Africander

Africander cattle (also known as Afrikaner), were developed from the native Khoi-Khoi cattle of the Cape of Good Hope which are thought to have arisen from the longhorned Zebu and the Egyptian longhorn and is a native South African breed. The Africander belongs to the Sanga type. Sanga type cattle, in huge herds, were owned by the Hottentots when the Dutch established the Cape Colony in 1652. The animals were obtained by the colonists who improved them for use as draft animals. It was Africander oxen that drew the wagons which carried Boer farmers and families on the Great Trek of 1835-36 from the Cape of Good Hope to the Orange Free State, Natal and the Transvaal to escape British rule. the word trek is originally Afrikaans, meaning draft.
The breed was almost exterminated when huge numbers died of rinderpest (viral disease of cattle) or were destroyed during the South African War.

Since then the breed has been developed into a competitive beef breed and was the first indigenous South African breed to form a breed society in 1912. Nowadays it is probably the most popular indigenous cattle breed in South Africa. Though the population size in 1998 is reported to be 20,465, its cryogenic conservation in semen form and keeping the animals in the different improvement stations in South Africa is expected to ensure that it is not at risk.    more...

Latest Africander Breed News

Thursday, May 22, 2008
U of O Research Examines Risks of BSE
CANADA - It may be hard to believe that although bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), or 'mad cow disease,' has cost the Canadian...

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Friday, August 03, 2007
Foot and Mouth Disease confirmed in cattle, in Surrey, UK
UK - DEFRA have confirmed that following an investigation of suspected vesicular disease on a holding near Guildford in Surrey,...

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