Jersey Cows

Small herds of the Jersey cow were imported into England by aristocratic landowners as adornments for their aesthetically landscaped parks, because of their small size, docile and inquisitive character as well as their attractive features, the jersey cow was deemed a nice ornament!

As its name implies, the Jersey was bred on the British Channel island of Jersey. It apparently descended from cattle stock brought over from the nearby Norman mainland and was first recorded as a separate breed around 1700.

While the breed is isolated from outside influence today, this wasn’t always the case. Before 1789 cows would be given as dowry for inter-island marriages between Jersey and Guernsey.

The Jersey cow is quite small, ranging from only 800 to 1200 pounds (360 to 540kg). The main factor contributing to the popularity of the breed has been their greater economy of production, due to lower body weight, hence lower maintenance requirements and higher butterfat conditions, 6% butterfat and 4% protein and Jersey cows can happily thrive on locally produced food.

Bulls are also small, ranging from 540 to 820kg (1200 to 1800lbs) and are notoriously very aggressive.