Milk With Your Oreos?
I saw them again last Sunday. Every trip to visit Mom at her “retirement community”, which has evolved into an “assisted living facility” and is bordering on “nursing home” … pardon me, I digress, that is another story for another day … I see them in one field just outside town. Never have I seen them elsewhere. Always, I laugh out loud.
The first time I saw them, I thought some kids had played a prank and painted white bands around some black angus. But when I mentioned it to my brother, he told me they were Oreo Cows. “Bull shit!” I responded. But sure enough a quick Google search turns up a wealth of information on Belted Galloway cows, also called “belties” by some breeders, and commonly referred to as Oreo Cows for obvious reasons.
Native to the rugged, hilly seacoast region of southwest Scotland, Belted Galloways were first imported to Canada in the 1950s. An extremely hardy breed, they are considered perfect cattle for the long, harsh Canadian winters. Belties have a dual hair coat: a short, velvety, water resistant undercoat acts like a downy insulation, protecting the cows from dampness, and long, coarse, and curly outer hair protects them from cold. The result is that these animals are a wonderful breed for Northern climates.
The Oreo Cows I see here in Tennessee must be roasting in the temperate winters we enjoy. In answer to the question raised in the title to this post, Belted Galloways are a dual purpose breed, producing both fine beef and abundant milk. To answer any other nagging questions you have on these curious animals, visit Grant’s Farm or Homestead.
9 Comments so far
You live and learn. First I’ve ever heard of these guys too Winston. Oreo cows…how cute. Thanks for the pics.
Oh, wow. They’re awesome!
That’s what I call a handsome cow, we don’t see them much any more here in the British Isles, because of the rising population numbers, there’s little or no land left to raise animals on, so we are growing them somewhere else, probably Canada….
I thought that coming from Minnesota and living in California (Land of the Happy Cows) I would have heard of this breed, but have to say these photos are absolute firsts for me. Thank you for the enlightment!
I love these cows! …love them! And the notion of “Oreo” cookies is wonderful. Thanks for sharing, Winston. -mg
My kid brother once asked if the brown salt block was chocolate flavored and was that where chocolate milk comes from.
Now I know that no, it’s where the chocolate cream oreos come from.
What cuties!
I love these cows! Thanks for this post.
I was just passing through on a ‘belted galloways’ googling (because I’ve done several paintings of them), and found your post. Its interesting to read that so many people have yet to learn about these animals. I take them foregranted because where I live in Maine there is Aldermere Farm, reknowned for having brought these cows over from Scotland and introduced the breed to the States. When we used to visit here summers, (back in the 60’s), it was always a treat for us kids to see the cows as we drove by the farm. And just past the farm is a white archway over the road that was apparently of some significance in the movie Peyton Place.