Mini Dairy Cows

Tirzah · #21 04/27/10, 11:35 PM

Hello,

I appreciate this post and all of the wonderful information shared. A friend is considering purchasing a Mini-Jersey solely for milk purposes. Someone had told her that milk from a mini-jersey isn't as good as from a Jersey.

Has anyone noticed a difference in taste?

We drink raw milk from a Jersey and it's wonderful. I do not know anything about cattle but I would think that tastes would vary according to diet?

I don't mean to hi-jack this post I'm just curious.

francismilker · #22 04/28/10, 10:49 AM

My mini jerseys produce the same tasting milk with a comparible amount of cream as my full sized ones do.

Tirzah · #23 04/29/10, 04:40 PM

Thank you francismilker! I will pass on the much appreciated info!

Love your sig BTW

LizD · #24 04/29/10, 06:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by genebo

To get technical, a Dexter is not a miniature, since a miniature is a smaller version of something larger. There are no large, 'standard' size Dexters. They're all small......

In terms of size, the Dexters are the same size as those that are miniatures of another breed, so it's OK to call them minis. The current usage of the phrase 'mini cow' simply means a small cow......

One implication of this is that a Dexter had two small Dexter parents, so the offspring will be almost exactly the same as the parents. Not all miniature cattle have two parents of the same breed so their offspring can vary.

Genebo
Paradise Farm

Well 'technically' a chondro carrier Dexter could be considered a 'mini' of the Dexter. The gene (no pun) disguises or takes away about 5 inches of their regular height. To quote the Julie Cavvanagh et el study on Dexter chondrodysplasia after doing the hip, whithers and cannon bone heights: "The researchers concluded that the presence of the chondrodysplasia gene "has an effect on all measurements" (p.7).....The mature hip height of Dexters is of most interest to breeders as this is specified in the breed ideals. "As shown in the results, the hip height of a carrier female is approximately 10 cm shorter than a non-carrier female. The effect is even greater for males, namely a difference of approximately 18 cm" (p.11)."

This also implies that carriers and non-carriers breeding never will breed true, because some will be large and some will be small, depending on inheritance of the gene. The term 'miniature' in either cattle breeds or even dog breeds, does usually imply the introduction of the chondro or dwarf gene.

Apart from this, Dexters are a wonderful breed, full of personality and love! The milk is absolutely wonderful and the beef, outstanding! Go for it, but be aware they are like potato chips.... you won't stop at just one! A really good resource in Texas for you might be Barb Nettie, of Legend Rock Dexters. I don't know how close you are but she would help you find a breeder near you, I'm sure. From the ADCA site:

Barbara Netti (#3096)
LEGEND ROCK RANCH
2000 Ahern Creek Drive
Spring Branch, TX
78070
(830) 438-4044
bcnetti@gvtc.com Hope this helps, Liz