German Black Pied cattle are a breed of

dairy cattle Dairy cattle (also called dairy cows) are cattle bred for the ability to produce large quantities of milk, from which dairy products are made. Dairy cattle generally are of the species ''Bos taurus''. Historically, little distinction was mad ...

that originated in the North Sea coast regions of northern

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. Until the 18th century, cattle of diverse colours were bred in these regions. After 1750, the black pied coloured type was dominant, but there are still also unicoloured red and red pied cattle. In 1878 in

East Frisia East Frisia or East Friesland (german: Ostfriesland; ; stq, Aastfräislound) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia ...

(

), the first breeding company was founded. East Frisia and

East Prussia East Prussia ; german: Ostpreißen, label=Low Prussian; pl, Prusy Wschodnie; lt, Rytų Prūsija was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1773 to 1829 and again from 1878 (with the Kingdom itself being part of the German Empire from 187 ...

(today

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

, and

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

) were the most important breeding regions of the breed. Later it extended over the whole of northern and central Germany. Since 1958 in

West Germany West Germany is the colloquial term used to indicate the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG; german: Bundesrepublik Deutschland , BRD) between its formation on 23 May 1949 and the German reunification through the accession of East Germany on 3 O ...

the breed was crossed with

Holstein Friesian cattle Holstein Friesians (often shortened to Holsteins in North America, while the term Friesians is often used in the UK and Ireland) are a breed of dairy cattle that originated in the Netherlands, Dutch provinces of North Holland and Friesland, and S ...

. Since the 1960s these crossed animals have been dominant, and so the German black-and-white cattle breed was born. In

East Germany East Germany, officially the German Democratic Republic (GDR; german: Deutsche Demokratische Republik, , DDR, ), was a country that existed from its creation on 7 October 1949 until its dissolution on 3 October 1990. In these years the state ...

the breed was crossed with

Jersey cattle The Jersey is a British breed of small dairy cattle from Jersey, in the British Channel Islands. It is one of three Channel Island cattle breeds, the others being the Alderney – now extinct – and the Guernsey. It is highly productive – ...

and Holstein Friesian cattle to create the German Black Pied Dairy cattle breed. The original breeding type was conserved in East Germany as a genetic reserve. Individual breeders in West Germany and in the Netherlands were also able to conserve the original type. German Black Pieds are smaller than Holstein Friesians and with a lower milk volume, but they are more fertile and long-lived. A comparison was made between the rates of muscle growth and energy utilisation of

Fleckvieh The Fleckvieh is a breed of dual-purpose cattle suitable for both milk and meat production. It originated in Central Europe in the 19th century from cross-breeding of local stock with Simmental cattle imported from Switzerland. Today, the worl ...

bulls as compared to German black pied bulls. It was found that the Fleckvieh bulls had faster growth rates, the carcases had a smaller proportion of fat, especially abdominal fat, and the animals could be slaughtered at an earlier date when fed on similar diets.

References

* {{Cattle breeds of Germany Cattle breeds originating in Germany Dairy cattle breeds Cattle breeds