The Angus breed has its origins in eastern Scotland, in the counties of Aberdeen and Angus, where it was developed from the native black hornless cattle. Australian Lowline Cattle were developed from the Angus herd which was established at the Trangie Research Centre in 1929 to provide quality breeding stock for the NSW cattle industry.
Trangie's foundation stock were purchased first from Canada during the 1920's. The Trangie herd was reinforced with further imports from Canada, the United States of America and Scotland between 1930 and 1950. The last imported bull was was brought from Scotland in 1956. Bulls were bought from leading New South Wales studs between 1961 and 1964, and the herd was then closed to outside animals.
The emphasis at Trangie switched to research, and in 1963 the Australian Meat Research Committee asked the Trangie Research Centre to conduct a project aimed at establishing the role of performance recording in the breeding program of a herd. Equal emphasis was given to weight gain and to visual conformation score in the selection of replacement bulls and heifers. The project continued until 1970, pioneering performance testing in Australia, and demonstrating successfully the usefulness of measuring performance in a stud herd.
From 1971 and 1973 trials were conducted using objective measurement and appraisal by experienced stud breeders in the selection of replacement bulls and heifers. The herd was divided into two, with the results indicating that performance testing compared with the assessment of experienced stud breeders assessing growth potential.
The trials which produced the Lowline breed began in 1974, with funding from the Meat Research Corporation, to evaluate selection for growth rate on herd profitability. The aim was to establish whether large or small animals were more efficient converters of grass into meat. This trial continued for 19 years. The program involved a detailed evaluation of weight gain, feed intake, reproductive performance, milk production, carcass yield and quality and structural soundness. The original Low Line herd comprised 85 cows, which were joined to yearling bulls also selected for low growth from birth to yearling age. From 1974, the Low Line herd remained closed, with all the replacement bulls and heifers selected from within the line.
After 15 years of selective breeding, the Low Line herd had stabilized at about 30 percent smaller. The bulls were maturing at about 43 inches, and the cows at about 39 inches or less, against 59 inches for standard Angus bulls, and close to the same height for standard Angus cows.
The NSW Agricultural Department was proposing to terminate the experiment, sending the cattle from the trial to abattoirs for slaughter. After some hesitation, and after strong representation, auction sales were held at Glen Innes and at Trangie. At the Trangie sale on August 8, 1992, nine bulls, 23 heifers and seven cows were sold for a total of $19,475. Seven purchasers - Ian Pullar, David Barnett, Des Owens, Don Burke, Carolyn Tebbutt, Kevin Everson and Bob Pringle - then met beneath a gum tree at the Trangie Centre auction site to form the Australian Lowline Cattle Association, adopting the name LOWLINE. Those names appear in the Herd Book as foundation members. The complete dispersal sale occurred on October 30 at Trangie in 1993, when 20 bulls were sold, together with 44 cows and 51 heifers, for a total of $228,200., on lively bidding.
The American Lowline Registry was established in the late 1990's, with membership growing rapidly. Lowline cattle are exhibited at major fairs and shows around the nation, including the National Western Stock Show in Denver.
Lowline History
Why do you NEED Lowlines?
Profit! Profit is the driving force in any business. Cattle are no different. The idea is to produce more pounds of beef per acre on the same cost of inputs. The research is available, the Lowline can do just that for the Commerical Cattle producer. Recently, The American Angus Association asked their producers for 1000 lb carcuss weights. Almost every purebred commerical breed in the US has the 1400 lb average cows. In order to reach the 1000 lb carcuss size must be reduced. This is not something that can be acheived quickly without giving up performance in the pasture (birth weights, weaning weights, carcuss quality, etc.). With Lowlines the Commerical Producer can reach the desired 1000 lb carcuss weight easily without giving up any of their performance in the pasture. In fact you will enhance the performance of your cows in the pasture with the Lowline. Here are some of my thoughts about how individuals may perceive the Lowline:
Women: "Aghhh, are they too cute!"
Cowboy: "They're just too SMALL!!! Bigger is always better!"
Cattleman or Cattlewoman: "Tell me more, why these cattle will make me MORE MONEY!"
If more money is your goal, please scroll down on how the Lowline Angus can translate into profit!
Thank you for visiting Flying J & L Ranch's website and enjoy your stay! Better yet give us a call and come see our wonderful cattle for yourself!
Kim Watkins
Lowline Attributes
Lowlines have the following attributes that can and will be important in any beef operation.
Higher stocking ratios which allow for more pounds per acre produced equating more profit. Fullblood Lowline cows are a 2:1 ratio vs. larger cattle. Half-blood Lowlines are between 1.3 - 1.7:1 ratio vs. larger cattle. Number of cows per acre depends on the stocking rates for the area you live in.
Will finish out on grass, making an ideal breed for Grass Fed Producers. Consistent tender high quality beef with thicker steaks in a smaller size to meet the demand of health conscious consumers.
High feed efficency as proven by Bovigen GeneStar Testing.
Excellent dress out on carcuss (as high as 74%). Have a 30% higher ribeye area relative to body weight.
Excellent Maternal Traits
Exceptional Calving Ease
Bulls are true heifer bulls wth average birthweights at 59 lbs for a F1 cross.
Excellent temperment.
Extremely adaptable to a variety of climates.
Ideal choice for small acreage ranchettes, high stocking rates to meet requirements for Agriculture Tax Exemptions on Property Tax, and ideal for younger 4-H'ers who want to show cattle.
All registered cattle are DNA tested to assure purity. Percentage Lowline Cattle are also eligible for registration and can be shown in Lowline Cattle Shows.
With the continued growth of the world's population and shrinking amount of Agriculture lands in the US, our future depends on producing more pounds of beef per acre. With the increase need of our grain products to be used for clean burning fuels there will be an increase need for cattle to grow on forage alone. Consider the future, consider Lowlines.
Half Blood Lowline Steers
Article Credited to NDSU Extension Service - Dickinson Research Center
Column: Beef Talk
Lowline Cattle ~ Matching Calving Ease with Value on the Rail
A recent 3 year study ending in 2006, finds good results for matching calving ease with red meat production using Lowline bulls.
Commercial heifers were bred to Lowline bulls for calving ease--only 3 calves out of 125 needed minor assistance.
These steers were sent to commercial feed yards with the above results (see chart). The
steers average weight for the thee year study was 1221 lbs., 51-52 inches at the hip, and
brought 92 cents per pound average. "These bulls produce small calves that grow."
"One can start to think of how these calves will fit into the ever-changing world of beef
feeding. Energy sources are getting more competitive, which ultimately may change some
principles as to what works. There are many boxes of picture puzzles, so don't be afraid to
pick one, even if it is just a little outside the norm."
Research
Sometimes cliches are the only way how to describe a point in a discussion.
Such are the Lowlines: 'Proof is in the Pudding'
As I find the documentation I'll be adding it to the page. Enjoy the reading.
The Ag-Economist is coming out in me. I spend an hour or two each week searching the internet for the numbers: number of cattle be sold in relation to the last few years, price of cattle over the last seven years, the current cost of grains and cattle (I visit the Chicago Board of Trade and Chicago Mercantile online weekly), and the cost of fertilizer. Then the final place to look at pricing as a wife and mother is the grocery store for beef prices. Two Certified Angus Beef Rib Eyes 1 /12 inches thick in the reduced area were priced at $25.00. How in the world with the cost of everything going up can a family of four justify purchasing ribeyes at that price if they are up against a wall. All of a sudden, "Beef, it's what for dinner," might be out of the picture. I recently visited Cattle Fax's website. Cattle Fax is a publication for the commerical cattle producer. I found a current graph showing a 12 month pricing spread for cattle. Current cattle prices are down almost 22 cents from last year. Live Cattle Futures for the August '08 contract to day is $101.50/cwt. So I asked myself the question, are the cattle numbers down and pricing down for producers based on increase expenses for feedlots and increase costs to consumers. The answer I believe is more due to feedlots increase feed expenses and trying to maintain current pricing to consumers. With the price of oil reaching new highs weekly the consumer is finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. Select cuts of beef are becoming out of reach for the average middle class family. Salaries in a time of inflation lag behind the rate of inflation.
So what does all this mean to the producer. They just can't make the money to stay in the beef industry. Producers with cow/calf operations are finding the cost to maintain improved pastures is impossible and still make money to cover fertilizer or produce hay. Producers that place stocker calves on winter oats in Texas sure can't afford the fertilizer and have enough gain on the calves to justify the additional cost. Even meeting rising property taxes in Texas with cattle on native pasture is becoming a problem. Of our various property tax evalutations arriving one showed the increase in percentage terms of Property Tax over the last five years, a 81.8% increase. So is the cattle industry in trouble. I don't think so at this point for the effiecent producer. Two to three years ago, it was all about testing for tenderness and marbling markers via Bovigen or Igentity The end of 2006 a shift started to occur towards feed efficiency in cattle when doing the genetic testing. Can the calf in the feedlot gain easily, can the cow and bull live off the available forage? For the efficient producers this must be a answered with YES!
How is the beef industry going to survive. It's quite simple, reduce size and imput cost of the herd per pound of beef produced. For the last ten years I've heard a quiet voice, 'Reduce the size of your cattle herd.' Two years ago at the Red River Classic Santa Gertrudis Sale hosted by Double TT Ranch, we ate lunch with Ervin Kaatz, Excutive Director of SGBI, he was talking about how the size of an individual cow had to be reduced and feed effciency increased to reduce costs to the producer. This month's issue of Santa Gertrudis USA (Associations monthly publication) contained not one but two articles on the benefits of reducing the size of ones cow herd. For us it was the valdation that our 5 Star animals are of extreme benefit to the Commerical Producer. A cow which is highly effiecent on grass, calves easily, breed back percentages are high and stocking rates on native pasture can increase. Result more pounds of beef produced per acre and more dollars in the pockets of commerical producers.
How in the world can we possibly reduce cattle size quickly. In the mid-eighties, bigger became better and we went to frame score 6 on our cows. We lost many maternal and reproductive abilities in cows. Never mind it took alot to feed them. We came back down, it took almost five years to get the size reduced. Now with the national standard size between a 1250 and 1400 lb cow how in the world do I do this quickly. In three years the size of a commerical breeders herd can average 1100 lbs and wean between a 500-620 lb calf that brings five to seven cents more per pound, has increased feed effciency on native grass, increase of 1.3-1.7 stocking rates over the larger animals and reduced cost in overall herd imputs. I point one to the current issue of the Lowline Ledger (breed publication) which can be found on the American Lowline Registry website. On page 7 you will find an article by Neil Effertz the owner of EZ Ranch, owner of Auction Effertz, Inc. respected cattleman, auctioneer, original importer of the Lowline Angus into the United States. I urge you to read this article. Once you have read this article how will you not want to choose Lowline Angus bulls to improve your commerical herd. The choice to quickly meet the paradigm shift to more effiecient sustainable beef system in the cattle industry is yours to make.
I thought I'd write about what I've discovered over the years in taking care of Animals in Cold Weather. I have been blessed to live in the south so our care for animals in the winter is easy. Rarely do we stay below freezing for more then six hours. Six hours of freezing weather is a huge amount of time for us. More commonly freezing tempertures only last two hours just before the sun rises. I can't even imagine taking care of animals along the northern border of our country. That just seems to much to overcome to me. So most of what I'm about to write is for the south.
Water, it truly is the gift of life. Water in freezing tempertures becomes as important to animals as it is when hot. I've spoken to many a group of 4H kids about feeding. Water is the first and most important nutrient in any feeding program. I always found it interesting my professors in both my nutrition classes asked the same question of the class about water, "Is water a nutrient?" They loved to prove the one person wrong who raised their hand to say, "NO!" I've read countless times that the need for water by animals in tempertures below freezing is the same as what they need on a 85 degree day. Water is needed not only for keeping an animal cool, it's needed to keep them warm. As the tempertures drop below freezing the body needs water to keep the internal organs warm. We have a tendency to make sure our animals have plenty to eat when there is freezing tempertures, yet often one will look at a half full tank or bucket of water as enough to get them through the night. Think again! Time and time again, my animals have proven what I have read to be true. I started in livestock with a horse at age 11 and then to cattle with a show steer at age 17. With both species they are designed to have a constant flow of food through their digestive tract. It takes water to digest the food. With cattle being ruminants they need far more water to digest the food then a horse. Now on a night with freezing temperatures we are asking them to digest their food and stay warm. This all takes heat. Heat uses water. Make sure your water tank or bucket is full.of clean water to entice them to drink.
Feeding concentrates and forage products in the winter. I've always believed in feeding high quality concentrates and forage to my animals. Over time I have found it cheaper in the long run. High quality products are easier for the cattle to digest, the benefit of conditioning better and the amount fed is less.. There is less stress on the digestive system and they are able to keep their condition better. The other thing I believe in feeding cattle during the winter months is cost. There are numerous alternatives and comparing costs is a must for the producer to keep your cost down and profit up.
My example of feed and forage comparison for winter of 2006 / 2007.
After a three years of severe drought in Central Texas I ran the numbers, I looked at the availablity of what was available for purchase. Cost of hay, any bale of hay was minimum of $70 and a high of $110. Quality of the hay at that price was fair at best. I would have to feed concentrates to help them through the winter. Ran the numbers to feed concentrates. I then looked for alternatives. I looked at the cost of alfalfa shipped in. I could be guarnteed Grade 1.5 to Grade 2 alfalfa at $175/ton. I had to accept a minimum of 46,000 lbs or 23 tons. I didn't need that much, but in the situation Texas was in we were easily able to sell what we didn't need at a small profit. We also provided the telephone numbers we aquired to get the alfalfa to numerous other producers. I also wouldn't have to feed concentrates with having the alfalfa. The alfalfa was delivered in early September. To make matters worse for the winter of '06-'07 we didn't get the normal fall rains. It rained three inches the third week in September and then none until almost the new year in December. Now there was no winter grasses up in quanity needed to help us with reducing the amount of alfalfa. We had to provide enough alfalfa to feed everything the cattle would need. Now I would have another concern, the heifers calving. I am fortunate to have two breeds known for calving ease. Yet we still had one heifer, a Brahma that was my son's show heifer to worry about. We were with her when she calved. She had a very hard delivery but needed no assist. Took about 10 minutes longer then the average birthing time. When it did start to rain, it didn't quit until the September, 2007. We received at least an inch of rain every week.
My example of feed and forage comparison for winter of 2006 / 2008.
We purchased our property in March of 2006. Prior to our purchase our property had been overgrazed for 20 years. There were places on the ranch we thought would take three or four years to recoup. We decided to keep our stocking rate at less then half of what the ranch could handle. It meant very slow growth in numbers. As I mentioned when it did start raining in Dec of 2006 it didn't stop for nine months. By March the spring grasses were knee deep and it was over the entire ranch. This was a huge blessing. It meant huge amounts of organic matter and nutrients to go back into the soil. Summer grasses started to sprout in May and they had a very good start as it continued to rain. By mid July we were amazed it hadn't stopped. We were looking at comfortably making it through the dry months. At some point in the summer in Central Texas it will stop raining. Well it did, it stopped the second week of September. By mid October those who had rushed to plant oats for the winter didn't have any. They had sprouted and died. It didn't rain again in any measurable amount until the third week of November. We were counting on the winter grasses and made no provision for the cattle for winter. Once again we were blessed with rain then warm weather three weeks after it started to rain. It gave time to get a small stand of winter grasses. We were providing protein for the cattle. Now with less then half the stocking rate on the land we have enough winter grass to feed the cattle. We also have enough alfalfa from the previous winter to feed those that we have up in our small pastures. With such a great year of moisture our ranch has recouped in one growing season instead of three or four years. We are now looking forward to getting set up for an intensive rotational grazing system so we can further improve our forage production and ability for the ranch to better sustain our cattle.
Over all I highly encourage you to think outside the box when considering winter feeding of your cattle. Even with the cost of hay down this year and cost of concentrates, I ran the numbers I can still have alfalfa shipped in from the Dakotas at a cost that is the same or slightly more then what is available to me in Texas. We have made the decision to not allow for hay production on our ranch. It would to severly reduce the number of cattle and not allow for the ability to produce an income that will allow us to live on our ranch without additional income. Above all consider the care of your land and grazing system to reduce the cost of feeding your cattle. If your wondering how to maximize your grazing ability while improving your water quality the fastest way to get this done is to ask for help from the NRCS (National Resource Conservation Service}
