By: JUSTIn romBeCK
piece of art work produced by Gary Henry, called “The Seven families,” portrays the diverA sity found in the horns of Texas Longhorn cattle.
The seven families helped to save the Longhorn breed from extinction, and they each had their own strongly-held belief about how a Texas Longhorn female should look. Some of these founders preferred long total horns while others preferred the variations of the elegant twist. There are several distinguishing characteristics that make up different types of twist on a Longhorn. While there are some similarities, it still helps to know what type of twist is found on a female before she has time to mature. This will help a breeder understand what to expect at an earlier age.
• The distance from the eyes to the nose will be longer than that found on a Longhorn cow with a Traditional Texas Twist (also known as a Symmetrical twist). • The ears on these females are a little longer and deeper and typically will not sit in front of the horn unless startled. The top of the ear usually comes to just the bottom of the horn.
AsymmetricAl Twist _________________________________________ females with an Asymmetrical twist tend to have a gentle roll over the top of their poll. With this type of twist, the cow’s faces may seem a little narrower and elongated. Her eyes will be a little more forward on the face, but not as much as will be seen on the females with forms of a triple twist.
• These females will also develop a small knot in the center of their forehead just below the center of their poll that sits down off of the crest of their skull just a bit. • Head shape will consist of a flat arc that encompasses the area from the eyes to the horn with a slight, gentle roll encompassing the area where the skull divots in around the eyes to the horn. • The distance from the eyes to the muzzle will be slightly elongated with pronounced nasal bone. • The horn with the harder twist on these females will be more egg shaped than the other horn which may be a little more round in structure.
This article was originally published in the November 2012 issue of the Texas Longhorn Journal. It was reprinted with full permission by the TLMA. 46 | May/June 2016
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