Polled?

Post by **Mark Bowles** » Tue Jul 27, 2004 10:46 pm

I have bought a heifer last year that looks as thogh she has been dehorned althogh it is such a good job she could be polled although she doesnt have the shape of a polled crown.Also on the pedigree certificate it does not state polled.
Her father is polled.Her mother is not.
She now has a nice little short black 2 month old heifer calf that really ought to be showing signs of horns but all i can feel is a slight bump,certainly not a smooth polled crown.Her father has been dehorned.
We dehorn all our cattle before they are 6 or 7 weeks old, all have had proper horn stumps to have a go at.
So.... is this heifer a slow developer or could she be scurred ( the technical word for only part horned,..i think)
Ideas please, thanks.
Mark

Paula Edwards · Post by **Paula Edwards** » Wed Jul 28, 2004 6:03 am

Hi Mark,

I have been breeding for polled Dexters for a few years now and while I can generally tell quite early (mostly even at birth) if any animal will be polled, it is not 100 %.

When you say a polled "crown", I have found that polled animals can have quite different shaped heads with some having a triangular bump and others a fairly smooth curve.

The usual give-away is a tuft of hair which sticks out or a "corner" on the skull bone where a horn may eventually emerge.

To date, we are running at 50% polled offspring from a horned/polled mating. So the chances are 50/50 your heifer is polled.

Time will tell.

Cheers,
Paula.