Charolais Cattle - Forestry.com (2024)

FAQs

What is special about Charolais cattle? ›

Breed characteristics

They are large-framed animals, long-bodied, heavily muscled and late-maturing. Most Charolais are horned, though some polled animals are now being bred. Docility is a feature. Steers produced on good pasture yield heavy, well-muscled, fine-textured, though lean, carcases.

Pros of this cattle are they have good muscling, correctness and size also their meat is favored. Cons are, they command attention, they have late maturity, their horns can be dangerous to other cattle and people, they may be to large and have high birth weights.

They can be aggressive and flighty, and are known to fight between themselves, hence why many farmers chose to dehorn their herd. But like all animals, with care and attention these cows can be calmed and befriended.

The typical Charolais is a big, long-bodied, heavily muscled, fast growing animal. Mature bulls usually weigh from 2,000 to 2,500 pounds and mature cows weigh 1,250 to 1,600 pounds, depending on conditions.

Crossbreeding Charolais with Limousin can result in progeny with exceptional muscling and carcass traits. Limousin genetics can complement Charolais by adding depth to the hindquarters and enhancing overall muscling, making the crossbred animals highly desirable for beef production.

It has been said that no other breed has impacted the North American beef industry so significantly as the introduction of Charolais. Their ability to walk, graze aggressively in warm weather, withstand reasonable cold, and raise heavy calves has drawn special praise from many that have them.

The young bulls must be slaughtered at before 24 months of age and the heifers are mainly slaughtered between 26 and 33 months. For meat produced to quality-label standards, the heifers can be slaughtered at around 36 months.

The Charolais has earned a bad reputation for its temperament. Its personality can run the gamut from skittish to aggressive. Charolais also tend to fight with each other. Bulls are difficult to deal with, and cows protecting calves are equally dangerous.

Charolais females are the best beef cattle breed for calving, as they are easy calvers and boast fine maternal instincts.

A subspecies of auroch, Bos taurus Ibericus, is thought to be the ancestor of the all the dark colored breeds found on the Iberian peninsula including the Fighting bull or Fighting cattle. The breed is selected primarily for aggressiveness, strength and vigor.

What is the friendliest breed of cattle? ›

Having talked with many farmers, some with over 50 years in the industry who have worked with dozens of breed, there is near unanimous consensus that the Red Devon is the most docile breed of cattle in existence. Their relaxed demeanor creates a safe environment for the farmer and visitor alike.

The Charolais is larger and heavier than Angus and Limousin, and is excellent in hotter climates but not as resistant to cold weather.

Charolais Cattle have a typical productive lifespan of 4-6 years and natural lifespan of 15-40 years. Charolais is a breed of large and cream-colored bovine animals that have been bred for draft purposes in France but are mostly used for breeding and beef production, which is behind the popularity of the Holstein.

Charolais have demonstrated growth ability, efficient feedlot gains and in carcass cut-out values. With excellent meat conformation, especially of the valuable parts and relative late maturity they are well suited to fattening for high finished weight. They are well suited to all purpose cross breeding.

The Limousin breed, which originated in west central France, is second in importance to the Charolais as a European meat breed. Limousin cattle, often longer, finer boned, and slightly smaller than the Charolais, are also heavily muscled and relatively free from excessive deposits of fat.

“The reason commercial producers should use a Charolais bull is that they always get heavier wean- ing weights. Today, with lower prices per pound, you need more pounds to make the same amount of money,” he explains. “With Charolais-cross calves, you get good weaning weights, good weight gain and good yearling weights.

Their resistance to heat, humidity, parasites and diseases is to their benefit in southern feedlots. They grow rapidly and have outstanding feed converting ability. They reach slaughter weights at 12 to 15 months and produce lean, yield grade 1 and 2 carcasses that require little or no fat trimming.

The Charolais beef is vastly appreciated by connaiseurs for it's extremely flavoursome meat which is tasty and tender. It is known for its quality by the 'Label Rouge' (red label). The rich flavour of this beef comes from its diet, which is a vegetable diet based on pasture, forage and cereal.

The Charolais of France are white in color, horned, long bodied, and good milkers with a general coarseness to the animal not being uncommon.