Cattle is a collective term for a diverse group of large mammals with cloven hooves and, often, with horns. Toward the end of the first decade of the 21st century, beef cattle genetics signaled the first mapping of a livestock genome. These animals are as much at home on the farm pulling plows as they are lounging on the range to provide meet and dairy products for a hungry public.
The first domesticated cattle have been traced back to southeast Turkey roughly about 10,500 years ago, when there were an estimated 80 progenitors. Today, the world accommodates approximately 1.3 billion of these tasty beasts, useful beasts. Other products derived from this group of mammals include dung (used for fuel) and leather, used for clothing and other items.
One popular breed is the Angus, which originated from Aberdeenshire and Angus counties in the north of Scotland. Animals in this breed do not have horns on the head; another word for this is "polled." They are typically either solid black or red with matching udders. The most common Angus breed in the United States are the Black Angus. This is a particularly versatile breed, used for dairy, meat and as working animals.
Limousin are highly muscled and come from France. Raised originally as draft creatures, they were eventually discovered for their high quality, tender, lean meat around two hundred years ago. They are a popular breed to raise because their calves tend to be smaller, making them easier for the cows to deliver.
Cattle are bred in Japan, too. These are the Wagyu breeds. The beef they produce is heavily marbled with desirable, "healthy" unsaturated fat, making them tender and tasty. These beasts attract a high price. It is not unheard of to lace their feed with beer or sake; this is to make it easier to digest and to boost the animals' appetite during spells of hot, humid weather. Perhaps sadly, the flavours do not come through in the final product that appears on the dinner table and in restaurants.
The beefalo were engineered from the American bison, or buffalo, and plain old garden variety domestic animals. The intention was to cross breed them to yield an animal that would comfortably withstand cold, hard winters. The down side to this was a reduction in the numbers of the rapidly dwindling American buffalo. There are now only four herds left, only one of which has not been tainted with the disease, brucellosis. These animals live in South Dakota.
Belgian Blue beasts actually have a mottled sort of blue hair, tinged with grey. They can vary along a spectrum from white to black. Heavily muscled, they readily convert their feed to lean muscle tissue that is desired for its reduced fat content.
Lowline cattle were bred in Australia from the Aberdeen breed. Naturally small, they are good as pets or for children to show them in exhibitions. Shorthorns, from the East of England, are used for both dairy and meat. Hereford cows originated in England and now reside in more than 50 countries across the world. Brangus is a hardy cross between a Brahman and an Angus. These are only a few examples of the diverse breeds of livestock used for dairy, beef and as working animals.
The first domesticated cattle have been traced back to southeast Turkey roughly about 10,500 years ago, when there were an estimated 80 progenitors. Today, the world accommodates approximately 1.3 billion of these tasty beasts, useful beasts. Other products derived from this group of mammals include dung (used for fuel) and leather, used for clothing and other items.
One popular breed is the Angus, which originated from Aberdeenshire and Angus counties in the north of Scotland. Animals in this breed do not have horns on the head; another word for this is "polled." They are typically either solid black or red with matching udders. The most common Angus breed in the United States are the Black Angus. This is a particularly versatile breed, used for dairy, meat and as working animals.
Limousin are highly muscled and come from France. Raised originally as draft creatures, they were eventually discovered for their high quality, tender, lean meat around two hundred years ago. They are a popular breed to raise because their calves tend to be smaller, making them easier for the cows to deliver.
Cattle are bred in Japan, too. These are the Wagyu breeds. The beef they produce is heavily marbled with desirable, "healthy" unsaturated fat, making them tender and tasty. These beasts attract a high price. It is not unheard of to lace their feed with beer or sake; this is to make it easier to digest and to boost the animals' appetite during spells of hot, humid weather. Perhaps sadly, the flavours do not come through in the final product that appears on the dinner table and in restaurants.
The beefalo were engineered from the American bison, or buffalo, and plain old garden variety domestic animals. The intention was to cross breed them to yield an animal that would comfortably withstand cold, hard winters. The down side to this was a reduction in the numbers of the rapidly dwindling American buffalo. There are now only four herds left, only one of which has not been tainted with the disease, brucellosis. These animals live in South Dakota.
Belgian Blue beasts actually have a mottled sort of blue hair, tinged with grey. They can vary along a spectrum from white to black. Heavily muscled, they readily convert their feed to lean muscle tissue that is desired for its reduced fat content.
Lowline cattle were bred in Australia from the Aberdeen breed. Naturally small, they are good as pets or for children to show them in exhibitions. Shorthorns, from the East of England, are used for both dairy and meat. Hereford cows originated in England and now reside in more than 50 countries across the world. Brangus is a hardy cross between a Brahman and an Angus. These are only a few examples of the diverse breeds of livestock used for dairy, beef and as working animals.
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