Home

Miniature Hereford

History

The Miniature Hereford has been developed over the last 20 years by selective breeding of stock that was originally imported to the US from England in the early 19th century. The miniature Hereford breeding program was initially started by the Largent family in 1974, whose ranch is located in the Davis Mountains of Texas.

Rust Largent initially concentrated on breeding the most efficient cattle suited to the local conditions of his ranch. After working on size reduction for several years with efficiency in mind, a bull was used at the ranch that enabled a reduction in frame size to be achieved at an increased rate. This bull's name was Laser. Since Laser there has been a succession of small animals. The herd has been systematically culled and improved continuously to produce the base herd.

All Miniature Herefords are registerable with the American Hereford Society, hence they are checked free of the dwarfism gene. The first Miniature Herefords were sold on the open market in 1991. Miniature Herefords are now available in many states of the US and Canada. A small number of breeders in Australia, including Australian Miniature Herefords are developing the breed in this country.

General Description

In general terms, a Miniature Hereford should show a body profile in proportion to a full sized Hereford. That is, if you look at a photograph of a miniature, without a size reference in the photo (say a person standing next to it) then the structure and conformation should be almost indiscernible from a full size.

Regular size Herefords can reach 165cm (65 inches) tall, whereas Miniature Hereford are a lot smaller, averaging around 107cm (42 inches), Miniature Hereford cattle are measured at the hip using a frame score. Generally, the lower the frame score, the more the cattle are worth - provided other characteristic are correct

For more details on conformation of Miniature Herefords visit:  http://www.hinet.net.au/~jstott/products1.htm

Advantages Of Miniature Herefords

The miniature cattle market in Australia is entering a rapid growth phase, but most importantly the future market for the end product (beef from miniatures) is very likely to be assured through the efforts of a number of dedicated breeders and their associations - particularly the Australian Miniature Hereford Cattle Association and other miniature cattle breeds associations. These Associations are determined to ensure that miniature cattle are not promoted on the basis of unsustainable promises, in the way that other exotic breeds have been exploited. The Australian Restaurateurs Association is displaying an interest in working with miniature breeders to promote the concept of smaller but full cuts of better quality (texture and taste) beef for use in restaurants. In summary, the key advantages of breeding miniatures are:

  • Miniatures convert food consumed to body weight more effectively than conventional sized cattle (around 40% of the food intake producing 60% by weight of the prime cuts) and mature up to 20% earlier.
  • Miniatures are small, easy to handle and easier on your paddocks and dams - won't pock those soft areas as readily as conventional-sized. Are bred for placid and 'friendly' temperaments.
  • An evolving market for the end product (quality beef cuts) with existing infrastructure support (local breeders and Associations).
  • The broad recognition and acceptance of the Hereford breed makes them very marketable and they are registrable with major international Hereford Associations.
  • Miniature Herefords are no different to full size Herefords from the point of view of veterinary care.
  • Capitalise on being a participant in the breeding up phase in this country.
Organisation

Miniature Hereford are registered with the NZ Hereford Association and a sub group which verifies the bloodlines for registering Miniature Herefords is called the NZ Miniature Hereford Breeders Group.

Marketing Of Miniature Herefords

There are three categories of opportunity for breeders:

Commercial Carcass Market
  • Pursue niche market with the restaurant trade (work with other miniature breeds)
  • The meat will be promoted as premium quality
  • A whole carcass is small enough to fit in the family freezer
Commercial - Stud Stock Market

A breeding up phase will occur over the next few years to increase the number of Miniature Herefords in Australia. There will be an immediate market for good quality stud stock.

Exotic Market

There are only around a few thousand Miniature Herefords in the world so they will also appeal to the collectors of exotic animals. This exotic market will not be as large in Australia because our population size would not support a large market. The market will also be competing with the other miniature breeds that are in Australia (e.g. Lowlines and Squaremeaters). Other factors (mentioned above) are of more importance in building a strong industry sub-sector than relying on exotic appeal. Although 'cute' is still good!

Contacts

Sarah Wright, Papakura, Auckland. Ph: 09 292 7474.
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Website: www.hinet.net.au/~jstott/amh_network.htm

Chris & Helen Russell, Amberlea Farm, 191 Millar Road, RD 5, Lake Okareka, Rotorua. Ph: 07/362-8030 Fx: 07/362-8040 email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it website: www.amberleafarm.co.nz