4H

[briannell]

would love one of these mini's for 4H project for 6 year old son. Has anyone on the board raised them? do you know where to find them? only have access to Jersey's and Angus, want a mini hereford. thanks



Don't have a back 40? Try mini-cattle on a few acres
By Alex Dominguez, AP Writer
TRAPPE, Md. — If you're a suburban cowboy hankering to raise a herd and short on ranch land, mini cattle may be for you.

Two young cows graze in a paddock of Bill Bryan's 50 acre spread in Trappe, Md.
By Chris Gardner, AP

New breeds of pint-sized heifers and bulls are making it easier for small farmers to raise cattle for milk, meat or just fun.

Bill Bryan, who operates a 50-acre spread on Maryland's Eastern Shore, sold seven calves last year.

"We've sold the vast majority of our calves to people who have these little three- to five-acre farmettes and they'll fence in an acre, buy a calf and more or less keep 'em for pets," Bryan said. Two mini cattle calves stood nearby, contentedly munching on grass in a small fenced-in area, skittering away if visitors got to close.

Bryan is among a group of pioneering breeders raising miniature cattle that can be as little as a third of the size of the larger breeds.

The reasons are many, they say. You don't need the back 40 acres to raise these breeds; the back four will do. Mini cattle eat about a third as much as a full-sized steer, are less destructive of pasture land and fencing, and are easier to handle.

"I'm 56 years old, and you want to know something? I can handle them better," Bryan said, recounting a struggle the winter before with a full-size steer who got his horns caught in a hay rack.

While each animal may be smaller, more meat can be produced overall from each acre, breeders say. And the smaller size of each animal also has its benefits.

While some people look to save money by buying an entire cow or a side of beef, it can be difficult to store the hundreds of pounds of meat from a 1,200- to 1,500-pound steer, of which about 40 percent makes it to the freezer.

Miniature cattle, which often are between 500 and 700 pounds, provide enough meat to last a family of four six months. That's just about the freezer shelf life of beef, said Bryan. And the meat tastes the same, depending on how the cattle has been raised and fed.

Bryan, who runs a construction business, said his wife, Donna, does most of the farm work, spending about two hours a day taking care of their animals.

"Women can raise these steers just as well as men can," Bryan said.

Bryan said most of his calves will die "of old age" because buyers are usually looking to breed the smaller cows themselves or keep them as pets.

Miniature cattle calves are more expensive than the standard size because they are still relatively rare. Bryan said he is getting $1,600 for female calves and $1,000 for bulls, compared to $500 to $600 for normal calves. But he expects prices to drop as the mini varieties become more common.

Richard H. Gradwohl, who has developed a number of small breeds at his Happy Mountain Miniature Cattle Farm in Covington, Wash., said six niche markets have developed for the miniature breeds.

Miniature cattle are primarily sold for use as pets, for small-scale milk production, breeding, showing, organic beef production or for the farm-grown market, which produces cattle on smaller farms, Gradwohl said. Sixty to 70 percent are sold as pets, he estimated.

Full miniature cattle are defined as those below 42 inches at the hip when fully grown, while mid-size miniatures are up to 48 inches, said Gradwohl, who registers 26 miniature breeds.

Another factor driving the popularity is that most people don't have enough land for full-sized cattle, which need five acres for two cattle, compared to an acre for a pair of miniature cattle.

"The years where we had people with three, four, five hundred acres are gone," Gradwohl said. "If you have five acres with miniature cattle the concentration is about two per acre, so you can raise 10 miniature cattle on five acres quite well."

Those 10 mini cows will provide about 6,000 pounds on the hoof, compared to as much as 3,000 pounds that could come from two full-size cattle, Gradwohl said.

"That's true because of the feed efficiency of the animals, and their hooves are smaller so they won't tear up the pasture," which helps maintain the grass they feed on, he said.

Cattle that can be raised easier on grass only is also an increasingly desirable trait because grass-fed beef is said to contain higher levels of heart-healthy Omega 3 fatty acids, breeders say.

However, finding growers who raise miniature cattle for beef is still fairly difficult because of the rarity of the breeds and the fact most are raised as pets. In Felton, Del., Charles Warren has a half dozen Zebus miniature humpbacked Brahmans, which he says are the only true miniatures because they are naturally small and have not been bred down to their size.

Warren, who works for Kraft Foods in Dover, Del., keeps the five cows and one bull as a hobby, along with a variety of other small animals on his 25-acre property.

"They're like a pet more than anything. I like them because they're neat looking, they're oddities," Warren said.

Warren said he hasn't eaten any or sold any for slaughter, with most going to breeders and some to a rodeo outfit.

"My wife won't eat anything we grow on the farm. She says if it doesn't come on a Styrofoam tray we don't eat it."


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Copyright 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

[bozbobcat]

I read about these cows. I thought it was kind of funny to hear about these things and how people keep them as pets. I don't know if I'd want any in my very small backyard, though. I wonder if there's any potential with these cows as meat producers.

[briannell]

Ben still wants to raise a steer, but I'm affraid he'll be squished, but if we could find a mini, i'd let him do it.

[canyoncat]

Ben still wants to raise a steer, but I'm affraid he'll be squished, but if we could find a mini, i'd let him do it.

Go find yourself a Hereford Breeder and have a look. Herefords are very well knowen for their quiet dispostions. I used to take 4H steers to our local fair in Helena, Montana starting at the age of 9. I took Hereford/Angus X's, straight Herefords and straight Angus. Always the Hereford was the easiest and gentlest.

As for the meat industry for these "mini's". No way! Not enough palatable meat could be produced from one carcuss. Steaks would be way too small and not enough loin area to even come close to producing enough steaks to even pay for it. Think of your T-Bones about the size of a pork chop.

Good luck, I hope you can find something for your boy. Raising a steer is a great learning experience for anyone at any age!!

[briannell]

canyoncat -thank you i am only familiar with jerseys and Angus. knew a former Charolais breeder, but Ben really wants hereford. The good thing about the mini is that i know myself too well, it will become a pet
I'd be a bad rancher - if I nursed a calf, I'd have to keep it, rather than eat it that's why i have horses instead.

I would hate to have butcher an animal the kids will become so attached too. That's why i'm trying to push the bunny over a steer. he's determined to follow his Ag background, and cowboy crazy. He's determined to be a cattleman. the list keeps growing : rodeo cowboy, country singer, cattleman - he's Chris Ledoux we have angus and brangus in the family, i don't like them nasty animals, bad temperments. I'll look more into the Herefords, thanks.