Content
The Red Steppe cow does not have a very long history compared to many Western dairy breeds. They began to breed it at the end of the 18th century by crossing Western cattle with an ancient draft breed of cattle, bred at that time in Ukraine. The “Aborigine” of Ukraine, a gray steppe breed of cattle, was intended more for use in harness. The Chumaks rode powerful and hardy oxen of this breed to the Crimea for salt. But after the conquest of Crimea in 1783 by Catherine the Great and the establishment of communications between the peninsula and the mainland, as well as the elimination of the military threat from the south, horses firmly took their “rightful” place as draft animals.
Strong and hardy, but very slow oxen of the gray steppe breed were no longer needed, and foreign dairy cattle began to be imported into Ukraine. This was done, of course, not by peasants, but by German colonists. As a result of the assimilation crossing of gray steppe cows with sire bulls of red East Friesian, Simmental, Angeln and other breeds, a new breed of dairy cattle arose, named after their color and the steppe region of breeding.
The Red Steppe breed was officially recognized at the beginning of the 19th century.In the 70s of the same century, as a result of migration processes, the red steppe breed of cows from the Black Sea steppes penetrated into the more eastern parts of the Russian Empire: the Volga region, Kuban, Kalmykia, Stavropol region, Western Siberia. In each region, the red steppe breed mixed with local livestock, changing its productive and external characteristics. As a result, several types of “German” red cow were formed.
The photo shows a Kulunda type stud bull.
Description of the breed
General impression: cattle of strong, sometimes rough constitution. The frame is light but strong. The head is medium-sized, usually light and graceful. But depending on the type it can be somewhat rough. The nose is dark. The breed is horned, the horns are light gray in color.
When fighting in a herd for hierarchy, a cow can flog its rival with its horn. It is better to dehorn red steppe cattle while still having calves, if possible.
The neck is thin and of medium length. The body is long. The topline is uneven, with clearly defined differences between sections of the spine. The withers are high and wide. The back is narrow. The loin is long and narrow. The sacrum is raised and wide. Croup of medium length. The legs are short and well set.
Medium-sized red steppe cattle. Height at withers 127.5±1.5 cm, oblique length 154±2 cm, elongation index 121. Chest depth 67±1 cm, width 39.5±2.5 cm. Pastern girth 18±1 cm, bone index 14 .
The udder is well developed, small, round in shape. The nipples are cylindrical.
The color of the red steppe breed corresponds to its name. The cows are solid red.There may be small white markings on the forehead, udder, belly and legs.
Exterior Disadvantages
Unfortunately, cows of this breed also have a lot of disadvantages. In fact, no full-fledged breeding work was carried out, and peasants could breed cows with any defects just to get milk. Therefore, the breed contains:
- thin bones;
- narrow or drooping croup;
- little weight;
- udder defects;
- poor muscularity;
- incorrect foot placement.
When choosing a cow to buy, you should definitely pay attention to the presence of defects in the exterior and udder. They often affect either cow health, calving welfare or milk production. In particular, improper udder structure during machine milking leads to mastitis.
Productive characteristics of the red steppe breed of cows
The weight of an adult cow ranges from 400 to 650 kg. Bulls can reach 900 kg. At birth, heifers weigh from 27 to 30 kg, bulls from 35 to 40 kg. With properly organized feeding, calves gain weight up to 200 kg by six months. By the age of one year, the weight of a calf can reach up to 300 kg. Slaughter yield of meat is 53%.
Milk productivity depends on the climatic zone of breeding. On abundant succulent feed, a red steppe cow can produce over 5000 liters of milk per lactation. But the average is 4 - 5 tons of milk during the lactation period.
The milk fat content of cows of this breed is “statistically average”: 3.6 – 3.7%.
Advantages of the breed
Bred in the arid Black Sea steppes of Ukraine, the red steppe has high adaptive qualities and easily adapts to any climatic conditions. She is undemanding to living conditions. In the Black Sea region, green grass grows only in spring and autumn. In summer, the steppe completely burns out under the hot sun, and in winter, the frozen ground is covered with snow. The red prairie is able to quickly gain weight on the grass before the grass burns out. During periods of drought, livestock maintain their weight gain by eating low-nutrient dried grass.
Cattle of this breed tolerate summer heat above 30°C and cold steppe winds in winter. Cows can graze in the sun all day without water. In addition to these advantages, the Red Steppe breed has a very strong immune system.
Recommended breeding areas for the red steppe: the Urals, Transcaucasia, Stavropol region, Krasnodar region, Volga region, Omsk and Rostov regions, Moldova, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.
Breeding Features
The breed is characterized by early maturity. On average, heifers are born for the first time at one and a half years old. When selecting manufacturers, care should be taken and possible hereditary defects of the exterior should be taken into account. If a heifer has any disadvantage, she must be paired with a bull without hereditary defects. True, this does not guarantee the birth of high-quality calves, but it increases the chances of this.
Reviews from owners of Red Steppe cows
Conclusion
Considering the ability of red steppe cows to produce good milk yield even on meager feed in steppe regions, they can be bred in regions where droughts often occur. The breed requires further selection, but this issue is being resolved today in breeding farms in the southern regions of Russia. Due to its unpretentiousness to feed, heat and frost resistance, the red steppe cow is well suited for keeping in private farmsteads.
