Hardiest cattle breed

What breed of cattle has the most longevity and which is the hardiest breed??

For colder climates - Galloways
For dry arid climates - Texas Longhorn, they are also have longevity
For heat I suppose it would be Brahman

Brahman??

Can the long earred cattle take the cold northern winters???  i am interested in reliable recipts and have heard the Brahmans can calve an elephant.  I am just not sure they can handle the environment.  Maybe Brangus or Brafords?

Texas longhorns by a mile.  I have heard tales of them producing into their twenties.  They can stay fat on mesquite pasture and are smart enough to stay in Texas.

Glenstory said:

Can the long earred cattle take the cold northern winters???   i am interested in reliable recipts and have heard the Brahmans can calve an elephant.  I am just not sure they can handle the environment.  Maybe Brangus or Brafords?

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Those ears won't be nearly as long after a good, long, cold winter.  (lol)

I wouldn't put a brahman anywhere that gets a lot of snow(just a rule of thumb), a brangus would work well up north. One of the best recips I have ever seen was a brangus.

i'd have to agree with the longhorn suggestion...some strains of hereford may come in second.  beyond that i think simmental and original maine anjou.  for heartiness through the times...chianina, it is one of the oldest breeds in the world. ..i.e. fullblood Chi.

Texas Longhorn or Brahman

Okotoks said:

For colder climates - Galloways
For dry arid climates - Texas Longhorn, they are also have longevity
For heat I suppose it would be Brahman

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I can't say I disagree    Our Galloways produce well into their teens, and survive on snow and tree branches.  OK that is a stretch, but they sure seem to clean up the willow and cottonwoods.

Some people have tried Brangus and Santa Gertrudest up here for a very very short period of time.  After two winters they didn't have any of them left, and these were ranches that fed corn silage, and alfalfa.

We use to raise longhorns, and had one calve well into her 20's However, they never where 'fat' and the horns got to be a pain.liI

Longhorns for most of the US. 

Scotch Highlands for the colder states. 
 
And it aint even close, IMHO. 

As far as longevity I'd say Limousin cows are one of the best kept secrets. The udders hold up and they hold flesh and calve well into their teens. Hardiness is pretty good too. My limi cows will out-forage the Angus which stay up in the lot looking for handouts.

Glenstory said:

Can the long earred cattle take the cold northern winters???   i am interested in reliable recipts and have heard the Brahmans can calve an elephant.  I am just not sure they can handle the environment.  Maybe Brangus or Brafords?

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Brahmans can not handle the long winters, but i think brangus would work quite well.

Ummm, Black Angus?

JTM said:

Ummm, Black Angus?

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yeah i think i agree with you we used to raise angus and we had a bunch calving into the early to mid 20's

The hardiest breed depends on the environment you are going to put the animal in.  Generally all adoptable breeds are smaller and not high production oriented.
In northern and temperate climates generally the British hair breeds are the most hearty.  Breeds like the Galloway, Welsh Black, and Luing stand up well in cold, wet, and windy weather.  They also have resistance to black flies and mosquitos due to their dense thick hair.
In tropical environments the Brahman only has one competitor: the Sanga breeds like the Tuli.  In my opinion the Bos Indicus breeds area tougher lot than the Sanga based cattle.  The florida Cracker also deserves mention here.
In dry warm climates Ceole breeds like the Longhorn is tough to beat.  Note that in Latin America many different Longhorn type breeds exist. 

Beefmasters can thrive in the cold and the heat.  They are about 1/2 hereford and shorthorn so they will hair up good.  They were built on being a maternal breed and will have some of the biggest udders next to dairy breeds.

I would have to say Scottish Highlands for the cold climates, up here in Canada they can survive the winters by digging for weeds, sticks and bark. Due to their multiple long coats of hair they don't need high energy diets to fatten up for the winter and they don't even need shelter. They're well known for producing into their 20's, constantly spitting out 50lbs calves.