HuskerJ - 9/9/2024 07:47
Aaron SEIA - 9/8/2024 09:01
My boy is watching an old farming video on YouTube from the 50s/60s. Nothing but Hereford cattle. It's that way in a lot of old videos. When did the black cattle start taking over and why? The CAB folks have done a masterful job convincing us all that black skin makes the best beef.
AaronSEIA
As a cow/calf guy, who's family farm went from Hereford to Angus about the time I started high school, I can add a few items to your list.
When we went Angus, our instances of cancer-eye went from 1-2 cull cows a year to maybe 1 every 5 years now. We still have some black white face cows, and they get cancer eye at a much higher rate than straight black ones, even if they do have a little Hereford in them.
Udders went from either having not enough milk or dragging in the mud with teats the size of a Mason Jar to normal looking udders that feed the calf when we went Angus.
Long toes and lameness from founder all but went away with Angus.
Went from a C-section every other year, to one every 5-6 years with Angus, and they are also far less likely to prolapse.
It's not so much about CAB people convincing us Angus makes for tastier beef, so much as the practical aspect of Angus cows having less problems and making us more profit. Yes, the argument can be made that Hereford cattle don't have those problems anymore, but you know how hard it is to get farmers to change once they find something that works for them.
Hereford to Angus
