Highland Cattle
Throughout the long recorded history of Highlands, breeders have taken great care to retain the original characteristics of these cattle. Some of the characteristics of Highland cattle are ease of calving, high quality beef, thick hides, extremely hardy, easy to handle, and longevity. You can find more about the specifics of the breed attributes here.
The cattle come in all colour from white yellow, black to the more common red. Originally, the breed was divided into two classes, the West Highlander or Kyloe and the Highlander. The Kyloes, raised on the western islands of Scotland, tended to be of a smaller size and had a higher percentage of black and brindled cattle than the mainland Highlanders. The size difference was more probably due to the more severe climate and limited rations that the island cattle were subjected to than a genetic variation between the classes. Today all members of the breed are called Highland.
A part of the history of the breed is the famous cattle drives made from the Hebridean islands to the mainland of Scotland and the drives through the mountains. I found a great picture of what a cattle drive in the highlands must have looked like.
The Highland Cattle Society of Scotland was established in 1884 and the first Herd Book published in 1885. Highland cattle have become a world wide industry and you can find them in Canada, Germany, Sweden, Finland, New Zealand, Australia and United States.
The cattle are raised for beef and you can find it for sale on the Internet for the United States and United Kingdom.
If you are more interested in just looking at the Highlands, then this German site is a good place to go.
Go To Page: 1
Articles in this Topic Discussions in this Topic
Latest Articles