HOW THE CROSSBREDS RANK

March 29, 2006

The Crossbred Insider is a group of dairymen who milk cows for a living. Once their herds have reached 50% crossbreds or more, they have a voting right as to how the crossbreds rank. Here are the results:

Ranked #1 (96)
Montbeliarde x Swedish Red x Holstein OR
Swedish Red x Montbeliarde x Holstein

100's of bred heifers with the 3 way combinations listed above. They are extremely nice looking, tall and strong. About as nice as you could expect them to be. The 1st 100 are milking with extremely nice udders, high production and low SCC. This reassures us that the 3 way cross is the way to go! Now as cows, they are getting pregnant with 1.5 units or less, and a SCC well below 100,000. They are very well balanced between strength and dairy character. They are extremely pleasing to the eye! Average weight fresh; 1200-1250 lbs. At the end of the 1st lactation; 1300-1450 lbs.

Ranked #2 (95)
Montbeliarde x Holstein

A cow about as tall as your Holstein but with 200 lbs, more body condition. Slope to the rump with tremendous feet and legs. They are big, strong dairy cows with a hidden will to milk. They are out producing A. I. Sired Holsteins by 2%.They are maturing into a big, strong, dairy cow that will probably last 3-4 lactations without any problems. Average weight fresh; 1250-1300 lbs. At the end of the 1st lactation; 1350-1650 lbs.

Ranked #2 (95)
Swedish Red x Holstein

They are dairy cows with body condition especially in late lactation. More substance of bone with a better leg than Holsteins. They are out producing A. I. Sired Holstein by 7% with a lower SCC and good reproduction. A breed with more dairy character than strength. Average weight fresh; 1100-1250 lbs. At the end of the 1st lactation; 1300-1400 lbs.

Ranked #3 (92)
Montbeliarde x Jersey x Holstein

Extremely nice udders with outstanding feet and legs. Slightly bigger than the Holstein Jersey cross with more body condition. Outstanding for Fat and Protein percentages.

Ranked #4 (91)
Swedish Red x Jersey x Holstein

The perfect size if you like 1200-1400 lbs cows. More substance of bone, better body condition, and better feet and legs compared to Jersey crosses. Very high milk production. Average weight fresh; 1100-1200 lbs. At the end of the 1st lactation; 1200-1375 lbs.

Ranked #5 (87)
Brown Swiss x Jersey

Very nice well balanced good uttered group of cows. Very good production. Some what lower in reproduction than the crosses listed above. Average weight fresh; 1100-1200 lbs.

Ranked #6 (85)
Brown Swiss x Holstein

They are a pretty good cross. Although, they have some real strong points as well as some weak ones. Tall, American looking, good udders and improved feet and legs are the strong points. For weak points they are born from big to huge. Sometimes they are deep uttered and the reproduction is below average.

Ranked #7 (81)
Jersey x Holstein

Better than purebreds of either breed for reproduction, SCC, and overall health. We were disappointed with feet and legs, body condition, and inconsistent size. The udders are usually bulgy in the fore udder, and a little deeper than we like.

Ranked # 8 (69)
Norwegian Red x Holstein
WE HAVE DISCONTINUED THIS BREED, DUE TO DISAPPOINTING RESULTS

They are shallow in the rib, which is normal for a dual purpose breed. They have plenty of body condition. The strong point of this cross is the fact that they are easy calvers and usually have good feet. The Swedish Red is out producing the Norwegian Red by 17 lbs. per day, in Dairies around Oakdale. Some of Norway's highest bulls are sired by Swedish Red Bulls. The Norwegian Red cows temper tends to be high strung. Average weight fresh; 1050-1150 lbs. At the end of the 1st lactation 1250-1300 lbs.

Ranked # 9 (66)
Ayrshire x Holstein
WE HAVE DISCONTINUED THIS BREED, DUE TO DISAPPOINTING RESULTS

Very Disappointing! Plenty of body condition and exceptional type. They were out milked by almost every cross we tried. Reproduction was poor as well as calving ability.

Ranked #10 (59)
Normande x Holstein
WE HAVE DISCONTINUED THIS BREED, DUE TO DISAPPOINTING RESULTS

Same as the Ayrshire cross with the exception of type. The Normande cross overall have poor feet and legs , inconsistent udders and plenty of body condition. The Normande crosses are 13% below the Swedish Red crosses for production. The Normande is one of the best groups of crosses for reproduction.

Ranked #11 (42)
Flip Flop
WE HAVE DISCONTINUED THIS METHOD, DUE TO DISAPPOINTING RESULTS

Some of our competitors are trying to promote this disaster! They were Jersey Holsteins or Holsteins from Holstein Jerseys. This was a crossbred cow bred back to one of the parent breeds. They were very low on relative value (around 70%) and very inconsistent on type.

We probably have more experience than any other company in the world with crossbreeding. Most of our knowledge comes from practical experience with crossbreds as well as information from the dairymen that milk them. Because of this experience, we cannot and will not recommend a two breed crossbreeding program. We recommend a 3 and 4-way crossbreeding program, simply to maximize the high bred vigor. We feel you must have a plan when you start your crossbreeding program.

If you need new information or assistance with a crossbreeding program, please feel free to contact us with ANY questions you might have; 800-640-BULL(2855).