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Ultrasound on Galloway Bulls

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Hey folks, haven't peeked at these boards for a long while, but thought i would contribute ultrasound data for kicks.
My daughter and I took 3 of our non-show type Galloways (low frame scores) to Denver a couple of weeks ago. We had the white bull calf ultrasounded, age 9 mos, who had rec'd 8 weeks light grain feeding from mid-nov weaning til Denver show, and weighed probably close to 600 pounds. We were pleased with the results, since we sell beef, not legs. IMF: 2.93%, BF .08", REA 10.16 in. I guess we should have US'd the heifers too for kicks.

Apologies if this didn't end up in the right thread... pretty rusty at this.
I will try to figure out how to post photos and put one up for reference.
 
This might be heresy but I think a good thick Saler bull would work great on Galloway cows-maintain the hair coat-I think the Salers left around are pretty good cattle for the most part-got the crazies rid of.
 
Northern Rancher said:
This might be heresy but I think a good thick Saler bull would work great on Galloway cows-maintain the hair coat-I think the Salers left around are pretty good cattle for the most part-got the crazies rid of.
Click to expand...

They make a darn good cross. Connie King, a local rancher and character had a herd of percentage Galloway cows. One year he lost one of his bulls in a mudhole and the fastest replacement was a Saler bull another fellow wanted to sell. Those calves were good and the few heifers he kept went on to be good cows.

As a side note Connie played Pro hockey for Detroit back in the thirties, he had a lot of stories to tell. He lost an eye and most of his scalp to a grizzly when in his 50's and lived to tell about it.

Tough was an understatement for him and his livestock.
 
VLS_GUY said:
Galloway breeders,

If you had to design a synthetic or composite breed using Galloway what breeds would you incorporate? What is your opinions of the U of A synthetic?
Also beyond the Welsh Black being horned for the most part what are the big differences between Galloways and Welsh Black? I have herd that the WB is better growing and milking is this true?
Click to expand...

We have a compsiste commercial herd of 1/4 Black Galloway, 1/8 Maine, and 5/8 Angus
and use Reg Black Angus bull of Hoff/SAV breeding on them.
 
Northern Rancher said:
This might be heresy but I think a good thick Saler bull would work great on Galloway cows-maintain the hair coat-I think the Salers left around are pretty good cattle for the most part-got the crazies rid of.
Click to expand...
The North Devon would produce a better calf without the looney gene! they are making a big comeback with the swing to grass finishing, with increasing orders for British semen and embryos from the USA.

My grandad bred the old style Aberdeen Angus, finishing them as Scotch beef, heavily marbled barley fed beef, which still attracts a premium in todays' market. He also had a herd of Galloways up on the moors, which subsided on the mountain forage. After his death in 1965, the farm was sold, and the books packed in old tea chests and stored in the attic of the cottage my gran retired to. I later helped sort the paperwork out when Gran died and the cottage sold, the Galloway steers made a slightly better margin than the pampered cattle, my interest in environmentaly adapted cattle began as a result of that discovery, we had believed the high priced Scotch beef was the mainstay of the farm for over 60 years, but the adapted Galloways had really paid the bills!
 
I've got two south Devon bulls in the tank-they were good bulls-the Black Devon I bought at Midland Bull Test was as good a breeding bull as far as covering cows I've probably run-the bull himself was very quiet his daughters are a bit nervous. The solid red bull from Montana threw good calves but was hit and miss on udders-both are used as a terminal bull now. Our few devon cows are good cattle though.
 
andybob said:
Northern Rancher said:
This might be heresy but I think a good thick Saler bull would work great on Galloway cows-maintain the hair coat-I think the Salers left around are pretty good cattle for the most part-got the crazies rid of.
Click to expand...
The North Devon would produce a better calf without the looney gene! they are making a big comeback with the swing to grass finishing, with increasing orders for British semen and embryos from the USA.

My grandad bred the old style Aberdeen Angus, finishing them as Scotch beef, heavily marbled barley fed beef, which still attracts a premium in todays' market. He also had a herd of Galloways up on the moors, which subsided on the mountain forage. After his death in 1965, the farm was sold, and the books packed in old tea chests and stored in the attic of the cottage my gran retired to. I later helped sort the paperwork out when Gran died and the cottage sold, the Galloway steers made a slightly better margin than the pampered cattle, my interest in environmentaly adapted cattle began as a result of that discovery, we had believed the high priced Scotch beef was the mainstay of the farm for over 60 years, but the adapted Galloways had really paid the bills!
Click to expand...

Which moors andybob - what part of the country was your grandad operating in?


Northern Rancher said:
I've got two south Devon bulls in the tank-they were good bulls-the Black Devon I bought at Midland Bull Test was as good a breeding bull as far as covering cows I've probably run-the bull himself was very quiet his daughters are a bit nervous. The solid red bull from Montana threw good calves but was hit and miss on udders-both are used as a terminal bull now. Our few devon cows are good cattle though.
Click to expand...

What type of devons were these NR? Most of the ones I've come across in North America that were crossed with something to blacken them were South Devons - the ones Leachmans had for example. The "Devons" promoted in stockmangrassfarmer are all North Devons and they were never popular in my lifetime in the UK.
The South Devons are a very different breed than the North or Ruby Devons. My Dad bought some South Devons in the early 1970s and we bred a few pure to supply bulls to cross onto our Galloways for about the next decade. Good cows the S Devons - docile, great milkers both in quantity and particularly quality. They had explosive growth rates (the only breed with higher growth rates than the Charolais imports at that time) Downside was the mature cow weights were too high and their distinct lack of muscling, particularly second thigh counted against them in the marketplace. I'd rank the South Devons we had about the same as Simmentals in terms of size, milk, maternal, docility.
In the 90s they had a "breed improvement" program where the bulls all suddenly sprouted double muscled backsides and nervous behavior. Gotta love the "limo effect" :wink:
 
P1011319.jpg


Here's my one purebred devon cow out off the red bull we have a bank on-they are good enough cattle but the bulls I got aren't consistent enough on udders to keep daughters off of. I guess if I bred them to some smaller framed good udderred cows they'd be good. Probably going to list both bulls on our new A'I deal. Ty has quite a few part Devon cows from 4H projects that do ok.
 
So by the look of her I'd say she's not of North Devon origin. Obviously polled too - probably South Devon origin with Red Angus bred in to poll. I think you can see that in her head. Good looking cow though, nothing against her.
 
A book about Galloway Cattle has been out for about 5 years

A chronological History of Gallway Cattle in America
by Patricia Pruitt
I am sure she still has copies available. Her adult son is Derrick Pruitt

The Galloway Historical Library
28289 Norris Road
Bozeman Mt 59718
the book says Patrica is still compiling information of Galloway Cattle

165 pages full of photos and history of Galloways she goes back to paintings in 1740. It amazes me how short there hair was then compaired to today. Not many herds of production Galloways left in America now most went to niche hobby farms.
 
Hay Feeder said:
A book about Galloway Cattle has been out for about 5 years

A chronological History of Gallway Cattle in America
by Patricia Pruitt
I am sure she still has copies available. Her adult son is Derrick Pruitt

The Galloway Historical Library
28289 Norris Road
Bozeman Mt 59718
the book says Patrica is still compiling information of Galloway Cattle

165 pages full of photos and history of Galloways she goes back to paintings in 1740. It amazes me how short there hair was then compaired to today. Not many herds of production Galloways left in America now most went to niche hobby farms.
Click to expand...

That sounds like an interesting book. It used to be said in Scotland that at one time they registered Aberdeen Angus and Galloways in the same herdbook. I've never been able to substantiate that but no doubt they came from the same origin way, way back - there wouldn't be two distinct types or "breeds" of black, polled cattle in the same little country when there were no other such breeds in the world. The Angus would be what evolved in the drier NE coastal areas of Scotland (@24 inch rainfall) and the Galloway in the wet, windy SW (around 56 inch rainfall)
 
Could the really hairy angus be showing some of the foundation characteristics? I always like th look of black galloways but never seen any semen for sale. Someday I will have to make the trip to Montana and western Canada to look at some black galloways.
 

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