Cattle : GALLOWAY - Full sized

Country of origin: Galloway, Scotland.

Australian Status: RECOVERING

International status: Recovering rare breed in their homeland, uncommon elsewhere. 

Arrived in Australia: early 1800's.

Australian Population: 2020. About 450, including miniatures. Therefore the count for Galloways without counting miniatures is not known. Note: Belted Galloways are not on the Watch List, being in safe numbers in Australia. Belted Galloways are registered separately. We do not regard miniature Galloways as a breed (see Guidelines).
2022: 1,599 total, presume about 1,200 are breeding age females. Includes miniatures which their breed organisation considers the same as normal sized. Asked about dwarfism, said they'd test if they saw it but testing not mandatory. Thank you G.A. for census reply. 251 registered on ARCBA numbers, possibly from the other organisation and this number includes bulls. 

HIstory: An ancient Scottish breed which has retained all the good qualities it's always been famed for. The oldest of all British breeds. Once popular in Australia, as in Britain. Galloways came here from early in the nineteenth century.

These cattle have been in Galloway, Scotland, for centuries. The black cattle thrived in cold Scottish conditions, unlike sheep in times past, and were plentiful. All Scots had an affinity with their black cattle and rieving (cattle stealing) was an old custom between warring clans. 

Records were kept, but in 1851, a fire at the Highland Agricultural Museum at Edinburgh destroyed all the historical records and pedigrees of the Galloway. In 1862, a Polled Herd Book was published and included the Galloway, Aberdeen, and Angus breeds. In 1878 the Galloway Cattle Society of Great Britain started its own volume of pedigrees.

Galloway beef was praised for its tenderness and flavour by many writers down the centuries.

Unlike other breeds which have used outside breeds to improve, the Galloway has from time immemorial remained pure, improved by selective breeding, not by outside blood.  Miniature Galloways have been bred in the past few decades as small cattle increase in popularity.

White Galloways were first bred in three places independently - Canada, USA and Scotland all recorded the birth of a white calf. The White Galloway was imported into Australia in the 1990's from Canada. Their coat pattern is like White Park and Speckle Park cattle with dark nose and points. Due to this colour being a late addition to a centuries-old pure breed, some regard them as a separate breed like the Belted Galloways are. The same Canadian cow gave birth to the first White Galloway there, and to the first Speckle Park. In Canada there are three separate studbooks  - Belted Galloway, Galloway and White Galloway - the White Galloway studbook allows that some may be black, some red, some dun. 

Breed traits: Beef. Naturally polled - for some centuries - the oldest polled breed in the world. The meat is naturally marbled giving flavour and juiciness, and famously tender. It is lean meat, having little back fat.

While most animals are black, some Galloways are shades of dun, some red, and some white with black, red or dun points. There is a colour called Riggit which is solid with white backline and white underneath, some being roaned. Riggits are also in Australia. 

Soft wavy hair, thick for cold winters with a thick undercoat - studies at Montana State Uni proving the thick coat means 20 to 25% less feed is needed in cold weather to maintain weight. Galloways, in fact, can put weight on when other breeds lose it due to inclement weather. Sometimes the coat is delightfully curled. They winter out in extreme cold and thrive. They also graze without selection, so keep weeds down and pasture strong, and thrive on roughage. They are used on marginal areas to clean it up for better pasture. Hills don't bother them, their legs are powerful. On good pasture, they thrive equally well.

Ease of calving, another breed which studies have proved to have the least calving problems and the most successful at raising a live calf to weaning age (of 11 breeds in Nebraska). The calves are active quickly and have a good thick coat. The breed matures quickly for breeding. Excellent mothers with good milk supply. Long-lived, cows being productive well into their teens.

Galloways turn off grass to yield great carcass quality. Carcasses yield about 73%, which is excellent. In feedlots they turn out the same marbling as an Angus but better growth and less back fat. Research shows Galloway beef has good levels of the essential fatty acids Omega 6, linoleic acid, which is necessary for humans and must be taken through diet and which destroys the dangerous type of cholesterol (LDL); and Omega 3 (Dr Butson, Canada.).

Although cold climate derived, Galloways have proved they are very adaptable to climate, raising calves and thriving perfectly well in hot dry areas.

A good breed to cross with, producing easy calving and hybrid vigour and always having polled offspring. Even better to have pure. Superb beef animals.

Organisation: Australian Galloway Association, formed 1951  http://www.galloway.asn.au/   and Galloways Australia http://www.gallowaycattle.com.au/ which replies to queries. There are also miniature Galloways in Australia with their own organisation, and a Belted Galloway organisation which is well run and answers queries. The two organisations in links also register all types of Galloway. Miniature Galloways do not fit our criteria for a breed yet and Belted are not rare. 

Additional Notes:

Photo : Southern Cross Bozo B18, stud sire at Amberley Park, Hallston, Victoria, Australia. Amberley Park has approx. 35 bulls in the AI tanks going back to approx. 1965. Amberley Park believes in diversity of breeds and within breeds.  Photo kindly supplied by Malcolm Cock; caption his words too. Magnificent bull.

Page by Janet Lane

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