hereford ?'s

btaylor · #1 03/05/05, 07:46 PM

i was wondering if herefords was a pretty good cow to have and raise? Are they any different from the black and white faced cows to take care of? do they bring good money? and can u mix them with other cows?

BDB · #2 03/05/05, 08:03 PM

herefords are not bad cows to raise my inlaws use to have about fifty of um back in the 80s there a big boned cow you can cross em with other cows the black and white ones your talkin about sound like black baldys hereford angus cross my cousin has a few of them now dont know about the prices though

agmantoo · #3 03/05/05, 08:17 PM

Herefords were the backbone of many farms in the past. One of the major Hereford seedstock producers lives about 10 miles from me. I have noticed they are slowly switching to black cattle. Black cattle are the breed to own at this time. The marketing of Angus beef has been successful and that is what the buyers want. Go black and go Angus for now.

pointer_hunter · #4 03/06/05, 01:31 AM

The color of the cow doesn't make the flavor of the beef, it's what/how you feed it. The big guys around here get so much per pound when they take them to the slaughter house no matter the color....but....they get an extra hundred bucks (last I heard) for the black hides.

There's a few restaraunts around here called, "Hereford & Hops" so there's still people trying to keep the breed going!

Patty0315 · #5 03/06/05, 08:49 AM

Black baldies around here is usually a first calf dairy heifer bred to a herferd bull. They usually produce a nice calf. I have a black baldy due any time now, what a nice bag ! I will be able to feed a bunch off her and also have table milk. They in general have a very laid back personality. Black baldys and hereferds are bringing about the same money at auction.

herefordman · #6 03/07/05, 09:51 PM

We have mostly Herefords, and a couple of Black Baldies, they're great cows to own, they're easy on fences, and people. And they just stand there like trees.
I have bottle fed calves that you can play with and climb onto without them being afraid at all, try that with an Angus.
Angus or Holsteins are not for inexperienced animal owners, they can be pretty rowdy if your not used to handling cattle, but black does sell.
But I'm partial. Herefords taste better, not so lean.
That said, let the can of worms be opened !!

JeffNY · #7 03/07/05, 11:21 PM

From my experience, they are a good breed. They are very hardy, and yet to have one get sick. The bulls are laid back, any bull is dangerous, however these guys are laid back. They put on a thick coat, and ours lay right in the snow, doesn't bother them. Some usually have 2-3" of snow during a storm on their back, they are well insulated.

They do mix with other cows, but some aren't as aggressive as others. One of ours is scared of the holsteins, well not run away scared. But will not show her size, and lets them boss her around. Some of mine scare the holsteins, such as the two steers, it hilarious watching him growl. They will bring money, and a good registered bull can bring some decent money, we buy registered hereford yearling bulls for 500+. I sell our heifers for 1.25 a lb outright. They are very nice, hardy animals and would reccomend them for a pet/investment. Heck some can be milked! Neighbor milks his along side his dairy animals, and I have one, a little jersey in her genetics, ways back. But she can feed 2 calves easily.

Herefordman,

Have any that you can sit on, and they just stand there? I have a couple I can do this to, and all they do is act annoyed but do not buck.

Jeff

herefordman · #8 03/08/05, 12:00 AM

Jeff,
I have one little heifer that is about six months old now, she thinks I'm mom, because I rescued her from the field when mom rejected her, I can do anything with her including sit on her back, she won't move much with me up there but she doesn't try to buck me off either, most of the time when I'm out there, she'll come running up and rub her head on my leg when I'm trying to do the chores, and she loves having under her neck rubbed !
She stood still and let me give her worming shots and never budged.
She's just like a big dog, very friendly.

Phil - MO · #9 03/09/05, 07:04 AM

My uncle ran 35 to 50 head of herefords for as long as I can remember, and I'm 64. He said they would be out foraging when other cattle were laying in the shade. biggest problem we seemed to have was there were always a couple with pink eye or cancer around the eye. I don't know whether it is the pigment or what? My neighbor was treating one last Saturday with cancer around the eye, and was hoping it would calve right away so he could get rid of it.

I went to Beefmaster cattle and haven't had an eye problem in 3 years. Knock on wood. Three of my beefmaster have mottled face or white face, but have brown circles around the eyes. Seems like I read once that the Lasitor family that developed the herd only kept cattle with brown around the eyes if they had white faces. They supposedly didn't breed for color, just their six essentials they push. Each cow has it's own personality of course, but overall these beefmasters seem really tame, and I'm not around them that much. I wouldn't be afraid to go back to herefords. If you breed them to angus and get black baldies I think you would get top price for feeders.

Razorback21 · #10 03/09/05, 10:43 AM

We have had several different cattle breeds in our years of having a commercial herd, but as far as ease of handling and doing what there supposed to do (harvest your grass), herefords are an excellent choice. Angus and Angus crosses are the preferred choice at the sale barn, but our direct off the farm customers want sides of beef from Herefords.

Razorback21

TexCountryWoman · #11 03/09/05, 04:29 PM

Herefords (Polled Herefords) have been our family breed since before I was born and I aint a youngin'. My neighbors marvel at my bull's nice short legs and comment on his stocky self and mild temperment. Everyone else around my neck of the woods has fence-jumpers and fence-breakers with their exotic breeds, their desire to have leaner and longer, bigger and taller. But my Herefords stay in the pasture and are tame and pretty. Last calf sold brought $1.29/lb at about 500 lbs. I have had other breeds and crosses, but Polled Herefords are my breed of choice. The registery is allowing for pigment around the eye area now to help stop any eye-cancer problems. In all my years, we have never had a problem with it anyway.

JeffNY · #12 03/10/05, 01:12 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by herefordman

Jeff,
I have one little heifer that is about six months old now, she thinks I'm mom, because I rescued her from the field when mom rejected her, I can do anything with her including sit on her back, she won't move much with me up there but she doesn't try to buck me off either, most of the time when I'm out there, she'll come running up and rub her head on my leg when I'm trying to do the chores, and she loves having under her neck rubbed !
She stood still and let me give her worming shots and never budged.
She's just like a big dog, very friendly.

We have one that rejected all but one, and the last one she rejected. I think it has to do with us being around, she is the only one. The others I could be right there while calving, and be all over the calf and they won't care. I've been told by many to "get rid of her". Problem is, she is huge, very good tempered and leads well. A couple of her offspring were dwarfs, but her last one here is growing fine, so maybe it was the bull we had! She weighs 1500lbs, and it was interesting watching her jump the Jersey, she acted like the bull and get this. The bull moaned, and bumped her saying "Hey, she's mine!". She has a interesting personality, moved the feeder, had some hay left. She walked on to it, turned around as if to say "my spot!". She was the 2nd hereford born on the farm, and is 7-8 yrs old.

Jeff

herefordman · #13 03/14/05, 09:01 PM

We won't get rid of this one either, she is very big and very well conformed, she will probably have good calves, and when they're that good to be around they come in very handy, she led three of my wilder animals up the chute into the truck no problem this past weekend, of course we let her out of the front, she's a keeper.
She has no fear !!!