Belted Galloway Cattle

Here at L&M Ranch we have all three colors of Belted Galloway's: black, red and dun. 

This is a traditional Scottish breed of beef cattle. It derives from the Galloway cattle of the Galloway region of south-western Scotland, and was established as a separate breed in 1921.

They are adapted to living on the poor upland pastures and windswept moorlands of the region. The exact origin of the breed is unclear, although the white belt for which it is named, which distinguishes the breed from the native Black Galloway cattle, is widely considered to be the result of cross-breeding with a similarly colored Dutch Lakenvelder breed.

The Belted Galloway as a beef animal produces exceptionally lean and flavorful  meat, with carcass dressed weights well in excess of 60 percent of live  weight. Winter warmth is provided by the double coat of hair, rather  than the layer of backfat most breeds require. The Belted Galloways’  heritage has conditioned them to survive in very harsh climates, and  U.S. breeders have discovered that the thrifty, medium-sized animals  more than earn their way in any beef herd.  

We also raise a few regular Galloway at this point specializing in breeding for White. We have Finley (bull) and Fresca (cow) pictured here as well as a few Black Galloway cows that we breed with Finley in hope of producing white offspring. 

The Galloway is one of the world's oldest beef breeds, the descendant of  two distinct aboriginal breeds of Scotland. The word "Galloway" is  derived from Gallovid, which in old Scot signifies "a Gaul." Noted  frequently by historians for their thick, wooly hides and their hornless  condition, Galloway emerged as the beef breed of choice in the 15th and  16th Centuries and continued to dominate England's and Scotland's beef  trade for hundreds of years.

The merits of the breed did not go unnoticed by early cattle breeders,  leading to the use of the Galloway breed in the creation of the Red  Poll and Shorthorn breeds, with the Shorthorn subsequently used in the  development of Angus. Of the many British breeds of cattle, only two  remain free of outside blood: The Galloway and the Scottish Highland. At  five centuries, the Galloway is the oldest and purest British cattle  breed in existence.