Luing Cattle: Origin, Characteristics, Uses, Photo

The Luing cattle are a breed of beef cattle which are raised primarily for meat production. The breed was developed by the Cadzow brothers (Ralph, Denis and Shane) on the island of Luing in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland in 1947.

The breed derived from crossing the Beef Shorthorn with the Highland breed. The Cadzow brothers crossbred two types of cattle to produce the Luing; the Highland as the heifer and the Beef Shorthorn as the bull, and were the first new breed of cattle developed in Britain in over 100 years.

The Shorthorn was chosen because of it’s fleshing qualities and flavor of meat, and the Highland was chosen because it contributes the hardiness that now we can see in the breed. The three sons established the Luing cattle breed that we have today, through a breeding program.

The Luing cattle breed was officially recognized by the British Government in 1965. The Cadzow family continue to raise the Luing cattle and the breed remains popular on the surrounding isles, including Torsa and Scarba.

The breed is highly regarded for it’s hardiness and ease of handling. And it has been exported to many countries across the world including New Zealand and Canada. These animals were named after the island of Luing. Read more information about this cattle breed below.

Luing Cattle Characteristics

Luing cattle are medium-large sized animal. They are usually red-brown or dun in color with medium length hair. Average height of the bulls is about 140 cm, and 130 cm for cows.

luing cattle, about luing cattle, luing cattle breed, luing cattle breed info, luing cattle breed facts, luing cattle care, caring luing cattle, luing cattle color, luing cattle characteristics, luing cattle facts, luing cattle for meat, luing cattle farms, luing cattle farming, luing cattle history, luing cattle hair, luing cattle info, luing cattle images, luing cattle meat, luing cattle milk, luing cattle milk production, luing cattle origin, luing cattle photos, luing cattle pictures, luing cattle rearing, raising luing cattle, luing cattle size, luing cattle uses, luing cattle weight

The cows on average weight about 500 kg. And average body weight of the bulls is about 950 kg. Info and photo from Wikipedia.

Uses

The intent was to produce a good beef cow with the ability to raise a calf under adverse weather conditions. Today these animals are mainly raised for meat production.

Special Notes

Luing cattle are moderately sized and extremely hardy animals. They are long lived animals. And the cows will give birth to 10 calves in their lifetime. The breed is highly regarded for hardiness and ease of handling.

This breed is still farmed today. They are mainly farmed in Scotland, but also in other areas of the world. Review full breed profile of the breed in the following table.

Breed NameLuing
Other NamesNone
Breed PurposeMeat
Special NotesActive, Hardy
Breed SizeHeavy
BullsAbout 950 kg
CowsAbout 500 kg
Climate ToleranceAll Climates
Coat ColorRed, Dun
HornedNo
Milk YieldLow
RarityCommon
Country/Place of OriginScotland

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top