THE DRAKENSBERGER IS A MEDIUM-FRAME BEEF ANIMAL WITH A SMOOTH COAT, STRIKINGLY LONG AND DEEP BODY WITH A MILD TEMPERAMENT. INDIGENOUS CATTLE BREED, BRED AND DEVELOPED THROUGH NATURAL AND SCIENTIFICALLY BASED SELECTION, RESULTING IN ADAPTABILITY, HARDINESS AND NATURAL RESISTANCE AGAINST TICKS AND TICK- BORNE DISEASES. 1
1497-1947 Journal of VASCO DA GAMA 2 DECEMBER 1497. "fat, black ox" that he obtained in a trade. WE FIND HIM VERY FAT AND HIS MEAT AS TOOTHSOME AS THE BEEF OF PORTUGAL. JAN VAN RIEBEECK 1652 black cattle herd of the KOI and HOTTENTOTS 1497-1947 SIMON VAN DER STEL 1679 1699 Black Cattle used as base for taxation. WILLEM ADRIAAN VAN DER STEL 1700 First cattle farming as a business. Black hardy indigenous cows. Eight GRONINGEN BULLS from NETHERLAND. Improved general appearance, conformation, Milk production and carcass quality VADERLANDERS 2
1497-1947 GROOT TREK 1837 Enough Documentary proof that many voortrekkers used black cattle. (VADERLANDERS) JACOBUS JOHANNES UYS 1838 Left Cape from GRAHAMSTOWN, NATAL. His Son DIRK CORNELIUS ( SWART DIRK) Settled in the WAKKERSTROOM AREA. With methodical inbreeding and strong selection within a closed herd, bred exceptional animals. The UYS-CATTLE. 1497-1947 SWART DIRK UYS and his sons continued with the breeding program. The result is a definitive breed type. Three serious setbacks hits the UYS-Cattle. Rinderpest outbreak 1896. About 750 000 cattle killed. ANGLO BOER war 1899 1902. About 600 000 head of cattle killed. The Stock Improvement Act of 1934. UYS-cattle not recognized. 3
SWART DIRK UYS 1497-1947 Founding of the Breeders' Society. UYS-cattle breeders society1 MEI 1946. VERSOEK DAT UYSBEES ERKEN WORD. Early 1947 DEPARTEMENTAL Commission. OKTOBER 1947 Breed recognized. 7 NOVEMBER 1947 South African Drakensberger Cattle Breeders' Society established. Name change from UYS-cattle to DRAKENSBERGER. 4
after 1947 First inspection tour FEB 1948 621 animals selected and registered Herd book stays open until 1951. 1954 1723 animals registered. 73 BULLS. Herd book re-opened in1958 for one year. 1961 4752 animals registered. MAY 1969 Associated membership with SA STUDBOOK. 1972 Full membership - SA STUDBOOK after 1947 AGM IN1980 DECIDES THAT PERFORMANCE TESTING IS COMPULSARY. Since then only animals with performance indices are accepted in the breed. THE FIRST BLUP ANALISES IN SA IS DONE on the DRAKENSBERGER DATA. 1990 there were17 411 REGISTRERED CATTLE. 5
Distribution Outstanding ability to adapt to climatic and environmental conditions Excels on Natural grazing. Exceptional ability to convert dry grass (low quality) to meat. Exceptional rumen volume. Wide distribution pattern of the breed MARA VELDBUL FASE D (EKSTENSIEF) 620 600 602 ADG 580 560 540 520 550 559 521 500 480 BONSM A BONSM B DRAK NGUNI 6
Distribution The cold red-water and gall sickness veld Distribution The Heart-water veld of the sweet bushveld 7
Distribution The snow-covered peaks of the Drakensberg mountains. Distribution The Free state Highveld 8
Distribution The rocky and dunes of the Northern Cape Distribution The shrub veld of the Karoo. 9
An Exceptional Breed The result of natural selection. (Especially the Groot trek and there after ) Inherited Hardiness Adaptability FENOMINAL ABILITY TO HANDLE COLD, HEAT and DROUGHT EXELLENT MILD TEMPERAMENT AN EXCEPTIONAL MOTHER INSTINCT AND SELF-PROTECTION An Exceptional Breed SWART DIRK first selected bull1947 10
Selected Cow 1948 First Inspection GRYSHOEK 1948 11
Inspection GRYSHOEK 1988 12
An Exceptional Breed Todays DRAKENSBERGER Strict selection based on scientific norms Focus on economical aspects (Cows) Adaptability Fertility Milk production and low Mortality 13
14
An Exceptional Breed Modern DRAKENSBERGER Focus on economical aspects (BULLS) Growth on the veld and in the feedlot 15
Growth in the Feedlot Central growth tests Gold and silver merit - Ave 1.782 Kg Gold Merit - Ave1.920 Kg 100 birth and wean index at least BEEFCOR 1.820 Kg / Day Qualify as BEEFCOR SELECT GRAINFED BEEF HURLAND feedlot ( LONG WEANERS ) ADG 2.18 Kg over 98 Days ADG 1.98 Kg over 120 Days Control group1.72 Kg An Exceptional Breed Modern DRAKENSBERGER Focus on economical aspects (BULLS) Growth on the veld and in the feed lot Good feed conversion ratio VOV 4.78 / FCR 16
Feed conversion Central growth test SILWER MERIT 5.86 : 1 GOLD MERIT 5.53 : 1 BEEFCOR 5.1 : 1 An Exceptional Breed Modern DRAKENSBERGER Focus on economical aspects (BULLS) Growth on the veld and in the feed lot Good feed conversion ratio Carcass quality 17
An Exceptional Breed Focus on economical aspects (BULLS) Growth on the veld and in the feed lot Good feed conversion ratio Carcass quality Visual inspection a high priority Purity of breed and character Standard of excellence - the minimum standard for selection according to appearance and performance. 18
The Farmer s partner Mild TEMPERAMENT Low birth weight and easy calving 36 Kg Mother instinct and Milk production SOURVELD up to 250Kg and SWEETVELD up to 290 Kg Tick and tick-borne disease resistance Relative high resistance to internal parasites MORTALITY PROOF D J BOSMAN 10 BREEDS ALL DEATHS RECORDED DRAKENSBERGER 3.22% deaths compared to 6.18% (Ave other breeds) Tick borne disease 0.51% compared to 1% Other illnesses 0.68% compared to 1.21% 19
The Farmer s partner Heat and sun resistance Drakensberger best breed in Mara Veldtests Scientifically proven that Drakensberger has heat resistance (Liesl Foster with Prof. Frikkie Neser as study leader) The Drakensberger cow s ability to recover after the winter is exceptional. From SA Studbook yearbook of 2014: Die Drakensberger koei se gewig neem met 31 kg toe terwyl sy haar kalf soog teenoor al die Stamboek rasse se gemiddelde toename van 5 kg. The Farmer s partner Heat and sun resistance Good pigmentation Walking comfort Strong legs Hard buffalo hooves Good capacity for feed intake during grazing Exceptional rumen volume 20