Luxi Cattle

Luxi Cattle

　　Luxi Cattle is one of the four major cattle breeds in central China, renowned for its excellent fattening performance.

　　Luxi Cattle is mainly produced in the southwestern part of Shandong Province, specifically in the Heze and Jining regions, stretching from the Yellow River in the north to the old course of the Yellow River in the south, and covering the triangular area along both sides of the Grand Canal. The breed is distributed across Yuncheng, Juancheng, Heze, Juye, and Liangshan counties in the Heze region, as well as in the Jiaxiang, Jinxiang, Jining, and Wenshang counties and cities in the Jining region. It can also be found in Liaocheng, Tai’an, and the northeastern part of Shandong. In the early 1980s, there were 400,000 head, and the population has now grown to over 1 million.

　　In terms of body conformation and appearance, Luxi Cattle have a well-proportioned, fine, and compact build, suitable for both draft and meat production. Bulls mostly have straight or lyre-shaped horns, while cows predominantly have lyre-shaped horns. The dewlap is well-developed. Bulls have high and broad shoulder humps. Their chests are deep and wide, but the hindquarters are underdeveloped, with insufficiently full rump muscles, giving the body a distinct front-high, back-low posture. Cows have low and flat withers, better-developed hindquarters, short and straight backs, and slightly sloping rumps. Their joints are dry, and tendons are prominent. The front limbs have a regular stance, while the hind limbs have minimal curvature and a small distance between the hock joints. The hooves are dense but not very hard. The tail is long and thin, often with twisted tail hair resembling a spindle. The coat color ranges from light yellow to brownish-red, with yellow being the most common. Generally, the forepart is darker than the hindpart, and bulls are darker than cows. Most cattle have lighter-colored eye rings, muzzle, lower belly, and inner legs — a feature commonly referred to as the “three pale markings.” The nose mirror is usually light flesh-colored, with some cattle having black spots or speckles. The eye color is waxy yellow or amber.

　　In terms of production performance, according to slaughter measurements, 18-month-old castrated bulls have an average dressing percentage of 57.2%, a lean meat percentage of 49.0%, a bone-to-meat ratio of 1:6.0, a fat-to-meat ratio of 1:4.23, and an eye muscle area of 89.1 square centimeters. Adult cattle have an average dressing percentage of 58.1%, a lean meat percentage of 50.7%, a bone-to-meat ratio of 1:6.9, a fat-to-meat ratio of 1:3.7, and an eye muscle area of 94.2 square centimeters. The muscle fibers are fine, the meat quality is good, the fat distribution is even, and the marbling is pronounced.

　　In terms of reproductive performance, cows mature sexually early, with some conceiving as early as 8 months of age. Generally, they begin estrus at 10–12 months, with an average estrus cycle of 22 days (ranging from 16 to 35 days) and an estrus duration of 2–3 days. The average gestation period is 285 days (ranging from 270 to 310 days). The average time to first postpartum estrus is 35 days (ranging from 22 to 79 days).