Jersey

The Jersey was first recorded as a separate breed around 1700, descended from cattle brought over from the nearby Norman mainland. The 1789 import ban held until 2008. Exports to the United States began around 1850, and the American Jersey Cattle Club, now the American Jersey Cattle Association, formed in 1868, the oldest dairy breed association in the country.

On the island, cows run 800 to 900 lb and stand 45 to 47 inches, and bulls 1,300 to 1,500 lb; the American Jersey Cattle Association gives a US average of 1,050 lb. The milk is the concentrated kind: the association puts market-average Jersey milk at 5.0 percent fat and 3.8 percent true protein, with 20 percent more calcium, 18 percent more protein and 29 percent more milk fat than Holstein milk.

The cows are calm and docile. Jersey bulls are another matter, unpredictable or aggressive, with a deserved reputation as the most dangerous of any dairy breed. Do not keep one casually.

They are the smallest of the major dairy breeds and the most efficient. A Jersey gives less milk than a Holstein but far richer milk, with the highest butterfat and protein of the common breeds, and she does it while eating less and taking up less space. On a component-priced contract, and for anyone making butter or cheese, that is the whole argument.

Less than most dairy cattle. They are fertile, calve easily, and handle heat better than the other major dairy breeds, which extends the map south of where a Holstein is comfortable.

The trade is at both ends. The carcass is small and bull calves are worth little, so beef income is limited.

Registration runs through the American Jersey Cattle Association, and a registered cow with production records is the thing to pay for. The breed's argument is components, and components are documented, not eyeballed.

Recent sale prices on HoofnHorn, where there are any, are further down this page.