The Rural Voice, 1983-08, Page 16Tom Black and his daughter Jennifer find Blondes are very docile.
A taste for blondes
by Rhea Hamilton
Cattle farmers' tastes are swinging
towards Blondes and you can tell by look-
ing in their barns, not at their wives.
These Blondes are from the southwest
part of France and in the past their main
occupation has been as working animals.
Canadian farmers are finding these large,
animals excellent beef cattle and their
popularity is gaining. While the majority
of the Blonde cattle are located in Alberta,
there are a few herds being built up here in
Ontario.
Tom Black and his wife Connie Kuc of
Spruce Lane Farms, west of Belgrave,
have been slowly building their herd of
Blondes over the last eight years. They
have been breeding their stock artificially
and now have 75 cows and yearling
heifers. A majority of them are 40 per cent
Blonde.
The Blacks are very enthusiastic about
the breed and comment on the docile
nature of the cattle as well as the prac-
tical aspects of easy birthing and pro-
fitable weight gain for marketable beef
cattle. Two years ago, Black imported a
full blood from Red Deer, Alberta and is
pleased with the results. With the addition
of this bull to the herd they hope to bring
their Blonde percentage up to 50 per cent.
Last year Black often trucked cattle bet-
ween his two farms and was impressed
PG. 14 THE RURAL VOICE, AUGUST 1983
with how easily he was able to move the
animals on and off the truck.
The breed was first introduced in the
early seventies and the Canadian Blonde
d'Aquitaine Association has registered
almost 1600 purebred and full blood cattle
and recorded close to 12,000 percentage
animals.
The animals are easily recognized by
their wheat colouring and broad muzzle
on their triangular faces. The breed's long
conformation and width of pelvis aid
greatly in the ease of birthing. Tested at
98 per cent unassisted calving. Black at-
tests to that fact after having 80 calves
delivered last year with only two needing
assistance.
On the Black farm the cattle are fed a
diet of corn silage, hay silage and hay.
The calves are grain fed. On the prairies
the breed has proven to be popular as they
are excellent foragers and do well on
range feeding.
But for beef producers, the proof of the
breed is in the marketable beef the animal
can produce in the shortest time for the
least amount of feed.
At birth the calves look like any other
calves, but start to muscle out quickly
with the mother weaning the calf at 75 to
100 pounds.
In 1982, a three-quarter Blonde went on
test at 525 pounds and came off at 1088
as a one -year-old. While on test the animal'
gained 3.59 pounds per day.
The carcass dresses out to 60 - 65 per
cent, with some going as high as 70 per
cent.
R.O.P. records of a crossbred herd in
Manitoba averaged over the last five
years, showed the following results: 200
day adj. wt. females - 612 Ib. and at 365
day adj. wt. 844 Ib.; 200 day adj. wt. males,
682 Ib. and at 365 day adj. wt. 1092 Ib.
In blue tag gradings done by the govern-
ment on meat grading, the Blonde -cross
steers have a marbling of 7, average fat
cover of .43 per cent, grade fat of .3 and a
rib eye area of 15.25.
The heavier, leaner meat with excellent
lean to fat ration has been a plus for con-
sumers.
While beef prices in the past have not
been anything to talk about the Blacks
have sold several animals with the follow-
ing results: a heifer calf in 1982 weighing
595 sold for $1.17 per pound and a bull
calf weighing 640 sold for $1.20 per pound
(both out of Shelburne) and a bull calf
weighing 452 sold in Kitchener for $1.19.
The Blacks are pleased with the way the
herd is developing and as the family
grows the Blacks intend to enter the
calves in some of the 4-H competitions
locally to gain exposure for this
remarkable breed. III