By AJ COETZER AND WAYNE PORTER

The Bos Indicus is a cattle breed, which was developed in India and which is widely spread in China, the East Indies, East Africa, North and South America. The breed is characterised by large pendulous ears, a large dewlap and a hump over the shoulders.

In 1752, at the Paris Agricultural Fair, the name Zebu was officially adopted to identify all Bos Indicus breeds. The name Zebu was taken from the Tibetan word “Zen” or “Zeba” that means “the hump of the camel”. For the past 200 years the word, Zebu, has therefore been used to identify Bos Indicus cattle.

The name Brahman should only be used to describe the Bos Indicus breed developed in America and the word Zebu to identify all Bos Indicus.

The six basic groups of Bos Indicus with their related breeds are identified as follows:

Group 1 – Guzerat (Kankrej), Kenwariya, Kherigarh, Malvi, Tharparkar and Hissar

Group 2 – Bauchaur, Bhagmari, Gaoloa, Hariana, Krishna, Nagoria, Mhwati, Nelore (Ongole), and Rath

Group 3 – Danga, Deoni, Gir, Nimari, Red Scindhi and Sahiwal

Group 4 – Armit, Mahal, Hallikar, Kangayam and Khillari

Group 5 – Lohani Ponwar and Siri

Group 6 – Dhanni

In addition to the above Zebu breeds, two additional breeds were developed by blending animals from different groups. These two newly recognised breeds are: The Indu Brazil, developed in Brazil by blending the Guzerat of Group 1 with the Gir of Group 3; and the American Brahman, developed in the United States by blending the Guzerat of Group 1 with the Nelore of Group 2 and Gir of Group 3. The Indu Brazil and the American Brahman are not recognised as new breeds outside Brazil and the United States, but are merely considered crosses of different strains of the Zebu.

The five most popular and prevalent breeds outside the borders of India are:

The Guzerat; the Nelore; the Gir; the Indu Brazil and the American Brahman.

History and background of Bos Indicus in the United States

The cattle of India have been in the service of mankind for many thousands of years. Throughout their long history they have endured famine, insect pests, diseases and the extremely hot to extremely cold climates of India and other countries. Through it all, and thanks to their inborn ability formed by nature, they survived and persevered where other types have failed. Since the very early days of history, certain superior qualities of the cattle of India have kept them in wide demand.

Dr James Bolton Davis of Fairfield County brought the first Zebus to South Carolina in 1849. Records indicate that these two bulls came from My-sore, India. Five years later, in 1854, two bulls were sent from India to Mr Richmond Barrow. They were a gift from an English plantation owner, who had studied cotton growing on Mr Barrow’s property in Louisiana. The bulls were actually used for draught purposes on the plantation and incidental crossbreeding took place.

A very interesting event took place at Barrow’s plantation, which was destined to have far reaching effects on the state of Texas. One night a man from Virginia made use of Barrow’s hospitality and stayed overnight at his plantation. His cattle and teams were to stay in the Barrow pens overnight. This hospitality had far reaching effects because a white Shorthorn heifer, the property of the stranger, was that night served by one of Barrow’s Brahman bulls, which heifer, in due course, gave birth to a white, half-bred Brahman bull calf. This bull played a significant role in the improvement of cattle in the coastal regions. The young Al McFaddin observed this and decided to acquire these animals and that was the start of the large McFaddin Brahman herd.

As far as can be established, offspring of this bull were the first Zebu crossbreds in Texas.

The progeny of the McFaddin half-bred bull and of the Zebus in Louisiana aroused the interest of JM Frost and Albert Montgomery, both cattle raisers of Texas. In 1885 they imported two bulls from Calcutta. When the bulls arrived they were named Khedive and Richard III. Records reflect that they were a Guzerat (Kankrej) and a Nelore respectively. However, it has also been written that both were Nelores.

In 1895 a Zebu cow that had been imported into America by Haggenback’s circus, gave birth to a bull calf, which was purchased by a Mr Hahn of Columbus, Texas. The calf became a prolific sire, leaving behind many crossbred progeny, some of which were acquired by the AH Pierce Estate. LP Bunge who was a young man back then, acquired 50 of their heifers and that was the foundation of his herd.

The next importation was in 1902 when Haggenback imported two Zebus to be exhibited at the World Show in St Louis, Missouri. After the show these animals were bought by Al McFaddin and brought to his ranch near Victoria, where the bull, Prince, became a highly acclaimed sire, which afforded McFaddin with high status within the Brahman cattle industry. Prince was a light red but as we now know, his colour was the result of various factors because he undoubtedly had pure red genes. It is stated that he left many red calves and became the progenitor of red Brahman cattle in North America. The largest of the relatively early direct importations from India to America was that made in 1906 by the AH Pierce Estate and Thomas O’Connor of Victoria. Abel Pierce Borden, manager of the Pierce Estate and also owner of his own ranch at Macky, Texas, went to India accompanied by a United States veterinarian named Dr William Thompson. Approximately 60 head of mixed sexes and breeds arrived in quarantine in America, but the number was reduced considerably by slaughter and eventually 36 head of the imported stock, made up by 33 bulls, one cow and two heifer calves, were released from quarantine.

Soon after their arrival in Texas one Nelore bull was given to Borden by the importers. The other cattle were divided between the two parties. Sixteen bulls went to each of the principals, the cow remained on the Pierce Estate, and the two heifer calves went to O’Connor. Later these were re-acquired by the Pierce Estate. A male descendant of the O’Connor portion of this importation was the progenitor of the King Ranch crossbred cattle. The O’Connor’s did not breed the Zebus for long. The full blood bulls were sold to several breeders, i.e. the Ward Cattle Co., which eventually was owned, together with its herd, by Sartwelle Bros.

All females in the Pierce Estate portion of the importation, together with those repossessed from the O’Connor section, were retained on the Estate. Neither they nor their descendants were allowed to leave it for breeding purposes. They were mated only with the remaining bulls, or with their progeny bred within the herd. This policy was not varied until service bulls became available from Brazil in 1924-25. It was thus the first large and most prominent group of full-blood cattle in America for some years. It remained the only herd of its kind until Dr Williams States Jacobs put his together.

The American Brahman

The American Brahman is derived from the Bos Indicus and was developed in the USA. It is a blend of the Gir, Guzerat and Nelore breeds.

The American breeders by no means endeavoured to maintain the true Indian type of the three breeds that were used in the development of the American Brahman. Rather, the emphasis was placed on developing a Bos Indicus, which would closely resemble the British beef breeds in conformation. This was encouraged and even more so when American breeders were put in the position of having to compete against the British beef breeds in livestock expositions and shows throughout the United States. The idea was therefore to develop a Bos Indicus, which could survive and thrive in the hot, humid, subtropical areas of the Gulf Coast where the British breeds had not been able to thrive, and still to have a type of cattle that could compete successfully against the British breeds in fat stock competitions. In other words, a Bos Indicus with the conformation of the British beef breeds.

The South African grey Brahman

The first importations

According to the SA Stud Book, that keeps all records of stud livestock, the Brahman is recorded in Volume 31, part 1 of the Brahman Herd Book. The first male animal is recorded as Male No. 1 and that was JDH Aristo Monarca Manso 809/6, ABBA 80717, born on 6 April 1952.

The first female is recorded as Female No. 1, and she was JDH Lady Alton de Manso 82/6. ABBA 104624, born 14 April 1952.

Seven bulls and nine females were imported by the pioneer JJ (Jurgen) Crantz Jr of the farm Isabis, district of Windhoek, South-West Africa. The animals arrived at his farm on 4 January 1954. One bull was sold to JJ Gregory who took it to his farm in Natal.

According to the SA Stud Book, Wolgang Woker sold one bull, No. 100 and one female No. 210 to CJ Venter of Naboomspruit in 1954. However, the records of the progeny animals to Venter and Gregory cannot be traced in the Brahman register.

That was the beginning of the large immigration which was to continue for the next 20 years, sometimes a bit too enthusiastic.. Various SWA breeders like Frans Greiga, Val Hansen, Wolgang Woker and the SWA Administration followed. In Rhodesia Nuanetsi and Lord Angus Graham imported cattle as well as T Booth of Swaziland.

In August 1956 Attie Marais of Wasbank, Ladysmith, imported the first Brahman bulls from the USA to South Africa. They were No. 17 JTG Resoto Manso 288, ABBA 107350 and No. 18 JTG Typey Manso 239 ABBA 101732.

JJ Gregory of the farm Uitzight, Wasbank also imported a bull in August 1956 namely No. 19, JDH Bano Okaloo Manso 473/7, ABBA 102343.

John Warren of BVB Ranch Gravelotte imported a bull, NCC Sir Imparanso 135 ABBA 110044, from the Norris Cattle Co. in August of 1956.

Jan Brink of Josephine, Gravelotte imported a bull, No. 21 Sir Lenas Imperator 307 ABBA 99714, as well as two females in October 1956.

During the first 15 years following the original imports the total importations were classified as follows: 1 330 white and 68 red.

During the period 1954 – 1969 a total of 1 199 Brahmans were imported. The main importers during this period was JP Hudgins (416), Norris Cattle Co. (315), VS Ranch Howard Parker (109), WH Stuart (67), A Duda and Sons (63), JT Garret (55), Red Mangum (53), Gerry Stalk (42), US Sugar Corporation (34), Clyde Keys (27) and GL Paret (18).

Present breeders

In the 1980s and through to the early 1990s several breeders made an impact on the grey Brahman industry. Most of these breeders were firm believers of the Manso type Brahman and all helped to re-establish this type of Brahman in the South African market. They include: Gert and Madia du Plessis of Thabazimbi, Jan Serfontein of Potchefstroom, Tuffy Reyneke of Thabazimbi, Dave and Yvette de Marillac of Mooketsi, Jan van Zyl and his wife Irma, of Vryburg, Wayne Porter of Tarkastad, Burnie and Dennis Staal of Kroonstad and Linde du Plessis of Fouriesburg

Closure

There are many more breeders that made noteworthy contributions to the development of the grey Brahman in South Africa. The Brahman Cattle Breeders’ Society and fellow breeders acknowledge their contributions to the promotion of grey Brahman genetics in South Africa.