Question 1

How much milk will my Dexter produce?

Accepted Answer

Dexters are a dual or tri purpose breed. We anticipate a dexter cow will give about a half gallon of milk a day while calf sharing. Some lines of modern Dexter's are giving close to 2 gallons a day.

Question 2

Do I need more than one mini cow?

Accepted Answer

Cattle are herd animals and do best with at least one bovine friend. In some circumstances goats can make decent pasture buddies but another bovine is recommended.

Question 3

How big does a mini cow get?

Accepted Answer

We use the terms miniature and midsized miniature to discuss size. Rarely do we use micro miniature as a size descriptor. The International Mini Cattle Registry published a frame score card for mini cattle, we may move towards this scoring termination.

A miniature cows average size is generally less than 37”- 43” at 3 years of age (frame score 4a-0).
A miniature bull could grow closer to 40”-45” (frame score 4a-0).
Anything smaller than 37” for cows and 40” for bulls would be considered micro.
In comparison angus and other large cattle will grow to be 55-70” tall.
All measurements are taken over the back above the hip.

Question 4

How much space do my mini cows need?

Accepted Answer

Cows are raised in all sorts of ways. If you are looking to have grass fed cattle, it will require a lot more space than cattle raised in a barnyard or feedlot style. When determining acres per animal in a grazing style it is best to reach out to your local USDA or college agricultural office to determine their formula for cattle and grazing.

Each climate will have a different capacity for grazing. In our area we recommend 1 acre per adult bovine with anticipation that hay will be fed from September until May (winter). This presumes that there are going to be a minimum of 4 cattle sharing 4 acres of land. The more you are able to rotationally graze the more pounds of feed you can produce on your land.

Question 5

What is the recommended type of fencing?

Accepted Answer

We love 4-5 strands of 12.5g high tensile electric fence. It is the easiest to manipulate once it is up and we find that we have to change fencing around especially as we have grown.

Question 6

How much does it cost to feed mini cows?

Accepted Answer

This is a loaded question. It depends on your preferred feeding method, the amount of land you have to grace and how much hay you have to feed. In our farming system we spend approximately $500 per adult bovine a year.

Question 7

What is the recommended age for slaughter of a Traditional and Legacy Irish Dexter?

Accepted Answer

We raise Traditional and Legacy Irish Dexters which tend to be smaller framed compared to modern Dexters. We anticipate them to be ready for slaughter at 24-30 months of age.

Question 8

Do you recommend Highland cows be used for meat?

Accepted Answer

At this time it is not financially beneficial to send mini Highlands to slaughter. The pet market is still more lucrative than the meat market. It is important that animals that have poor conformation do not go to the breeding market but they still make great pets. We have bred our mini Highlands to produce a fair amount of beef, we would recommend they go to the meat locker at around 30 months.

Question 9

What age can I breed my mini cow?

Accepted Answer

We normally recommend non-dwarf heifers be exposed to the bull at 12-15 months. On our farm, we found this is often fruitless for the majority of our girls. It is often best to expose heifers at approximately 2 years of age, for a calf at 3 years of age.

Our goal is to have the majority of our calves born in May and June. A heifer born May of 2022 would be introduced to a bull at the earliest the end of July in 2023, we will hold them back to be exposed in July of 2024 for a calf in May of 2025. We always wait for Chondrodysplasia positive/dwarf heifers. Our goal with them is to have their first calf after they are three years old.

Question 10

What is the Chondro gene?

Accepted Answer

Chondrodysplasia is a genetic mutation that results in the animals appearing heavy bodied on short legs.

Question 11

Are the Dexter cattle registered?

Accepted Answer

Eligible cattle are registered with Legacy and PDCA.

Frequently Asked Questions