| Characteristics of Highland Cattle |
| Buying Registered Highland Cattle |
| Highland Beef |
| Answers to Frequently Asked Questions |
| Gestation Calculator |
| Highland Tattoo Letters per the AHCA |
| DNA Tips from AHCA |
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Highland
Cattle |
![]() Highland Cattle by the Sea William Smellie Watson (Scottish, 1796-1874) |
Highland cattle are capable of surviving the harshest environmental conditions in some of the roughest hill country of northern Scotland. They were originally kept by small farmers and used to raise a calf and produce milk for the farm family. In Great Britain the Highland Cattle Society was formed over one hundred years ago to preserve this ancient breed. The Royal family are members, patrons of the society, and keep very good Highlands at Balmoral Castle in Scotland. Recently, Highlands have gained in popularity because their meet is very lean and low in cholesterol. This appeals to the new American taste for healthy, naturally grown beef. Highland Cattle are more docile than most other breeds of cattle. They respond to human contact and on the whole are gentle. However, care should be taken when approaching cows with calves. Bulls are good natured, but should be respected. Anyone who does not wish to own a bull could utilize artificial insemination (AI) or rent a bull to get their cows in calf. |
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| Highland cattle live longer and produce more calves than other breeds. Highlands will breed up to twenty years of age. The calves are weaned from their mothers between six and eight months old, allowing the cow to get back into condition for her next calf. The gestation period is nine months and cows may be expected to have a calf each year. | ||
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Characteristics
of Highland Cattle |
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Mature Weight
Breed Standards The Neck and Shoulder: The neck should be altogether clear and without dewlap below. It should form a straight line from the head to the shoulder in the cow, but in the mature bulls should have that distinct crest common to all animals of the bovine species giving a decidedly masculine appearance. The shoulder should be thick and should fill out greatly as it descends from the point to the lower extremity of the foreleg. |
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Among the Gorse and
Heather Harry Payne (Scottish, 1906) |
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The Back, Body and Hindquarters: From behind the shoulder, the back should be fully developed and well rounded. Any slight sinking or hollow is decidedly objectionable. It should also be straight as possible and the ribs should spring boldly out and be both well rounded and deep. When measured across the hips the breadth should be very great, and the quarters should be exceedingly well developed from the hips backwards. The thighs should also be well developed and should show great fullness. Viewed generally, the quarters should be square between the hips and the tail, and from between the tail right down to between the hind feet. The legs, both before and behind, should be of moderate length and strong, the bones strong, broad and straight, the hoofs well set in and lacking faults, the legs well feathered with hair. The animal should be set wide between the forelegs and it should move with great dignity and style. The cows should have well attached udders with a strong center line and four teats of moderate length for easy milking by the calf. The scrotum on the bull should be well developed and pendulant with two testes of equal size and shape. Testicle size in a yearling bull has a high correlation with his fertility and the rate of maturity of his daughters. The Hair: The hair, of which there should be a great profusion, should be long and gracefully waved. It is not uncommon for Highlands to shed this hair coat when exposed to hot dry climate and then grow a new one as the damp cold weather returns. Highlands have a double coat of hair-a downy undercoat and a long outer coat which may reach 13 inches, and which is well-oiled to shed rain and snow. With the double coat of hair and thick hide, the Highland has been adapted by nature to with stand great exposure. The predominant color is red but brindle, yellow, white, dun and black are also acceptable. There has been no proven correlation between hair color and performance. Most of the larger herds have animals of differing colors but a few breeders have chosen to breed for a specific shade. Nature: The Highland is unusually healthy and hearty and will survive on roughage and poor grazing including brush, if necessary, under climatic conditions where most of our popular breeds would suffer. Highlands are noted for their browsing ability and therefore are well suited to farmsteads where there is an excess of poor pasture and rough land. The highland's proven ability to produce top quality meat without the addition of expensive high quality feeds makes this breed the perfect choice for those people who wish to produce beef with natural inputs. |
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Buying Registered Highland Cattle |
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Perhaps questions most asked of a new breeder are: "What do I need to look for and what do I need to have when I buy Highlands?". This page was created for those of you who find yourself asking these questions. Hopefully, after you've finished reading you will feel more comfortable about your next Highland purchase.
Something else to keep in mind-When you purchase a registered Highland animal, the seller should pay for the transfer and the registration costs if your animal is not registered yet. Good Luck! I hope your next purchase is a rewarding experience!!!! |
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Highland
Beef |
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Tests Confirm that Highland Beef is 40% Lower in Fat. |
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Having meat analyzed by a commercial testing lab gave us a better idea of the fat and cholesterol levels in Highland meat. Comparisons were sought in grass-fed vs. grain-fed, store-bought vs. Highland and purebred vs. crossbred Highland. These tests were done by Commercial Testing Laboratory, Inc., Colfax, Wisconsin, who has been in operation since 1952. The first sample was submitted by Legacy Fruit Farms of Arkansas, Wisconsin. It was a grass-fed highland sirloin steak. The cholesterol count, which is measured in mg/100g, was 23.4. This compares to 77.0 in lean red meat, 72.00 in chicken, 70.0 in venison, 50.0 in codfish and 40.0 in buffalo (numbers adapted from the National Cholesterol Education Program Report of the National Cholesterol Education Program Expert Panel on Detection Evaluation and Treatment of High Blood Cholesterol in Adults). The fat percentage on the same meat sample was very low at 4.5%.. |
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The next test was done on February 3, 1994 and compared grass-fed Highland ground beef to locally purchased extra lean ground beef. The highland had 12.2% fat compared to 20.5% in the purchased beef. The cholesterol count had similar results with the Highland having 30.8 mg/100g. compared to 34.00 for the extra lean meat.
The last test performed was on T-bone steaks which tend to be higher in fat normally. This comparison was done by Acorn Ridge Farms of Warsaw, Indiana September 1994. Highland and Highland/Shorthorn cross samples were submitted the steers weighed 1100 and 1125 pounds each and were fed 25 pounds of haylage and between 10-12 pounds of corn per day. The Highland T-bone tested at 22.2% fat and the Highland/Shorthorn 19.3%. The cholesterol count was just the opposite with the Highland at 64.4mg./100g. and the Highland /Shorthorn at 71.0 mg./100 g.. Both are still very comparable to venison at 70.0 and lean read meat at 77.0. We plan to submit more samples for testing to determine consistency. |
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Answers
to Frequently Asked Questions |
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What colors do Highland cattle come in? Are Highlands purebred or are they a cross breed? |
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| What
colors do Highland cattle come in? There are many variations in color of the Highlands. The colors noted below are the ones recognized by the American Highland Cattle Association (AHCA):
A good friend of mine always said if you choose your cattle by the color you might as well stay in the truck. |
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Are Highlands purebred or
are they a cross breed? |
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Where do Highlands
originate? |
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Are Highlands Mean? |
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Why would someone what to
raise them? |
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Are all Highlands bulls? |
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Highland Tattoo Letters |
| Recommended location is in the Left ear and combined with the farm’s Herd letters and the animal’s birth number. For example: the tattoo XYZ2S would be the second calf born on farm XYZ in 2005. Refer to the Membership Directory & Handbook, Rules and Regulations, Section III. Marking. | |||
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2002 M 2003 N |
2004
R 2005 S |
2006
T 2007 U |
2008 V 2009 W |
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DNA Tips from AHCA |
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The American Highland Cattle Association (AHCA) offers these tips regarding deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) requirements:
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Highland Breeder's Guide |
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The Highland Breeder's Guide of the American Highland Cattle Association (AHCA) is a complete rewrite of the Bagpipe Permanent Edition which was last released in the early 1990s . To reduce costs of printing and shipping, AHCA is making the Guide available online and as an electronic download for individual usage. |
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