Murray gray

[sv.maple]

Does anyone have any knowledge on murray gray cattle? Im thinking about buying a few. Ive found 3 bred cows and a hiefer calf about 6 mths old. I dont like the breed of cows i have now and want to switch over to something diffrent but not a big angus fan. Just want to get all the info i can on the breed good or bad before i say ill take them and wish id left where they were

[MO_cows]

One of the challenges with that breed is that the Murray Grey breeders splintered and they have 2 or 3 different associations now. So if you want to register anything you need to educate yourself about that. It has been 10+ years since I have had any first hand knowledge of the breed, but at that time, no genetic defects had popped up.

At one time, the MGs in the US were way behind the quality of the Aussies. From photos I have seen over the years, they appear to be catching up. Easy keeping, moderate size are their strengths, market acceptance would be a weakness. They aren't black, they aren't well known, so if you sell at auction you will get discounted.

Hope that helps.

[sv.maple]

What i want is a calm herd that grows good on just grass in summer and hay in winter. Breed back easy and put weight on fast. I rotationaly graze the cows so have new pasture every 1-3 days depending on podock theyre in. I work out full time so dont do much with them just go up and holler to them n open gate n move to diffrent paddock n close gate n go so i know no breed will be really calm but would like to atleast be able to walk through them and they not run. Im not overly concerened about the not being black because i butcher myself and sell by the half or whole and i have a place that pays $5.50/lb hanging weight for anything under 6 mths old so fast growing is best for that. Thanks

[DJ in WA]

How calm they are depends on their individual genetics and whether the breeder is culling out the crazies. While the Murray Grey breed in general is known for calmness, there can always be some that aren't.

Some will say you can make anything gentle, but that hasn't been my experience. Walk around them and see how they act.

And figure out why they are being sold. Sometimes people sell their least favorite or most crazy. Sometimes you have to get what is available and make improvements through breeding to the best bull.

One advantage with Murray Grey is the light color reflects heat from the sun, so they stay cooler in the summer. Cattle have more problem with heat than people realize, so light colored hair is important. MG also have skin pigment to avoid sunburn.

[sv.maple]

I weed out the psycos fast if they give me problems they go. Wild ones, runners, fence botherers all first to go i dont need the head aches and havin 4 little kids dont wanna worry theyll be in thier way when they take off. I went and looked at them this mornin and guy was sellin 5 of his 6 cows and goinna keep his hiefers he has ta calve this spring. Calm cows walked all around them and they didnt mind thought the price was reasonable but i couldnt afford all 5 so i made him a deal on two older cows that are registered 6yo a unreg first calf hiefer with her 6 mth old hiefer calf all bred for spring to a reg murry gray bull moved them home this afternoon and put neck chains on them and tied in the barn with out much trouble. They never been tied so ill see what they do tonight theyll probobly be loose in mornin!

[mulemom]

We bought a MG bull in November, 18mo and sort of halter broke. The guys whole herd let us walk through-moved just enough to stay out of our way. Bull had never been in a trailer but he followed the grain tub right in. We had corral panels set up at home to route him into a stall, expected some carrying on getting there. He strolled out of the trailer right into the stall, ate some hay and spent the rest of the afternoon taking a nap. We've had our angus-simmental cows since they were 6mo old and they're not as quiet as he is. Like DJ said disposition depends on genetics-follow his advice and see how they react to you. MG colors range from silver to black-ours dam is black-father silver, he's a reddish brown. We won't have calves until August-if Agmantoo is here he might be able to tell you more about the calves as he said on the rotational forum that he had a MG bull with his herd for a while.

[mulemom]

SV keep us posted will you, let us know how you like them. Thanks

[sv.maple]

Had first calf out of them. Nice little hiefer about 70-75 lbs up and eating fast seems to be doin good. The cows all doin good in the barn my daughters go right in to see them they really adapted to bein tied up good. Now if this snow will ever melt can put them outside to see how they do

[HDRider]

Check this out...

http://www.cattletoday.com/forum/vie...hp?f=5&t=90469

[mg2014]

Murray greys are awesome. My heifer, Ziva, is a 2 year old due to have her first calf at the end of this month. She is silver, but MGs do come in black, as well as various shades of grey and brown. Ziva is the pocket cow of pocket cows. I've never met a mean MG. She does well on just grass in the summer and is fed bent grass in the winter. Murrays are small-ish but not too small. They'll fit in with larger cattle if they get the right nutrition from a young age. Good luck with yours!