The Gascon
The hardiness of the breed has been shown in the North of Scotland where the Gascon has been outwintered successfully for several years now. The winter coat of a Gascon outside is not long, but is very thick and sheds water well.
Ease of calving is a vital characteristic of the suckler cow nowadays, reducing labour costs and time and also vet bills. It is also important because a cow that has easy calvings will settle to the bull more quickly and have a longer productive life, again reducing costs. Figures from France where over 11,000 Gascons are recorded show the following:
Average birthweight for males is 38kg and for females is 36kg.
Calf growth. Gascon calves reared on the mountain pastures in France are sold store at 7-9 months. The younger calves weigh 220-240kg at weaning and the older calves weigh 260-290kg. This equates to an impressive liveweight gain of 1 kg/day from birth, without supplementary feeding, showing good milk production in the dam.
The Gascon conformation is that of a well-muscled animal with good back and rump shape. The beef has short muscle fibres and fine marbling, giving very tender beef.
Longevity comes naturally to Gascon cows, which calve easily, settle to the bull easily and have good conformation and strong feet - a legacy of the long distances travelled in search of food in the Pyrenees.
Efficient feed conversion is also a result of the Gascons Pyrenean origin - with food often in short supply, the more efficient cows will maintain condition and settle in calf more quickly, and therefore are retained along with their female offspring in the breeding herd. This also reduces the feed costs for fattening - see Technical Information for more details.
Crossing, both of a terminal sire onto the cows and of a Gascon bull onto some of our native breeds, gives excellent results. See both Gallery for pictures, and Technical Information for more details.
