Conservation status Watched Use Beef Scientific name Bos taurus Rank Breed | Horn status Polled | |
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Nicknames BeltieOreo CowPanda Cow Weight Male: 770-850 kgFemale: 450-675 kg Mass Male: 770 – 1,000 kg (Adult), Female: 450 – 680 kg (Adult) Similar Dutch Belted, Shorthorn, White Park cattle, Red Poll, British White cattle | ||
Top10 most beautiful cattle breeds jersey dutch belted galloway higland heck belgian blue cow
The Belted Galloway is a heritage breed of beef cattle originating from Galloway on the west side of southern Scotland and adapted to living on the poor upland pastures and windswept moorlands of the region. The exact origin of the breed is unclear although it is often surmised that the white belt for which they are named and that distinguishes the breed from the native black Galloway cattle may be the result of cross breeding with Dutch Lakenvelder belted cattle.
Contents
- Top10 most beautiful cattle breeds jersey dutch belted galloway higland heck belgian blue cow
- Breed history
- Characteristics
- Population
- References
Belted Galloways are primarily raised for their quality marbled beef, although they are sometimes milked and purchased to adorn pastures due to their striking appearance.
Breed history
The origin of the white belt is unknown, but generally presumed to have come from cross breeding with Lakenvelder (Dutch Belted) cattle. A Polled Herd Book was started in 1852 which registered both Aberdeen-Angus and Galloways. Galloway breeders acquired their own herd book in 1878. The Dun and Belted Galloway Association was formed in Scotland in 1921, and in 1951 the name of the organisation was changed to the Belted Galloway Society and dun cattle were no longer registered. It also keeps and records pedigrees for Belted Galloways and oversees the registration of White and Red Galloways.
Currently in the UK there is a thriving breeding programme overseen and guided by the Belted Galloway Cattle Society. Belted Galloways were first brought to the United States by Mrs. McLean of East Kortright, New York. The "American Belted Galloway Breeders Society" was formed in the United States on 1 July 1951 by Harry A. Prock of Whitemarsh, Pennsylvania, Gordon Green of Quebec, Canada and Charles C. Wells of East Lansing, Michigan. It is now known as "The US Belted Galloway Society Inc."
Characteristics
Galloway cattle are naturally polled (without horns). The most visible characteristics are its long hair coat and the broad white belt that completely encircles its body. Its coarse outer coat helps shed the rain, and its soft undercoat provides insulation and waterproofing, enabling the breed to spend winter outside. Black Belteds are the most prominent, but Dun and Red Belteds are also recognised by breed societies, the latter being comparatively rare and sought after. A female Belted Galloway cannot be registered in the Herd Book if it has white above the dewclaw other than the belt, but can be registered in the Appendix. A bull can only be registered in the Herd Book if it has no other white than the belt.
The dun colour is caused by a mutation in the PMEL gene, the same mutation that causes dun and silver dun in Highland cattle. The black and red coat colours are caused by the same alleles of the MC1R gene, ED for black and e/e for red, as in most other breeds of cattle.
Bulls weigh from 1,700 pounds (770 kg) to 2,300 pounds (1,000 kg), with the average being around 1,800 pounds (820 kg). Cows weigh from 1,000 pounds (450 kg) to 1,500 pounds (680 kg), with the average being around 1,250 pounds (570 kg). Calves generally weigh around 70 pounds (32 kg). Belted Galloways are generally of a quiet temperament, but still maintain a maternal instinct and will protect calves against perceived threats.
They are well-suited for rough grazing land and will utilise coarse grasses other breeds would shun. They are able to maintain a good condition on less than ideal pasture, and produce high-quality beef on grass alone.
Population
Belted Galloways, also informally known as Belties, are currently listed with the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy as a "recovering" breed, which means there are more than 2,500 annual registrations in the United States and a global population greater than 10,000, but they were once on the "watch" list. 18,390 cattle were registered in the US in 2015. The breed is raised in areas where the climate is similar to its native Scotland, like the Central Coast of California.
In the UK in 2007, they were formally removed from the Rare Breeds Survival Trust's watch list, having recovered sufficiently from the devastation of the foot and mouth crisis of the early 2000s, to have exceeded 1500 registered breeding females.