundation sheet preparation
 For coating plastic foundation sheet
B. cosmetic industry
 It use for making cold creams hair cleaning lotions
 It use preparation of champsitcs
 It use for eye make up items (eye shade) etc
C. Pharmaceutical ointments, tabulates coatings and sun burn protective
D. Other uses

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 Used as component for manufacturing polishes and as a models for jewellery and
electronic manufacturing
 Candle making

c) Propolis: is a resinous material collected by bees from leaves and buds of certain trees. It is
greenish-black in colour and gummy in consistency. The bees use propolis to fill cracks in their
hive, to seal the entrance hole when it is too large, to make the hive watertight, to glue the top
bars to the hive body, to strengthen the thin borders of their comb and as an embalming material
to cover any dead hive intruder which they cannot remove from the hive.

This hive product has several pharmacological properties; for instance, it is used in preparations
to treat some skin diseases, and research on other uses is going forward. It is also marketable
abroad.

d) Pollen: the male reproductive agent of flowering plants, is collected by bees and stored in
comb cells. It is fed to the brood in the larval stage. Pollen is collected from beehives by the use
of pollen traps. These remove the pollen pellets from the corbicula (pollen baskets) on the hind
legs of the foraging bee.

Beekeepers can collect pollen from hives and save it to feed to the bees at times when no plants
producing pollen are in flower for the bees to collect and eat directly. In the developed countries,
pollen is also used in some expensive dietary supplements, since it is believed to have valuable
medicinal properties.

e) Royal jelly, or "bee milk", is used by the bees to feed the queen bee and the young larvae
less than three days old. It is secreted from the glands of the 5- to 15-day-old worker bee. Studies
show royal jelly to be a good source of Vitamin B. Like pollen, it is thought to have medicinal
value and is therefore used in certain expensive preparations. Human consumption in China
alone is 100 tons annually. China makes royal Jelly chocolate candy and wine, as well as lotions
and tonics for therapeutic use.

f) Bee venom : Bee venom is used by the bees as a defensive weapon to protect their property.
Nature provides the honeybee with this venom. Otherwise, insects, some birds and reptiles would
not allow them to enjoy the fruit of their labour. The African bee is aggressive and stings
painfully, and this serves it well, for otherwise human beings, too, the worst enemies of the

97
insect, would rob them easily. The venom has two main medical uses: as a desensitizer for those
who are allergic to bee stings, and in the treatment of arthritis. It is applied directly or by inject
ion.

Q. Differentiate bee products and their uses.

Reference:

 S.N. Mahindru. 2007. Beekeeping.

Sample Questions
1. A cast of honey bee which is developed from unfertilized egg is ______________.
2. What is the significance of keeping honey bees?
3. Which type of hive product Ethiopia is earning dollar by exporting to over sea countries?

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