Heritage Milking Shorthorns

History

Since their inception, Shorthorns were a dual purpose milk and meat breed. That doesn’t mean there were not breeders at the beginning that were known more for one type or the other. For instance two of the progenitors of the Shorthorn breed, Thomas Bates and Thomas Boothe, often were referred to in the catchphrase “Bates for the pail and Boothe for the butcher”. Most breeders up through the 1930’s tried to maintain a neutral position with regard to breed type. As the cattle industry started to evolve into dairy and beef models interest in Shorthorns as a Dual Purpose breed began to diminish. This produced a lot of “hand wringing” among breeders, judges, and the Shorthorn Association. As the discord blossomed it became apparent that it would be difficult to keep all types of Shorthorns “under one roof”. This problem is further discussed under the Shorthorn History section entitled “The Divorce” on this website. Suffice it to say that the American Milking Shorthorn Society (AMSS) became a separate entity in 1949.

Transformation Of Milking Shorthorns

The average USA milk production by a modern dairy cow in 2019 is over 23,000 pounds of milk per year. There were Milking Shorthorn cows producing 20-30,000 pounds of milk per year 70-80 years ago. In fact a Milking Shorthorn cow (Melba 15th of Darbalara) established the World Production Butterfat record in 1924 by producing 32,522 pounds of milk with 1614 lbs. of butterfat (4.96%) in a 365 day period without the benefit of modern feeding or technology. Quite an achievement ! Just think if cows with this genetic milk capability would have been popularized. The possibilities of using these genetics for heterosis, when breeding modern dairy cows, would be tremendous.

Unfortunately no one seized on the milk production potential of Shorthorns back then and the Shorthorn breed allowed other breeds, especially Holsteins, to supplant their position in the dairy world. When Milking Shorthorn breeders realized they had “dug themselves a hole” they chose various shortcuts to improve milk production instead of selectively breeding within the Shorthorns they had.

Over a period of time, AMSS chose several different ways of enhancing milk production in Milking Shorthorns to compete with Holsteins which all revolved around the introduction of non-purebred lines. The first was the “Grade-Up” program introduced in 1945 that brought other cows of proper color (red, white, red/white, and roan) into the Milking Shorthorn fold. The next change was in the late 1960’s when an “Experimental Breed Improvement Program” was initiated. Particular Red and White Holsteins or Red Factor Holsteins were utilized in this scheme to essentially produce a crossbred Milking Shorthorn. One glaring negative consequence of this “open herd book approach” was the introduction of genetic problems that existed in Holsteins but were not previously in the Shorthorn breed. A prime example of this is “Haplotype Cholesterol Deficiency” (HCD)—a genetic problem that is non-existent in Heritage Milking Shorthorns but must be tested for in Modern Milking Shorthorns. The third installment of these attempts to improve the milk production of Modern Milking Shorthorns occurred at the April, 1969 Board Meeting of the Milking Shorthorn Society where it was voted to accept certain Australian Illawarra Shorthorns into the herd registry. Australian Illawarra Shorthorns are an amalgamation of several breeds, including Ayrshires, Devons, Lincoln Reds, and Alderneys with the most significant contribution coming from Milking Shorthorns. In fact the Illawarra became so intertwined with American Milking Shorthorns that the title of the breed publication “Milking Shorthorn Journal” was changed to the “Journal of the Milking Shorthorn and Illawarra Breeds” for several years. Today the AMSS breed publication “Milking Shorthorn Journal” no longer exists. It has been changed to “The Angle For Component Breeders” which speaks volumes about Modern Milking Shorthorns.

Certainly a dramatic increase in milk production has occurred in Modern Milking Shorthorns, but at a cost. The cost includes: loss of breed purity, loss of foraging ability, shortened lives, decreased fertility, structural issues, and the introduction of genetic defects primarily from the Holstein influence. Changes to the breed, carried out by AMSS in their single-minded pursuit of increased milk volume, sacrificed many of the original virtues of Milking Shorthorns. Currently, “confusion rules the day" when trying to sort out what constitutes a Modern Milking Shorthorn. Anyone who takes the time to look at the convoluted “Explanation of Herdbook Purity Levels” on the AMSS website will be amazed. (follow links: AMSS website—-Programs/Services—-lower left, Policies—-Explanation of Herdbook Purity Levels). Many owners of Modern Milking Shorthorns do not realize the low level of genuine Milking Shorthorn blood in their cows. Fortunately Heritage (formerly referred to as “Native”) Milking Shorthorns have not gone down this dead end trail.

Heritage Milking Shorthorns

Genetic purity, the ability to trace to the Coates Herdbook of 1822, is a hallmark of the Heritage Milking Shorthorn. This fact is a pathway to many of the other advantages of Heritage Milking Shorthorns. Their longevity is legendary with some being in production at 20 years of age versus a lifespan of 4-5 years for most modern dairy cows. Docility has also been a trademark of Heritage Milking Shorthorns. They were developed in pasture environments so they have the rumen capacity to do extremely well in any grassfed production system. It has been well documented that the fertility of these cows is exceptional with heifers cycling at a very young age. The availability of A2/A2 genetics in certain lines, in conjunction with high milk solids/butterfat levels, makes them an excellent fit for those producers interested in the specialty milk and cheese markets. Because Heritage Milking Shorthorns are structurally different from modern dairy cows, with more muscle mass, they produce two other benefits: their meatier bull calves are much more salable, and the cows’ salvage value when they have exhausted their productive life is much higher. The summation of these positive traits make Heritage Milking Shorthorns a winner in meeting the needs of buyers of family cows and also for the new Micro-Dairy phenomenon.

Dual Purpose Milking Shorthorns

While Heritage Shorthorns typically fall under the umbrella of Dual Purpose, there are certain bloodlines which tend heavily toward the milking side with the capability to excel at milk production at the 12-20,000 pound level. Careful examination of past Heritage Shorthorn milk production records and pedigrees show that many genetic opportunities to produce this type of cow still exist. Many current Heritage Shorthorn breeders listed in the HSS membership directory have cows or Heritage Shorthorn bloodlines that can be utilized as Heritage Milking Shorthorns.

Heritage Shorthorns can make a great family cow. Because of their typically gentle nature, with proper training, most Dual Purpose Heritage Shorthorns can be utilized as family cows, where the cow is milked once a day and the calf is left on the cow the rest of the time. Many of these cows start their lactations with the capacity to produce more milk than the calf needs. Normally if milk production exceeds the needs of the calf, udder pressure builds, and milk production decreases to reach a stable level that only meets the needs of the calf. If the initial high production level is optimized through at least once a day milking, the cow will respond positively and her milk supply will be adequate for both the family and the calf.

Remarkable Heritage Milking Shorthorn Cows

“Meadowbrook Lassie 3rd” on left with her full sister on the right. She is the dam of Meadowbrook Chieftain 9th. In 1965, at 11 years of age she produced 12,490 pounds of milk with a 5.2% butterfat test.

“Nancy Lee” She was an exceptional cow that demonstrates the longevity and production of old line Milking Shorthorns. At 16 years of age she produced 14,608 pounds of milk and 582 pounds of butterfat. At 18 years of age she was still milking 50 pounds of milk a day after freshening. This photo of Nancy Lee and her calf was taken in March 1954 when she was almost 21 yrs. old.

“Mountain Princess” She was bred in the 1950’s by White Mountain Creamery in Ohio but was eventually sold to Borg farms. At five years of age she produced 21,032 pounds of milk with a 4.06% butterfat test.

“Melba 15th of Darbalara” produced 32,522 pounds of milk and 1614 pounds of butterfat (4.96 %) setting the world record for butterfat in 1924. An interesting side note is she weighed 2128 pounds just before she calved on June 1923, just prior to when she started her world record run.

“Dairymaid” In her record year of 1909 she was sold to Walgrove Farm of New York where without special attention and while being stanchioned through the winter she produced 19,066 pounds of milk and 671.64 pounds of butterfat.

References

The Story of the Milking Shorthorn in the U.S. By: Otis L. Fisher
Self Published 1993 (Available for sale on this HSS website Store Page)
Outstanding history of the development of Milking Shorthorns in the USA primarily from 1900-1990’s. Incorporates information about the influence of importations and the Illawarra introduction into USA Milking Shorthorns.
Dual-Purpose Cattle By: Claude Hinman ©️ 1953
This book gives a terrific overview of all aspects of selecting, producing, and selling Dual Purpose cattle. It focuses on both Heritage Milking/Beef Shorthorns and Red Polls. It is very complete and a great read. It has pictures of some of the more significant Heritage Shorthorn cows and bulls that existed before the book’s publication in 1953. Mr. Hinman was actually the president of the American Milking Shorthorn Society in 1923. Anyone interested in Heritage Shorthorns will learn something from reading this book.
History of Dairy Shorthorn Cattle By: George T. Burrows
Published in 1950 by Vinton & Company Limited London
This book starts at the beginning of the breed and discusses the evolvement of Dairy Shorthorns from the early Beef Shorthorns. It is primarily about Dairy Shorthorns in Great Britain but includes considerable information pertaining to the development of Milking Shorthorns in the USA. There are many excellent pictures.
Milking Shorthorn Journals, prior to 1945