Cross-breeding is an encouraged practice in livestock production; the goal of crossing cattle is to achieve an improvement in the breed quality. Angus cattle breed is primarily reared for beef production; it is of great advantage in this aspect because due to the marbled appearance of the beef, since it is interlaced with fat, it is marketable as being of very high and superior quality. Crossing Angus cows with other cattle breeds can help improve their productivity, quality of meat, and calf reproduction.
There are a lot of reasons to cross an Angus cow; you may want to improve the quality of your stock and their offspring, you may also want an Angus cow with a particular color and body conformation, or you want to manage a particular disease. All you need is to find a bull with superior desired quality to cross your Angus cows. There are lots of advantages and high economic importance in this practice; all these merits and the cross result of a specific bull with Angus cows are discussed in this piece.
Characteristics of Angus Cows
- Angus cows have lean meat; their leanness is also a positive trait because it gives them more muscle mass and less fat than other breeds.
- The cattle have large muscle content and are regarded as medium-sized.
- Angus cattle are known for their black color and polled head. Polled refers to animals that lack horns on their heads, which allows them to be more comfortable and easier to handle than horned breeds.
- Angus have a compact and low-set body, which makes them easy to work with on a farm or ranch setting.
- The Angus has fine quality flesh and a high dressing percentage, meaning it yields a large amount of good quality meat for its size.
- Angus cattle tend to be docile animals with a placid temperament that makes them easy to manage.
- They also have an excellent ability to adapt to different environments.
- Angus cows usually have weights of 550 kilograms or 1,210lb while bulls usually have an average weight of 850 kilograms or 1,870 lb.
Cattle Breeds That Can be Crossed With The Angus Cows
To improve the performance of Angus cows and other cow breeds, it is advisable that Angus cows are crossbred with other cattle of superior quality. Here are prominent cattle breeds that can be crossed with Angus cows and the positive effects of the crossing:
#1. Crossing Angus With Brahman
Brangus is a cross between an Angus and a Brahman. Brangus cattle are 5/8 Angus and 3/8 Brahman; Brangus cattle produce superior quality meat and high carcass quality, though their growth rate is slightly slower than most other beef cattle breeds. Brangus produces lean meat with almost no excess fat, their meat has great marbling quality and high levels of tenderness, scoring about 97% in the study compared with the pure Angus score of only 94%.
#2. Crossing Angus With Santa Gertrudis
This cross is one of the best crosses one could get with the Angus cattle. The Red Angus and Santa Gertrudis cross produce calves that thrive in diverse conditions. The calves have higher heat tolerance, excellent growth rate, good maternal ability, and reduced risk of dystocia, and to cap it, the claves live longer. The Angus cattle bring in some special traits as well as early maturation along with polled genes to the table as they still maintain and retain their red beef for marketing advantage.
#3. Crossing Red Angus With Herefords
Angus and Hereford’s crosses are called Black Baldies. If only pure British genes are required for the crossing, this is the best possible choice. The Angus still maintains its beef quality for marketability and at the same time gives heightened coloring and poll genes to the Herefords.
#4. Crossing Red Angus With Shorthorns
The crossing of these two breeds well known for the quality of their meat and weight and highly regarded as maternal breeds leads to increased heterosis which leads to the production of calves with greater hardiness as compared to the original parents.
#5. Crossing Red Angus With Limousin
The genetic makeup of the Limousin cattle breed is highly complimented by the Red Angus since the Red Angus contributes to early maturation and also provides the poll solid color with amazing growth.
#6. Crossing Red Angus With Simmentals
This is a very popular cross in countries such as Australia. While the Red Angus offers early maturity, the Simmental breed offers growth advantages. The Red Angus also offers poll genes with very solid coats.
#7. Crossing Red Angus With Gelbvieh
The Gelbvieh is a breed from Europe, and the genetic makeup of the Red Angus always matches with those of European breeds to produce amazing effects irrespective of the European environment.
Economic Advantages of Rearing Angus Cattle
In order to meet the ever-changing demands of the cattle market, cattle breeds need to be improved, therefore a combination of the strengths of different cattle breeds is a great advantage in this case. Angus cows bring in the following advantages when crossed with another breed:
1. Uniformity in the red color makes marketing much easier.
2. The superior quality of Angus beef, as well as the high yield of carcasses, has made Angus cattle the most preferred choice of cattle breeds in the production and marketing of high-quality beef. The beef quality has made it possible for these Angus cows to meet up with the beef market needs.
3. Crossbred females are important for maternal performance which includes fertility and calving ease. The maternal qualities of the Red Angus cattle are indisputable. These super fertile breeds begin to produce calves before they become 2 years and this is an advantage because they also have longevity of their life span which also is an economic advantage. And because they mature early sexually, it is easier for them to blend well with different breeds of cattle that mature much later.
4. Another advantage is that the Angus calves have very low weights at birth. This results in fewer to no problems while birthing the calves and it also makes it possible to have shorter intervals between calving. For the cattle breeder, this means more live calves on the farm which contributes much more to the overall profits.
5. Angus cows have dominant polled genes; when cross-bred, the calves are also pollen, and they do not have horns. This makes handling easy as well as the risk of injury when they play.
6. Angus bulls are well known for their large scrotal size which is measured per kilo live weight and subsequently greater semen production. A study has also been able to create a connection that indicates that the large scrotal size in bulls is directly and positively related to fertility.
Farmers, crossbreeders, and veterinarians should be careful when crossing Angus cattle due to the possibility of inbreeding depression that can cause undesirable traits and genetic disorders in their offspring.
What is The Best Feed for Angus Cow?
Angus cattle are bred to be the best at producing meat. To achieve this, they need to be fed a special diet that meets their nutritional needs. Angus cows should receive a balanced diet of hay, grass, and grain. Hay is the most important part of their diet because it provides roughage that helps in digestion and gives them energy. The hay should be cut from plants such as alfalfa, clover, or timothy. Grass is also an important part of their diet because it provides vitamins and minerals that help with growth and health. Grains are also included in their diets as they provide protein and calories needed for growth.
How Much Does an Angus Cow Eat Per Day?
Cows are ruminants, meaning they have multiple stomachs. This allows them to consume large amounts of food at one time, as well as digest the food over a long period of time. Generally, Angus cows will voluntarily consume about 5 percent of their body weight each day. So an average Angus cow weighs 1,200 pounds and will eat a diet of about 60 pounds of hay per day. That’s 5 percent of their body weight, which is pretty good.
At What Age Is An Angus Bull Fully Grown?
An Angus bull is fully grown at about 18 months, though some can take up to 2 years. It may seem like a long time to wait until your bull reaches its full potential, but this is actually a very reasonable amount of time for such a large animal to grow into its body weight and muscle mass.
How Long Do Angus Cows Live?
Angus cows are pretty tough, but they’re not immortal. The average life expectancy of an Angus cow is between 12 and 15 years if you take good care of them. They need a lot of space to roam, and they do best on a diet of grasses and hay.
Cost of Angus Cow
The average cost to purchase an Angus cow from a local farmer is between $1,200 and $1,500 dollars per head. However, if you purchase an adult female from a breeder who specializes in breeding purebred Angus cows, the price could be closer to $2,000 dollars per head depending on its age and size when purchased.
If you are buying Angus cows through an online auction site like eBay or Craigslist, you may end up paying much more than what you would pay at a local farm because these sites often charge fees for each transaction they facilitate which can add up quickly if you’re trying to buy multiple animals at once.
Angus cattle are known for their high quality beef; they produce more meat than other breeds with less feed. Because of this property of the beef of the Angus cattle, it is popular in many markets especially those in Australia, Japan, and even the United Kingdom have made it their main source of beef.