Are Mini Highland cows a thing???

Highland cows are super cute and Miniature Highlands sound even better. But is there such a thing? In this video I talk about the benefits of raising small animals and also the reason why there is some controversy around mini highlands within the registered highland community.

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[MetaMorphea]

It seemed like there was some things missing on the standards and benefits to having mini cows. First of all, no mini cow is allowed to be higher than 40 inches over their shoulders. This includes highlands minis. They also weigh and eat a lot less than normal cattle. Therefore their footprint on the pasture as well as in natural gases is reduced. One could debate that if you want a goat size animal why not just get goats? Good question. I have a good answer. Goat don't taste like beef. You can, if you wish, milk both but the milk taste different from cow and goat. Highland cattle is an over all good resistant breed that can protect them self and their calf's better than some other breeds and they also graze much like a goat and retain most of the pasture/grazing area you have available. Including but not limited to bushes, trees, bramble, etc. Figured these could be some good points to bring forward. :) Plus, I must say, minis are absolutely adorable. <3

[NaomiRoberta]

There are many breeds of miniature cattle. No breed organizations recognize and register them as "miniature", so no different than the AHCA. There are miniature cattle registries, and like other organizations, there are breed standards that separate them into categories: mid-sized, standard miniatures, and micro. The categories are based on height at the hip. I started out with AHCA registered, mid-sized Scottish Highland cows bred to registered Scottish Highland bulls who also met the "miniature" standards. I have registerable calves with a birth weight of about 25-30 lbs. A 2 yr old heifer (cinnamon) has not yet reached her full adult weight/height. Miniature cattle cannot be registered until they are 3 yrs old for that reason. My mid-sized cows weigh about 750 lbs. The largest bull I've had weighed 1200 lbs. Subsequent bulls have been about 800-900 lbs. They are healthy, well fed, purebred Scottish Highland cattle . The individual I got them from initially had been selectively breeding registered highlands for smaller size, for years.

[colliecoform]

I love the smaller and miniature breeds. I am a small woman and they would be much easier for me to handle. When we finally make the move I want a couple of miniature jersey cows for milk, cream and cheese and some smaller to miniature beef cattle breeds. I have heard that the Highland breed is good for both but haven't really looked into it. I mainly fell in love with their looks.

[alyxantyx]

I am totally obsessed with Highland cattle 🐮❤.
I don't live too far from Scotland, so I'm lucky enough to have plenty on my doorstep ( not in the literal sense).
I honestly never knew there was actually a miniature Highland cow though, I knew about Dexter cattle but hadn't heard of any other miniature breeds.
Very informative, thankyou 🐮🐮

[nicholebondurant]

Great video! Very informative!! Thank you.

[HillsideHighlands]

Great information. Our bull is small... both his parents were on the farm we bought him from and of standard size. I think sometimes past generation genetics show back up.

[hanspeterson]

Well presented and objective summary here. There are actually very few breeders in the U.S. that have been selectively breeding for smaller (miniature) Highlands long enough to have an impact. Both Lowline Angus and Miniature Herefords were closed herds breeding for smaller sizes for many years in order to create the breed. We started our project downsizing the Highlands nearly 18 years ago, and the initial progress is made using a small bull, some line breeding, and now for us we are flushing embryos from our smallest cows and using that and several other small bulls on the embryos. Although the majority of our herd is not registered, we do have several registered with AHCA. One thing to note about registration however...there is no assurance of pedigree or fullblood status without parent verification (dna genotype testing) and even then it is necessary to go back at least 5 generations to obtain 15/16 status. Registration has value, however our selection was first toward breed guidelines, then conformation, then temperament. Registration came after those top three. We have unregistered Highlands that more closely conform to the breed standard than a couple of our registered ones. www.miniaturehighland.com

[CaptainPantys]

Dude... As long as the milk is good, the beef is tender and they're tiny and cute.... I could care less about it being a pure breed. Not knocking people who do want the lineage... but for me I'm all about mini.

[clairedeorio]

Back at it, hoping to watch your videos to the current videos

[wyntrees]

One thing I’ve noticed with highlands is that they are slow growers. Ours seem to hit a growth spurt about 2 1/2 years old. We started off with registered and think in the long run that’s the best way to go. We know the pedigree and can research bulls and make sure there is no in breeding. Love your videos!!

[monstaro]

That's what I'm needing a mini highland cow

[Docmiller]

This was another great and informative video about your cattle. I liked seeing your bull Whitewalker and seeing how he will come right up to you and just keep grazing. I can remember my uncle's bulls. They were always too mean to ever be in the pasture with them. (Angus bulls). Anyway, thanks for another great video.

[ericlakota]

I just found out what high land are called they are gorgious the. Calf you have is just so darn cute

[TIOCI_]

3:50 Cinnamon has some thoughts on this commentary

[gulanhem]

Miniature is so cute. 🥰 I love small dogs and the small horses (Shetland?). The small Highland cows are so cute, especially the children.

[brittanyash]

Dang, they are so cute. Plus, they eat a lot of things that other animals won't. I would love some!

[bowjoe]

Greg Judy breeds the South Polls and focuses on uniform shape and a relatively modest to small size. Have you noticed a better birthing rate with the smaller size or is it proportionate to the size of the cow? Meaning a smaller cow has as hard a time as a large cow given all things equal in the bull (small bull to small cow and normal bull to normal cow).

[ericlee]

I read on one site, the farmer had a point when he said the cows / bulls from the islands are smaller than mainland cows. I also read that Highland Cows were predominantly black. People thought red was better?

[bethanyrose]

So what type of acreage does each miniature cow need? I’m sorry if you mentioned and I missed it

[fuzzylop]

Good information. I love this breed and would be strongly upset if the breed was destroyed by the make a minnie cow.