Braunvieh

 Braunvieh

Switzerland is world famous for many things including its cheese and creamy chocolate and the beautiful brown cows whose milk provides the basis for these mouthwatering foods. The cows of Switzerland are exemplified by wearing big brass bells as they freely roam the alpine summer pastures. In bygone times, these cows were the pride of every mountain farmer, and an integral part of the family – providing food and livelihood.

Braunvieh is were our farm had its start in cattle. Our founding cow is actually my Brown Swiss cow “Robyn” who we started breeding to Original Braunvieh bulls before adding pure Original Braunvieh cows to our herd. The Braunvieh is a kind-natured, people oriented, hardy, adaptable, well-built animal due to generations of natural selection in the Swiss Alps. “Braunvieh” is a German word which translated into English means “brown cow” or “brown beast”. Their colour is various shades of brown; the border of the muzzle is always white. Body weights range from 1,100-1,500 lbs. for adult cows and 2,000-2,500 lbs. for mature bulls. However, the focus on beef production with Braunvieh in Canada and the USA are now pushing this once moderate sized breed well out of its breed standard. It is not rare for cows to reach 1,900 lbs. and bulls 3,000 lbs. Although these animals are often papered as “Fullblood Original Braunvieh”, we believe that bigger is not always better, and these big cattle no longer represent the all-round cow for the average family farm. They are no longer suited for difficult or steep terrain or for small holdings, which is why we started looking at other alpine breeds despite our love for our big brown Swiss cows.

This breed is very popular around the world today.  It found its way into the neighboring alpine countries hundreds of years ago, and the first animals imported to the USA in the late 1800s have since been developed into a pure, but possibly not pure-bred, dairy type known as “Brown Swiss”. The original dual purpose “Braunvieh” cattle are bred in Canada and the USA since the late 1960s for beef. After the foundation of the Swiss Braunvieh Breeding Association in 1897, the breed has been standardized and improved  further still. Originally, the breeding goal was a cow  that could provide milk and meat, and could be used as a draught animal, resulting in an animal with an all-round nature: robust, a prolific breeder, long-lived, strong, adaptable, and well-balanced in build and colour. Her strong limbs and hooves make it possible for her to find fodder on difficult terrain with poor grazing and limited access to water. The Braunvieh’s good performance as dual purpose animal  made her suitable for milk or meat production with good returns for the farmer. In the late 60s, animals with an increased milk output and bigger frame came into demand. In order to achieve these objectives faster, many Braunvieh breeders reached for “Brown Swiss”-Genetics from America for pairing and the breed has since been divided into the “Original Braunvieh”, the dairy type “Brown Swiss”, and the “Braunvieh” which is the result of cross breeding Original Braunvieh with Brown Swiss to various degrees.