POWERful Beef

What breed of cattle you choose depends on a variety of factors. What you want to do with the cattle—show, put beef in the freezer, give the kids a project, etc. the land and resources you have available is another factor. Personal preferences, time, economics and what you are willing to put into the cattle are also factors. Feel free to email or call with you situation and we will gladly help you!

2. What is a fullblood Lowline? What is the difference between a fullblood and a purebred?

Fullblood is a designation give to Lowline cattle that have decended directly from the Australian research project, with no influences from other breeds after the research project ended. Only the Lowlines use this designation, other breeds use the term “purebred.” To be registered with the American Lowline Registry as a fullblood, an animal must be DNA tested.

Purebred is also a term used for Lowlines, but a purebred Lowline is any animal that is at least 7/8 Lowline. No distinction is made in percentages after 7/8. So even an animal that is bred up to be 99.9% Lowline will still only be a purebred and will never make fullblood status.

Other percentage distinctions within the ALR are ¾, ½, and it has been suggested to started accepting registrations for animals that are as little as ¼ Lowline.

3. What is hybrid vigor? Does it exist?

Hybrid vigor is a term used to describe the increase in good traits when animals from completely different genetic backgrounds are crossed. The theory is that an animal produced from two different breeds gains more good traits from the dam and the sire than if the dam and sire had been from the same genetic backgrounds.

Whether hybrid vigor exists depends on whom you talk to. In our experience, it does, as evidenced by our calves, especially Peanut and Dream.

4. What is the different between a cow and a heifer? A bull and a steer?

A heifer is a female that has not had a calf. A cow has had a calf. Many times after a heifer has had her first calf, she is referred to as a first calf heifer to designate that she is a young female. A bull is a male that can breed—still has testicles. A steer is a male that has been castrated.

5. What is the difference between beef and dairy cattle?

The big difference is the purpose. Beef animals are primarily for production of beef; dairy animals are for the production of milk. Some breeds are “dual purpose,” meaning they are both dairy and meat animals. The days of dual purpose breeds being utilized for both purposes are gone, at least in America. Some dual purpose breeds have even been split, with one branch going to diary and one going to beef. The Shorthorn breed is one example.

Since the purposes for cattle are difference, the expectations are different. Dairy cattle are bred to produce milk—literally; beef breeds produce beef. Thus, dairy breeds convert inputs to milk; beef converts inputs to meat. Both do what the other does—both produce milk and meat—one just does better, or at least produces more of the specific commodity, than the other.

Dairy breeds are “bony,” whereas beef breeds are generally “fat” (I say generally because some beef breeds are not real fleshy, but in trade they are hardy and survivors—Longhorns are a prime example. This goes back to purpose and breeding—dairy genetics are selected for milk production characteristics, beef genetics for beef production characteristics.

6. Aren't black cattle better?

The media told the consumers they wanted black cattle, and therefore the industry did what it could to give the consumers what they wanted. It used to be that the majority of black beef cattle were Angus. Now there are so many different breeds that have black, you don’t always know what you’re looking at simply by the color: black Limousin (was a red breed), black Gelbvieh (was a red breed), black Simmental (was many colors, except black), and maybe the silliest of all to me, black Herefords (which to my knowledge are what we call black-baldy cattle, a crossbred produced by crossing Angus and Hereford produces the dominant black coat and the dominant white markings of the Hereford—this link goes to an article about the black Herefords).

In some areas the black hide is a detriment. Notably, down south and in warmer climates, the black cattle have a harder time.

7. Why does Angus cost more in the store?

The certification is what costs more. Does it make it higher quality or better tasting? Yes and no. Since it is certified Angus, they are only going to certify and market the best of the best. It doesn’t mean that the beef right next to it in the display is not Angus, it just means that the certified meat is Angus. The certified will probably be better than the cheaper meat because it was selected for the meat quality; it will not be better simply because it is Angus.

8. What is the difference between natural and organic?

Organic is certified as being organic. To be certified animals must only be fed organic feed, given no medications or antibiotics, and no hormones; any vaccinations must be approved for organic use and sometimes only “natural” remedies can be used, like using one insect to kill another.

Organic costs more for a few different reasons. First, it costs to have the certifications completed. Second, because the inputs have to be certified, the inputs cost more. For hay to be certified organic, organic seed must be used for new plantings and the field cannot have had any weed control or fertilizer on it for three years. Finally, because organic does not allow the most effective means of production and prevention, the producer could have less production and therefore has to charge more for the products that do go to market to offset losses.

Natural is not certified, although I think they are working on a certification for it. Natural means, basically, no antibiotics or hormones. Natural producers are allowed to vaccinate and feed whatever they want. For example, we market our beef as natural grassfed. We vaccinate our cattle with the standard vaccination shot and use a back pour to eliminate worms and lice. We do not feed grain or anything that is “extra”—our cattle eat grass or hay (which is grass, alfalfa, or some mix of various plants). They also have access to a salt and mineral, which provides nutrients that is not present in whatever forage they are on—in Colorado the feed was lacking Cobalt, in New York they need extra Selenium.

This link is to an article about the "naturally raised" standards that were set in January 2009, and what the consumers really expected the standards to mean. Our beef are raised under the standards that the consumers expected.

9. What is the difference between buying from the ranch and buying from the store?

Cost is one thing. When I was in a beef production class for college, in 1996, one of our assignments was to go price a beef on the hoof and then go to the store and figure out how much that same animal cost if we bought it by the individually wrapped piece. The difference was staggering! I don’t recall exact figured, but there was $1,000s of difference between the two costs. Now, to be fair, we didn’t account for the kill fee, the processing, the bone loss, the cost of each Styrofoam tray and saran wrap (which actually would be in the processing if bought from the ranch), but if someone wants to pay me $2,000 - $3,000 to take an animal on the hoof to individually wrapped packages, I’m in! Where do I sign up?

Another difference is convenience. This could be looked at two ways: 1) buying from the ranch would be more convenient because whenever you want beef, you just go to your freezer and pull it out, or 2) buying from the store would be more convenient because you would always be able to have whatever cut you wanted.

Still another difference is utilization. Buying from the ranch gives you the opportunity to utilize more of the animal. If you buy dog bones on a regular or semi-regular basis, save your money. Simply ask the processor to bag up all the bones from your animal so you can put them in the freezer. You don’t have a dog? What about a neighbor, friend, rescue, or shelter?

10. What is the best breed of cattle?

There is no “best” breed of cattle. Each breed has its pros and cons. Also, as with any group of things, there is a diverse range of quality and desirable traits within the breeds.

11. How come you name your cattle?

Most of our cattle are registered and therefore have registered names. I find it more personable and easier to remember a cow by name than by number, so I name everything. A few of our cows are still referred to by number, like #12 and #16, but the majority have names.

12. Why are smaller cattle better?

Smaller cattle make more sense from many standpoints, but the biggest is economical. Smaller cattle eat less. Less feed means less inputs. If you can get the same output for less input, you are being more economical!

Ideally cattle producers want a cow to wean a calf that is 50% or more of her body weight. There Is a breaking point, though. A 1,000 pound cow that weans off a 500 pound calf is much more economical than a 1,600 pound cow that weans off an 800 pound calf, because the inputs for the 1,600 pound cow are so much more: in volume and cost.

We have found the Lowline breed to be the most feed efficient cattle. The general ratio is three Lowlines will require the feed that would support only one commercial cow (1,200 – 1,600 pounds is about the average for a commercial cow). We put the theory to the test and found that we could actually raise 4-5 fullbloods and purebreds on the same feed as what one commercial cow ate. Since two Lowline cows will produce what one commercial cow would, anything over two is profit. Our halfblood cows eat—literally—half of what our commercial cows do, and maintain a higher condition!

I also look at it as mitigating risk. If you have a commercial cow and she dies, you lose her and the calf she was carrying, leaving you with nothing but a total loss. If you have the smaller cattle and (going off a 3:1 ratio) lose one, you still have two left. You still have a loss in profit, but at least the two cows you have left cover your expenses for all three cows.

13. What are "commercial cows"?

We use the term “commercial cows” or “commercial beef” to describe any cattle that are not Lowlines. For example, our commercial cows are a range of breeds and crossbreds: some are purebred Angus, others are Angus/Charolais crossbreds, and we have even had a commercial Hereford at one time (we now have a classic Hereford and a miniature Hereford, but we still consider them "commercial" because they aren't Lowlines). The main criteria for us to designate an animal as “commercial” is its size—height and frame. The term, for our purposes does not have anything to do with marketability.