New Zealand Dairy Milking Cows,Australia price supplier

We have the 4 top breeds of New Zealand Dairy Milking Cows available in any size herd.

Holstein-Friesians

These black-and-white dairy cows have bloodlines from Friesland, a northern province of the Netherlands . Now known as the Holstein-Friesian, this breed is the most common milking cow in the world. It was first imported to the South Island by Canterbury farmer John Grigg in 1884, and to the North Island by Wairarapa farmers four years later. Larger numbers of Holstein-Friesians came in from the US in 1902–3. The breed association was formed in 1914.

Holstein-Friesians are large cows, and their milk has high concentrations of Protein and lactose. In New Zealand , on a grass-only diet, they produce more than 4,000 litres of milk from when they calve in early spring to when they ‘dry off’ in autumn. In the US they can produce up to 10,000 litres in the same period when fed high-energy supplements.

The first Jersey cows

Jersey dairy Cattle were first imported in 1862. During the expansion of the dairy industry from the 1880s, Jerseys were considered a good alternative to Holstein-Friesians because they gave more butterfat per litre of milk, and were smaller and easier to handle. They are slightly more efficient and profitable than Holstein-Friesians because more can be stocked per hectare of pasture. They were favoured in Taranaki, where farms were smaller. New Zealand has the world’s largest Jersey population – about 600,000.

KiwiCross cows

Many New Zealand dairy farmers want medium-sized, fertile, easy-calving cattle that will not suffer leg and foot problems when travelling from paddock to parlour. In the late 20th century Holstein-Friesians were bred with Jersey cows to produce the KiwiCross, which has a dark-brown coat with white or black accents. Hybrid vigour boosts its milk-solids production, conception and calving rates. In 2006 there were 1.2 million KiwiCross cows (about 30% of the national dairy herd), and their numbers were increasing steadily.

Ayrshires

The red-and-white Ayrshire breed originated in Scotland and came to New Zealand in 1848 with the first settlers to Otago. The breed society was formed in 1909, and Ayrshires or their crosses now number about 100,000. The breed performs well under all-grass, medium-intensity farming, with reliable calving, a strong constitution, good foraging abilities, strong legs and a well-shaped udder.