Pint-sized cattle are a Cuban revolution

The Scotsman ^ | 14 Sep 2004 | ANDREA RODRIGUEZ

[sociotard]

RAUL Hernandez, a Cuban rancher, claims to have bred a family pet that pays its way - a mini-cow about the size of an Alsatian dog.

Although the same basic shape as any of the world’s famous breeds of cattle, such as Holstein or Aberdeen-Angus, those bred by Mr Hernandez are less than half the size.

Standing about 23 inches (58 centimetres) to 28 inches (71 centimetres) tall, the mini-cows can be kept in a small area, graze simple grasses and weeds, and are, Mr Hernandez says, "a perfect source of milk for Cuban families".

"They are patio cows - easy to work with," the 74-year-old says, smiling. "They give less meat, but they can deliver four or five litres (about a gallon) of top-quality milk to a family every day."

After retiring from a state ranch where he worked for more than 30 years, Mr Hernandez decided he wanted to remain busy and useful. He acquired the Santa Isabel Farm in the tobacco-growing region of western Pinar del Rio province, about 125 miles west of Havana.

Amid the rolling hills surrounded by towering palm trees, Mr Hernandez worked with local agricultural labourers to plant food crops. Then he decided to try breeding miniature cows.

By his own account, there was nothing notably scientific about his attempts. He simply began with a tiny bull, which neighbours had ridiculed because of its size, and mated it with the smallest cows he could find.

With a speed which cattle-breeding specialists and geneticists around the world might envy, he claims that, five years on, he has reached his objective - a herd of cows that reach no higher than his waist.

He says his success has ranchers throughout the area pursuing breeding experiments to come up with their own tiny cows, while he is training local teenagers to help care for the little animals.

"Now the neighbours are excited by the idea," he said.

Dr Tim Roughsedge, an animal breeding research scientist with the Scottish Agricultural College, was not quite so impressed.

"It is possible to carry out extreme selection breeding programmes, with dogs the best-known example," he said. "From one ancestor, we have breeds that range from the tiny Chihuahua to the Irish wolfhound and most points in between, almost all produced by extreme interventionist methods.

"So, it is possible that Mr Hernandez has produced a breed of cattle barely the size of large dogs. Whether they would make useful family pets is another matter."

For at least the past 30 years, mainstream cattle breeders around the world, whether based on farms or in research stations, have worked at increasing the size of cattle breeds and the amount of meat and milk they produce.

A Holstein milk cow, which can produce about ten gallons of milk a day, will be at least twice as tall as a Hernandez cow. A beef cow, such as an Aberdeen-Angus, will be nearly twice as tall and up to four times as heavy.

But there are naturally small breeds, such as the Dexter, which stands about a metre (39 inches) high at the shoulder, and the native Shetland cow, which can survive on the poorest grazing.

These breeds, especially the Dexter, have been used by novelty breeders, mainly in the United States. One such operation is Pillard’s miniature cattle ranch in Iowa, which is trying to breed cattle less than 36 inches tall weighing less than 500lb. It seems that Mr Hernandez is ahead of the game.

[sociotard]

I know the story is more than a month old, but I just found out about it, and thought it was worth posting. 4-5 quarts a day would have met my household needs perfectly growing up.It's too bad we have to embargo Fidel. Anyway, this is apparently loosely related to the old idea Castro had to make apartment cattle, where every familly could have one cow to get milk from.

[PeterFinn]

Sorry I don't think having a poop-machine in every house is a good idea. A better idea is for Cuba to become a republic with a market economy where dairy products would be produced and distributed safely and efficiently.

Kerry would oppose this idea, of course.

[sociotard]

Here's the MSNBC version:

New mini cows perfect for milk?
Cuban rancher breeds bovines no larger than dogs

SAN JUAN Y MARTINEZ, Cuba - Rancher Raul Hernandez’s cows look just like other breed — only they are no larger than big dogs. They’re a perfect source of milk for Cuban families, he says.

Standing about 23 to 28 inches tall, the mini cows can be kept in a small area and they feed on simple grasses and weeds, Hernandez says.

“They are patio cows, easy to work,” the 74-year-old says, smiling under the broad hat he wears to keep off the tropical sun.

“They give up less meat, but they can deliver four or five liters (quarts) of top quality milk to a family,” he says.

After retiring from a state ranch where he worked for more than 30 years, Hernandez decided he wanted to keep working to remain busy and useful.

He acquired the Santa Isabel Farm in the tobacco-growing region of western Pinar del Rio province, about 125 miles west of Havana. Amid the rolling hills surrounded by towering palm trees, Hernandez worked with local agriculture laborers to plant food crops, then he decided to try breeding miniature cows.

Hernandez started out with a tiny bull, which neighbors had ridiculed because of its small size, and began breeding it with the littlest cows he could find. Five years and several generations later, he had a herd of cows that reach no higher than his waist.

He says his success has ranchers throughout the area pursuing breeding experiments of their own to come up with their own tiny cows. And Hernandez is training local teenagers to help care for the little animals.

“Now the neighbors are excited by the idea,” he says.

[DannyTN]

Wheres the beef?

[Argus]

When El Maximo finally croaks, we can import all the tiny cattle and enjoy tiny little milkshakes toasting his demise.

[elli1]

Interesting article--glad you posted it. :-)

[FormerACLUmember]

When El Maximo finally croaks, we can import all the tiny cattle and enjoy tiny little milkshakes toasting his demise.

LOL.

Poor cows looked ill-fed and neglected.

[sociotard]

Originally posted by PeterFinn:
Sorry I don't think having a poop-machine in every house is a good idea.

I've wondered about that. These cows are the size of big dogs. Would they really poop that much more? After all, Dogs, cats and small children all fall under the catagory of "Poop machines people keep in the house."

And those poop machines don't excrete anything tasty or refreshing. Like milk. mmmmmm. pardon me, I'm thirsty now.

[Mark in the Old South]

You sir are obviously not a fan of gardening.

[Mr. Lucky]

This is only newsworthy in a country without a private market farming sector, without refrigeration, without transportation, without capital and without hope.

[blackdog]

uHM........What about goats? Our Nubian gives a gallon a day and eats brush and weeds. Why would you want small cows over a goat? A cow is a very inefficient animal in terms of pounds of feed converted to meat and milk. The only driver for dairying with cows is strictly volume and market acceptance.

[Mr. Lucky]

This is only newsworthy in a country without a private market farming sector, without refrigeration, without transportation, without capital and without hope.

[RobRoy]

I'll believe it when Art Bell says it's true!

[Fiddlstix]

BTTT

[daviddennis]

How would you feed them?

In a typical Cuban apartment, there is no vegetation or any outside area. Havana's pretty crammed together.

I have this vague recollection of Castro's doomed effort to create apartment cattle. The bull this guy found was probably a remmnant of this experiment, and the fact that it was ridiculed gives you a pretty good idea of how it came out, even if I don't remember the facts.

D

[DannyTN]

They look thin.

Could these cows simply be malnourished and this guy is trying to sell them for more than the $4 they are worth?

[curmudgeonII]

...a mini-cow about the size of an Alsatian dog

Alsatian dog = a term coined by the Brits in World War I to refer to German Shepherds.

[Moonman62]

I've wondered about that. These cows are the size of big dogs. Would they really poop that much more? After all, Dogs, cats and small children all fall under the catagory of "Poop machines people keep in the house."

They look quite a bit heavier than dogs to me, and don't they eat quite a bit more, too, considering that they have to give milk. And the Chinese live with their livestock, which is why they breed new strains of flu every year.

The bottom line is there is not enough food or much of anything else in Cuba because of communism.

[blackdog]

Not much of a bag on that animal huh? I don't even see one?