no nonsense
Corralled
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In recent years there has been an upsurge in interest in keeping livestock, especially on small farmlots and in rural residential settings. This hobby farm movement has attracted a lot of people with little previous experience in farming or agriculture, who are naturally drawn toward small, miniature or cute looking livestock breeds. An unfortunate consequence has been that some breeders have taken to using misleading tactics to fill the demand for these smaller animals, lining their pockets by preying on the novice's ignorance.
In very few cases, Miniature Herefords and Lowline Angus as exceptions, many of these "new" miniature breeds are either outright mongrels, or at best, the very beginnings of a breed in development. Others are simply renamed versions of an old style of the breed which has gone out of favor. A clever marketing tecknique perpetrated on the unsuspecting by shrewd wheelers and dealers.
Dexter cattle are not a miniature of anything. They are simply a naturally small breed of cattle, one of the few remaining dual purpose breeds, or at least that is how they were originally intended. With this new focus on small and cute, few people are concentrating on either beef type or dairy type within the breed, so the unintended consequence is that they are for the time being, remaining somewhat intermediate.
Nigerian Dwarf dairy goats have been selected away from their pigmy goat ancestors, and crossed with other dairy breeds, for long enough now that they are starting to gel into a legitimate breed type. These other "mini" dairy goats, so-called miniaturizations of full size dairy breeds, are nothing more than recent crosses. Mutts, grades if you will, sold for lots of money to people who want to believe in fairy tales. They have not been bred consistently for long enough to fix type which breeds true. Simply crossing two breeds and proclaiming it to be a new breed is not how it is done. I'm constantly amazed at how many people don't understand this concept.
So-called Olde English Babydoll Southdowns are nothing more than the original style of Southdowns, before modern economic forces encouraged breeders to stay competetive and select for larger frame size. Hats off to the one man who had the marketing genius to add the e to the Old, and include the fuzzy term babydoll. What was previously almost forgotten, has been transformed into something desireable, just by adding the cute factor, all smoke and mirrors. The same is now happening with Cheviots. From a heritage breed perspective, where were all of these new preservationists before their current breed of choice had the cute new name, with the associated hefty price tag?
I just don't understand the desire to miniaturize our current large breeds of dairy cattle. I understand the benefits of smaller beef breeds, but we already have small dairy animals for someone who can't handle a Holstein. They're called goats. But the dairy goats themselves must now be miniaturized too. Where does it all end?
In the end, like anything else, it's buyer beware. Research the history of your breeds. Educate yourself about other breeds. Chances are, if you have a certain need for an animal, there is already a legitimate breed or species out there which fulfills that need. If it's a cute and fuzzy pet that you want, most livestock is probbaly not appropriate. Stick with puppies and kitties.
In very few cases, Miniature Herefords and Lowline Angus as exceptions, many of these "new" miniature breeds are either outright mongrels, or at best, the very beginnings of a breed in development. Others are simply renamed versions of an old style of the breed which has gone out of favor. A clever marketing tecknique perpetrated on the unsuspecting by shrewd wheelers and dealers.
Dexter cattle are not a miniature of anything. They are simply a naturally small breed of cattle, one of the few remaining dual purpose breeds, or at least that is how they were originally intended. With this new focus on small and cute, few people are concentrating on either beef type or dairy type within the breed, so the unintended consequence is that they are for the time being, remaining somewhat intermediate.
Nigerian Dwarf dairy goats have been selected away from their pigmy goat ancestors, and crossed with other dairy breeds, for long enough now that they are starting to gel into a legitimate breed type. These other "mini" dairy goats, so-called miniaturizations of full size dairy breeds, are nothing more than recent crosses. Mutts, grades if you will, sold for lots of money to people who want to believe in fairy tales. They have not been bred consistently for long enough to fix type which breeds true. Simply crossing two breeds and proclaiming it to be a new breed is not how it is done. I'm constantly amazed at how many people don't understand this concept.
So-called Olde English Babydoll Southdowns are nothing more than the original style of Southdowns, before modern economic forces encouraged breeders to stay competetive and select for larger frame size. Hats off to the one man who had the marketing genius to add the e to the Old, and include the fuzzy term babydoll. What was previously almost forgotten, has been transformed into something desireable, just by adding the cute factor, all smoke and mirrors. The same is now happening with Cheviots. From a heritage breed perspective, where were all of these new preservationists before their current breed of choice had the cute new name, with the associated hefty price tag?
I just don't understand the desire to miniaturize our current large breeds of dairy cattle. I understand the benefits of smaller beef breeds, but we already have small dairy animals for someone who can't handle a Holstein. They're called goats. But the dairy goats themselves must now be miniaturized too. Where does it all end?
In the end, like anything else, it's buyer beware. Research the history of your breeds. Educate yourself about other breeds. Chances are, if you have a certain need for an animal, there is already a legitimate breed or species out there which fulfills that need. If it's a cute and fuzzy pet that you want, most livestock is probbaly not appropriate. Stick with puppies and kitties.
