Genetics of the Black Polled
Hereford
By: Cassady Wilson
What are Black Polled Herefords?
• Black Herefords are a hybrid breed developed by
crossing Hereford and Angus cattle and having at
least 62.5% registered Hereford blood, black in
color and sired by a bull registered by the American
Black Hereford Association. Most have traditional
white markings of a Hereford but black hided
instead of red.
Why did they create a Black
Polled Hereford?
farmers wanted a cow that had all the
benefits of the Polled Hereford but with a
black hide instead. Because black coated
cattle sell for more then red coated cattle.
And with the Polled Hereford blood they
wont suffer from the angus diseases.
What are the benefits?
•
The meat quality of Black Hereford beef cattle is
superb. Many cattle ranchers choose this breed specifically
for this factor alone.
• Black Herefords can withstand extremes in weather with
seeming ease and are very efficient at using their food for
weight gain, making them well suited for grazing and grass
fed diets.
• Improve your calving rate by nearly 4% in the heifers
you retain in your herd as replacements.
• Increase the longevity of the replacement heifers by
more than one year
Eliminate the onset of calf losses in cows that
are possible carriers of recessive Angus
• Black Herefords tend to have black pigment
around the eyes as well as dark colored eyes
which reduces the onset of pinkeye as
compared to lighter colored cattle.
• Black Hereford females tend to have teats and
udders with black pigmentation eliminating
worries about sun and/or snow-burned
Udders.
How do you get a Black
Hereford?
you get a Black Hereford by crossing a Red
Polled Hereford with a Black Angus.
But its not that simple
It takes a couple of generations before you
get a Black Polled Hereford. By just doing the
first cross you will only get a black baldy. So
then you breed that animal to a Polled
Hereford. by doing so your controlling what
percentage of Angus and Polled Hereford is
put into the animal. You want a Polled
Hereford that is black. To even be a Black
Polled Hereford the percentage must be over
60%
Homozygous and recessive
alleles
in cattle black coat coloring is dominant and red coat color is
recessive. So when u cross a Angus (BB) with a Polled Hereford (bb)
for the first time your calf will be heterozygous (Bb) and will be black.
if you breed a Black Hereford that is homozygous black (BB) with a
Polled Hereford that is homozygous red (bb) you will get what is
called an F1. which is a heterozygous Black Hereford.
you want a homozygous Black Polled Hereford so that what ever
you breed it with you will get a black calf. And when they are
homozygous they are considered purebred. And the best of the best.
Many black Hereford breeders are trying there hardest to get as
many homozygous cattle in there herd just for the reason of having
the benefits of a Hereford and the benefit of the black hide.