JERSEY-ANGUS CATTLE 



Cross Produces Diversity of Types and May Lead to Establishment of Valuable 

 New Breed Which Will Combine Dairy and Beef Character- 

 istics and Be Hardy. 



Artiur H. Kuhlman 

 Department of Anijiial Husbandry, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wis. 



OX HIS c()UiUr>- estate near the 

 little village of Thirsk in north- 

 ern England, Frances B. Sam- 

 uclson is making a practical 

 ajJijlication of Mcndelian principles in 

 producing a herd of cattle adapted to 

 the conditions of that locality. Stock- 

 men of northern England and southern 

 Scotland claim that numerous attemj^ts 

 have been made to introduce the Jersey 

 breed into those sections but apparently 

 the Jersey is not able to adapt itself to 

 the climatic conditions of this region 

 and has failed to thrive. The strictly 

 beef breeds do well, hut according to 

 Mr. Samuelson's ideas do not produce 

 the desired quantity or quaHty of milk. 

 In trying to i)roduce an animal that 

 would fulfill all of these conditions, Mr. 

 Samuelson began crossing Shorthorns 

 and Jerseys, but as the subsequent off- 

 spring showed such a variety of colors, 

 resulting in a decided lack of uniformity 

 in the color markings of the herd, this 

 cross was abandoned. About seven 

 years ago the Jersey- Angus cross was 

 begun. Five ty])icai i^ure bred Jersey 

 cows were mated with a pure bred 

 Aberdeen-Angus bull. Five Fi females 

 (one of these is shown in Fig. 6) ob- 

 tained from this cross were in turn 

 mated with an F, bull. The Fj heifers 

 were then mated with an Fj bull. 



The F, generation has many of the 

 outward ajjijearances of the Angus, be- 

 ing black or dun in color, polled and 

 rather beefy in conformation. Milk 

 records of all the cows are being kei)t and 

 the Fi cows show a high yield of milk 

 and butter fat, ranking almost as high 

 as their Jersey dams. These cross-bred 

 cows have very uniform and good sized 

 udders and seem to be good (l:iir\- 

 animals. They arc also more liardy 

 68 



llian their dams, recjuiring less close 

 housing during the winter. In fact o])en 

 sheds have been found to furnish suffici- 

 ent protection for all the young stock 

 and the warm stables needed to house 

 the Jersey cows proved too warm for 

 the cross-bred s. 



HIGH MILK PRODUCTION. 



One of the F., cows (Fig. 7) in milk 

 last simimer when I saw the herd, was 

 giving 30 pounds of milk daily which 

 tested over 4% butter fat. During her 

 first lactation period she produced 4.110 

 l)ounds of milk. She is a dark or 

 brindled fawn having many dairy 

 characteristics but is rather more beefy 

 than a Jersey. 



Sixty animals are numbered and 

 entered in I lie herd records but only 20 

 are now in the herd, which at the 

 present time consists of the following 



2 Jersey cows. 



6 F, cows. 



2 F, bulls (Figs. Hand 9). 



8 Fj females (sec figs. 7, 10 and 11). 



2 Fa calves. 



As stated above, all the F, individuals 

 are black. Among the F2 progen\- four 

 heifers and a bull are black like the Fi 

 individuals, one heifer is black with 

 gray hairs on her face, a IduII and a 

 heifer are brindled fawn, and two 

 heifers are \-er>- dark fawn with light 

 fawn markings around nnizzle, ears 

 and inner thighs. vSix of the Fj heifers 

 are distinctly polled like the Angus 

 while two have a scjuare jxUl like a 

 heifer that has been dehorned. The Fj 

 yearling Inill that has been selected as 

 stock bull (Fig. 8), has many Jersey 

 characteristics as regards form of head 

 and bod v. He is pcrhai)S more of the 

 dairv than I he beef tyi)t', is reddish 



