Category: About British White Cattle Breed

British White Beef Cattle Breed Information and Resources.

     Are you a first time farmer, rancher or cattle person looking for that first herd?

     Please check out my research and experience to see why I believe there are many reasons why British White Cattle may be your best choice.

     A beef cattle breed that is gentle and easy keeping makes farming and ranching a much more relaxed way of life. Gentle animals are not easily stressed and it helps them make better beef.

     The goal of this website is to give you all the information we can gather about British White Beef Cattle needed to help you find and decide the British White breed really is a better beef cattle breed that is suitable for your special circumstances. British Whites are a very gentle and adaptable breed for all climates.

      We have researched many avenues of information and tried to accumulate enough pertinent information in a more condensed manner for your use. We continually look for more and better information so if you don’t find what you are looking for on the first visit please bookmark this page and return often.

     Many of these pages about British White Beef Cattle were written by a free lance writer who has not actually experienced the joy of raising or living with a gentle herd of British White Cattle.

• A-Breed-Apart
  British White Cattle are A Breed Apart. Choosing a breed of cattle for your farm or ranch can be an extremely difficult task. There are many different breeds out there, and all of them have many positive attributes.
• Bottom-Line
  Are You Looking For It On The Bottom Line? British Whites and Your Profit Margin. It may seem like ranchers lead an idyllic life, riding the range, and communing with nature as they tend to their herd. However, as every breeder and rancher knows, raising cattle is a business, and profits are what is really important.
• Breed-For-All-Seasons
  You are through looking when you discover British White Cattle A Breed for all Seasons. Beef ranchers graze their cattle on some of the most unforgiving terrain in the world. Range land is generally range land because it is unsuitable for anything else, and while it often has good grass in some spots it can be rugged and wild in others.
• Breed-Standards
• Distinguished-By-History
  British White Cattle are a breed distinguished by history. The British White is a breed that distinguishes itself in both the quality of its meat and the efficiency it offers ranchers, with good feed conversion, fertility, and ease of calving.
• Calving-And-Fertility
  British White Cattle are excellent for Calving and Fertility. Ranchers are in the business of raising cattle for meat. A cow that does not produce a calf every twelve months is just a wasted expense; ranchers need to have cattle that produce calves each year in order to stay ahead in the beef industry.
• Cut Above
  British White Beef is always A Cut above the Rest. The British White has a long and distinguished history. This breed has long been known to produce a very efficient carcass, with a carcass to live weight ratio of nearly 70%. Producing great beef is they principle goal of every rancher in the beef industry.
• Efficiency
  Looking for Efficiency; Then you need British White Beef Cattle. Efficiency is a concept that all farmers are familiar with, especially given the difficulties facing the agricultural sector in the twenty-first century.
• Excellence-In-Calving
  British White Cattle Exhibit Excellence-in-Calving. Every rancher both loves and dreads calving time. On one hand, breeders eagerly anticipate additions to their herds. Yet calving time often means sleepless nights and risking your investment with difficult births, and then facing the possibility that your first calf heifer may simply walk away from her calf.
• Gentle-And-Lean
  British White Cattle are Gentle and Lean; as one breeder says they are Gentle for Show & Lean for Dough. Breeders have a tough job. They have to produce quality cattle that will enhance the value of their herd. To do so, they must choose a breed that shows well while at the same time produces quality meat with low overhead costs.
• Healthy-Choice
  British White Cattle produce British White Beef That Is A The Healthy Choice. Today’s breeder or rancher has a lot to consider when selecting a breed for their operation. The breeder wants the most efficient and cost-effective cow available to minimize costs, which equates to maximized profits.

British White Cattle produce British White Beef That Is A The Healthy Choice

Today’s breeder or rancher has a lot to consider when selecting a breed for their operation. The breeder wants the most efficient and cost-effective cow available to minimize costs, which equates to maximized profits. Consumers are efficient as well. They want the leanest beef available. With health issues like high cholesterol and hardened arteries dominating health news, today’s consumer avoids fat wherever possible. Therefore, breeders and ranchers have twin priorities, a breed of cattle that minimizes costs, and an end product that meets the needs of consumers. Is there one breed that can provide all of these things?

The answer is the British White, a breed that offers superior cost-reduction, while at the same time has a proven history of producing top quality meat with a low fat content.

British White cattle have been a recognized domestic breed in the United Kingdom for centuries. It also has a long history as a wild breed, having been released into the wild when the Romans left Britain around 400 A.D. With over 1000 years in the wild, the breed adapted itself for survival. Other attributes are that the British White calves easily, resists ticks and diseases, and is able to survive and thrive on lean pasture. All of these traits carry forward to the present day, and selective breeding for nearly 400 years has only enhanced these characteristics. What is left is an “easy keeper,” a breed that needs only a little human intervention, which translates into lower costs maintaining your herd.

If the breed is wild in origin, you ask, is the meat gamey and tough? Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, more than 100 years ago, one British breeder remarked at how little fat there was in British White beef. What fat is there is nicely marbled to add flavor to roasts and steaks. Ground beef from the British White is virtually fat free, ensuring a health market amongst health-conscious consumers. It is not uncommon for a British White to hang a carcass that has a 66% carcass-to-live weight ratio, and more than 90% of the resulting meat dresses out to choice or prime grade.

The British White is a breed that combines the most profitable traits for your herd. With excellent fertility and a history of good, healthy cattle, the British White will minimize your healthcare costs. It also converts feed to weight very efficiently, which means you can maximize your sale price while saving money on feed costs. Additionally, the British White produces top quality meat that is unrivaled for its leanness and tenderness. If you are looking for a breed that makes sense for your twin requirements of healthy cattle and healthy meat for today’s consumer, you need look no further than the British White.

British White Cattle are Gentle and Lean; as one breeder says they are Gentle for Show & Lean for Dough

     Breeders have a tough job. They have to produce quality cattle that will enhance the value of their herd. To do so, they must choose a breed that shows well while at the same time produces quality meat with low overhead costs. In today’s competitive marketplace, a breed that minimizes costs but also ensures a high return on investment will sell well and establish your breeding operation as one of the best. While many good breeds are available from which to choose, only the British White stands out as an excellent breed for ranchers. The British White keeps costs down, while it also shows well and produces excellent meat.

     One factor in selling your particular herd is its gentleness. When your customer comes to see your cattle, skittish cows and calves make showing difficult. The British White is quite likely the gentlest breed on the planet. British White cattle are naturally curious, so strangers are not cause for alarm. When you bring your customers to the field, your British White will stand and allow examination. Additionally, they are not hostile. In fact, most British White bulls can be approached without too much fear. The breed employs the nursery system of protecting calves, with a lone sentry keeping watch while the rest of the herd grazes. However, a familiar face can still easily approach the herd in these circumstances. While the British White is comfortable with people, it also is hardy enough to graze on the wildest of pastures, an excellent selling feature when dealing with ranchers in remote areas.

      The British White keeps costs down as well. The breed gains well on grass or feed, and cows produce more than enough milk for their calves. It is a healthy breed, with natural tick resistance and infection fighting abilities. Black ears, eyes, nose, teats, and hooves help to reduce cancer of the eye, pinkeye, and foot problems. Calving difficulties are extremely rare with the British White due to this breed having a long history in the wild, resulting in a natural selection of weeding out most breeding and calving difficulties. British White meat dresses out extremely well, with more than 90%, on average, of choice and prime grade beef.

     British White cattle can make your job as a breeder much easier and more enjoyable. This breed of cattle is an extremely versatile breed, with many desirable characteristics that make it an easy sell to both small operations and large herd ranches. Its gentleness makes it an easy show, while its durability and high quality meat provide excellent selling features. When it comes to the British White, there is really nothing negative that can be said.

British White Cattle Exhibit Excellence in Calving

[wpmc-protected]

       Every rancher both loves and dreads calving time. On one hand, breeders eagerly anticipate additions to their herds. Yet calving time often means sleepless nights and risking your investment with difficult births, and then facing the possibility that your first calf heifer may simply walk away from her calf. British White cattle, however, have excellent breeding, calving, and maternal traits that can improve your herd, save you money, and sleep. Even ordinary breeds will experience less calving difficulties when their cows are crossed with a British White bull. If you are looking for a breed to reduce your stress at calving time, the British White may very well be just what you are looking for.

     The British White survived in the wild for over 1000 years, so natural selection weeded out many of the characteristics that make calving difficult. The result is a breed that calves quite easily, producing 70 to 75-pound calves with small polled heads, which is normal. Complications like a prolapsed uterus or a mal-positioned calf are extremely rare in the breed, even with first calf heifers and older cows. The British White has excellent maternal instincts; first calf heifers and in fact all British White cows claim their calves and start them milking as soon as possible. All in all, the breeder or rancher can look forward to almost no calving difficulties, meaning you can sleep easy. If you graze your cattle in remote areas, you can also sleep easy since British Whites employ a nursery system of looking after their calves. A sentry cow will keep watch while the rest of the herd grazes, keeping your calves safe from predators.

      The British White is also known for its fertility. All breeders know how important it is for a cow to calve each year of her productive life; a non-breeding cow is a drain on your farm’s resources. The British White breeds every year and has great longevity and even cows up to 20 years of age have been known to produce calves. The breed also has a natural high percentage of twins, making it extremely possible for you to double your return on investment and the mama cow will have more than enough milk to support both calves. Cross breeding your cows with a British White bull can also increase fertility and pass on many of the strong characteristics of the breed.

     Breeders are in the business of producing calves and fertility is without a doubt the most essential characteristic to have when you are choosing a breed. The British White has this fertility, and combines it with a number of other important traits to give you an excellent all around choice for your herd.

 [/wpmc-protected]

Looking for Efficiency; Then you need British White Beef Cattle

Efficiency is a concept that all farmers are familiar with, especially given the difficulties facing the agricultural sector in the twenty-first century. Every penny spent on feed, medicine, or veterinarian bills are pennies off the profit margin, a lesson that many ranchers have had to learn the hard way. Many farmers and ranchers have turned to British White Cattle because of their remarkable efficiency in turning feed into weight. This is also a breed known for its easy calving and ability to survive and thrive without human intervention. All of these factors can save money for both short and long-term.

British White cattle enjoy a feed to weight gain ratio that is unrivaled. The University of Missouri tested a British White bull recently, and over a 140-day test period, it gained more than 4 pounds a day. The bull converted feed at a rate of 5.5 pounds of feed per pound of weight gained. The British White is also the product of several hundred years of natural selection, as the breed was wild from 400 A.D. to around 1800. In the wild, the British White endured droughts and feed shortages, so that only the strongest examples of the breed were able to survive. Thus these cattle can still gain weight when facing short feed or lean pasture. They are excellent foragers when left to graze, and the breed has great hardiness to help it survive extreme heat and cold.

The British White calves very easily, with a small polled head and birth weights averaging around 75 pounds. Baby calves typically grow quickly and thrive in part because British White cows produce generous quantities of milk. The British White was used as a dairy cow in England in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries because of this milking ability. The cow’s ability to wean a 500-pound calf after eating only grass means that ranchers can save money on supplementing with feed.

Another area that the British White helps save money is the breed’s natural resistance to some difficult bovine diseases. Because of its long history in the wild, the breed has screened out many of the weaker traits found in other breeds. That and several hundred years of selective breeding have ensured that only the strongest British White genes have been retained. The British White has particular resistance to viral pneumonia and tuberculosis, two contagious diseases that can quickly decimate a herd and run up massive veterinarian bills.

Today’s rancher needs a breed that makes money at sale time. Saving money on the way to sale can increase the profit margin by decreasing growth and maintenance costs. The British White is a breed that combines many aspects of efficiency to provide an “easy keeper” that will save money on feed, medicine, and veterinarian bills, which are the three largest expenses facing ranchers and farmers today.

British White Beef is always A Cut above the Rest

       Producing great beef is they principle goal of every rancher in the beef industry. All of the work that ranchers and farmers put into growing and maintaining their herd is aimed at this objective, and every rancher knows that choice and prime grade beef will fetch a higher price and increase the reputation of their herd. The British White is a breed that has a long history of providing lean meat, and has a high percentage of choice and prime grade beef. If you are looking for a breed that consistently produces good quality beef and a high profit margin, the British White is quite possibly the breed for which you have been searching.

     The British White has a long and distinguished history. This breed has long been known to produce a very efficient carcass, with a carcass to live weight ratio of nearly 70%. With steers finishing out at around 1100 pounds, the breeder can look forward to nearly 800 pounds of beef for every steer – and what beef it is! When you average all cattle across the U.S., the prime and choice average runs at about 50-55% of the meat produced. However, the British White averages about 90% choice and prime grade beef. The meat is also rated as very tender by the Warner-Bratzler Shear Force Test. These ratings are significant when it comes to the balance sheet. For instance, a 1994-95 “Ranch to Rail” test found that British White steers averaged almost 27% higher profits than the average for all breeds. Think about that – 27% higher!

      The British White is also noted for its low fat content, a factor of major importance to consumers today. In fact, the breed has been known for its low fat content for hundreds of years. The meat was described in the late eighteenth century as “having little or no fat,” with what fat content there was being nicely marbled for flavor. With its great tenderness and low fat content, the British White is the perfect choice for health-conscious consumers.

     When looking for a beef breed, cattle breeders have to consider many factors. The British White excels in areas such as hardiness, easy calving, and efficient feeding. Combining these important and valuable traits with some of the top grades of meat available, it is easy to see why the British White is an excellent choice for breeders looking to switch to a breed that maximizes profits while minimizing expenses.

British White Cattle are excellent for Calving and Fertility.

Continue reading “British White Cattle Calving and Fertility”

  British White Cattle are a breed distinguished by history.

      The British White is a breed that distinguishes itself in both the quality of its meat and the efficiency it offers ranchers, with good feed conversion, fertility, and ease of calving. The British White is one of the few breeds that can be traced in history for centuries and has a successful record for producing quality meat. It is this distinguished history that sets it apart from other breeds, and allows ranchers the peace of mind of knowing everything there is to know about the breed they raise.

The history of British White Cattle can be traced back to the Roman Empire. While it is difficult to determine whether the breed was imported by the Romans or was indigenous to the islands, both Britons and the Romans kept white cattle as sacrifices. When the Romans left Britain around 407 A.D., the white cattle were released into the wild, where they lived as wild creatures for more than 1,000 years. In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, the countryside of England was divided into estates, and each estate was fenced. The white cattle in each estate were then restricted from roaming too far, but they were otherwise left alone to live wild until the 1800s.

It was only in the nineteenth century that British White Cattle were herded, and selective breeding began to produce the biggest and best cattle. The advantages of the breed, then, lay chiefly in the fact that natural selection had perforce hardened the breed against all that nature could throw at it. The result was a hardy breed of cattle that could survive on forage and reproduce enough to maintain itself. Selective breeding only enhanced these attributes, allowing the strongest bulls to pass on the strongest genes. The British White was also milked commercially, and regularly won milking competitions against other breeds.

The Breed was brought to North America sporadically before World War Two, but records are sketchy on the actual numbers. It is said that the breed was selected for preservation by British Prime Minister Churchill, who in 1940 sent five cows and one bull to America in case England was invaded by Germany. Most of the herds in the United States have stemmed from this breeding stock and from imported semen, with very few recent imports of live cattle. (Editor note: This is a handed down quote that is a bit confusing to this editor and one he has been unable to document from an original source. The UK BWCS web site history says the Park Cattle Society was split in 1946 and the polled cattle became known as British White. This indicates there was not a breed know as British White before 1946. This editor has not seen the original source but has been told there exists an entry in the Park Cattle herdbook of cattle being exported to Canada (NorthAmerica) about this time.)

Because of its long history, the British White has a number of characteristics that make it an ideal breed choice for beef producers. The thousand-plus years it spent living wild helped the British White to become fertile and easy calvers, while strong milking ability allows cows to raise their calves to impressive weights before weaning. The meat is lean and tender, often more than 90% select and choice grade, and the breed has an impressive carcass to live weight ratio. The British White is truly a breed proven by history.

   For many reasons you are through looking when you discover British White Cattle because they are A Breed for all Seasons. Many of the reasons are shown below:

     Beef ranchers graze their cattle on some of the most unforgiving terrain in the world. Range land is generally range land because it is unsuitable for anything else, and while it often has good grass in some spots it can be rugged and wild in others. Choosing a breed that can survive difficult conditions is vital to ranchers, as even one lost or malnourished animal can hit hard on the balance sheet. The British White is the perfect choice for breeders who graze their cattle in the wild, and is also a good choice for those who farm in either warm or extremely cold locales.

      The British White has a long and distinguished history. The breed has been linked to the Romans, who occupied Britain until around 400 A.D. When the Romans left, the cattle were released into the wild, where they survived without human intervention for more than a thousand years. Much of the breed’s hardiness can be attributed to this long period of natural selection; the cattle that could not survive were slowly weeded out, and only the strongest and most hardy examples of the breed were allowed by nature to continue. Since the breed was re-domesticated in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, selective breeding has only enhanced the strengths of the breed.

     One of the keys to the British White’s hardiness is its ability to survive on lean pasture. Animals released onto the range will survive and thrive, even in the most difficult years; a result, perhaps, of the breed having to survive all kinds of difficulties during its long years in the wild. Mama cows produce more than enough milk to raise their calves and produce enough milk to handle the high incidence of twins in the breed. If you are forced to sacrifice feeding with grain due to economic or drought conditions, you can still expect your British White cattle to do very well on grass. Another bonus is that if your range land is remote, you can release your cows without worrying too much about calving; the British White has a history of easy calving, with calves born in the 70 pound range with low polled heads.

     The breed can also survive the coldest of winters with as much ease as they weather the warmest conditions on the planet; the British White is raised all over North America as well as in Brazil and Australia. The breed has a natural resistance to diseases like viral pneumonia and tuberculosis, and rarely experience hoof problems.

     Many breeds of cattle are available from which ranchers can choose. However, if you ranch in difficult conditions, or if you are starting your herd on a tight budget, the British White is an excellent all-around choice. This unique breed has a hardiness that allows it to survive difficult conditions, save you money on veterinarians and medicine, and still produces choice and select grade beef. When it comes to quality cattle, the British White is by far the most superior choice.

A Chart of Recommended Standards for British White Cattle with points assigned to each standard. Can’t be for sure but I would assume that this could be used as guidelines when judging the animals presented in a British White Cattle Show.

      Are You Looking For More On The Bottom Line? British Whites and Your Profit Margin.

      It may seem like ranchers lead an idyllic life, riding the range, and communing with nature as they tend to their herd. However, as every breeder and rancher knows, raising cattle is a business, and profits are what is really important. Whether you are running a small hobby farm with a pair of cows or a 500-head herd, what you need is a breed that minimizes expenses and maximizes your return on investment. The British White is a breed that can do exactly that by staying healthy and converting feed into weight gain more efficiently than almost any other breed.

      The British White is a breed that has a long and distinguished history, which dates back to when the Romans occupied Great Britain. Following the departure of the Romans, the breed was turned loose in the wild, and natural selection weeded out many of the traits that required the help of mankind. What does this mean for your balance sheet? Well, the British White is known for its resistance to diseases like viral pneumonia and tuberculosis, so you save money on medications and vet bills. The breed is also tick-resistant and has good strong hooves. All of these factors combined mean that your herd will resist infections that spread between animals. The result is that you worry less and run less risk of a herd-wide outbreak.

     Sometimes it can be hard to get enough feed for your animals. For instance, the recent drought in western Canada saw ranchers selling off entire herds for cents on the dollar. The British White has the ability to survive and still gain weight on extremely lean pasture. Cows produce exceptional amounts of milk for their calves, commonly weaning these calves at more than 500 pounds on grass alone. When feed is abundant, the British White is an excellent gainer – a British White bull recently averaged more than four pounds of weight gain per day over 140 days in a University of Missouri test. The quality of British White meat is unrivaled and on average, more than 90% when dressed out will be either prime or choice grade, giving you top dollar at sale time.

     While breeders, ranchers, and even hobby farmers may choose rural living for the slower-paced lifestyle, they still need to have a keen business sense. That means that profits are important, and maximizing profit margin by choosing an efficient and trouble-free breed is a smart idea. The British White is the breed to choose if you are looking for a breed that minimizes costs and produces top quality meat, all while improving your bottom line.

British White Cattle are A Breed Apart

Choosing a breed of cattle for your farm or ranch can be an extremely difficult task. There are many different breeds out there, and all of them have many positive attributes. However, if you are looking for a truly complete cow, British White is the breed you should consider. More and more farmers are choosing British White over other breeds because of the breed’s hardiness, simplicity, and excellent quality meat.

British White Cattle are closer to wild cattle than any other breed. The breed’s history can be traced back to herds of indigenous white cattle in England of the 1500s. While the British White has been thoroughly domesticated, it retains enough of its independent characteristics to help it survive and thrive with a minimum of human intervention. The animal’s calves are easy to handle and the cows claim their calves without any difficulty at all. The British White is a very hands-off breed when it comes to calving, which means you do not need to stay up nights waiting for your heifers to have their first calves, fearing the calf will be abandoned in the field or the cow will suffer health complications.

In addition, the British White was once used as a dairy cow in England, and milk production compared well with other breeds. As a beef cow, the British White produces more than enough milk to bring calves to a good weight quickly. British White calves can be more than 500 pounds when weaned, even if they have only been grazed. British White calves have a much higher survival rate than other breeds, at least partly due to the high milk intake with the breed. Additionally, they have excellent feed conversion rates, making them very efficient animals to keep and raise.

British White Cattle have a hardiness rarely seen in other breeds. The breed has been exported to many places, including North America, Brazil and Australia. This particular breed continues to thrive in these very different climate zones. On the range, they can grow even while surviving on lean pasture. Their hooves rarely give any trouble, and the breed is extremely resistant to diseases such as tuberculosis and viral pneumonia. If you are in an area where conditions are harsh or you leave your animals on the range for long periods, the British White is able to survive and thrive in conditions where other breeds might not.

When it comes time to bring your animals in for sale, you will find that British White steers can finish out at up to 1.200 pounds. This breed has been noted throughout history for its lean meat and low fat content. With modern emphasis on keeping fat off of the dinner table, the British White is an excellent choice for quality cuts of meat and the taste is delicious.

You will discover many aspects to consider when choosing the right breed for your ranch or farm. We all know cattle can be a huge investment, and that factors such as hardiness, simplicity, and quality meat can make or break your herd. The British White trumps all other breeds in these areas, making it truly a breed apart.