Air Namibia, Flamingo April 2011 Text and Photo by Tim Osborne
Is the shortest distance between India and South Africa through Texas and Namibia?
The answer is yes if you are a Brahman bull. Today Brahman cattle are common throughout Namibia but 57 years ago they were unknown in southern Africa. The Brahman breed originated from cattle native to India. Two bulls were given to an American, Richard Barrow, by the British Indian Government for his help in teaching cotton and sugar cultivation to civil servants in India. He loaded the bulls onto a boat and brought them to his farm in Louisiana. They proved to be quite valuable and rapidly spread their genes into the local cattle. Farmers noted that the hybrids were better adapted to the southern climate than their previous livestock. Subsequently more were imported from India until 1906, when a shipment landed at New York and 18 of them died from disease. That stopped direct importation from India but farmers were still anxious to introduce more breeding stock. The reputation of the Brahman hybrids had spread to both Brazil and Canada and farmers in those countries had imported their own cattle from India. Thus the Americans were able to import more Brahmans from those countries after the ban. By 1924 there was an American Brahman Breeding Association with strict standards and a stud book.
Why was the Brahman so valuable that farmers were going to the ends of the earth to find more? European cattle breeds like Hereford, Angus, Shorthorn and Charolais were very good meat producers but suffered in hotter climates from ticks, sun related eye problems, heat, were not used to walking long distances to graze and did poorly under drought conditions. Brahmans on the other hand had 4000 years to adapt to hot climates like India. They have short hair with numerous sweat glands so they rarely need to stand in the shade. They have very loose skin with subcutaneous muscles which allow them to shake ticks and biting flies off easier. Their tail is longer and wider thus more mobile to swat flies. In addition they have a gland near their tail which secretes a natural insect repellant. They have dark eyes and are not bothered by the sun. Brahmans will walk to all corners of a pasture to find grazing and then return to water easily.
Namibian farmers prior to 1950 were raising Afrikander and European cattle but would suffer every time a drought would strike. To the farmers it seemed that drought was the norm and rains a special event. Word of the best traits of Brahman cattle had reached Namibia but the stories also included tales of its temper and how hard they were to handle. Most of these tales grew out of images of cowboys getting trampled by Brahman bulls during riding contests at rodeos.
Nevertheless, one brave Namibian farmer named Jurgen Cranz, traveled to Texas to buy a crossbred Brahman-shorthorn called Santa Gertrudis. On arrival he was shocked to discover the high prices and was easily convinced to buy the much cheaper pure bred Brahmans. He loaded 20 cattle into crates on the deck of a freighter and set sail for Cape Town. All cattle in Texas are handled by horseback and these Brahman were not used to being herded by someone on foot. The voyage lasted three weeks and the seas were not calm. Both the Cranz’s and Brahmans were seasick but by the end of the trip all had their sea legs. While on board, the cattle became used to being fed, watered and having their stalls cleaned by man. Mr. Cranz had established friendly a hands on relationship with them, but when the Cape Town agricultural officer tried to inspect them for disease he learned the hard way about Brahman bull temper! The cattle broke out of the crates and ran all around the dock before Mr. Cranz was able to calm them down and round them up. When they landed at Cape Town they were the first Brahman to land in Africa south of Kenya. Mr. Cranz even slept on hay bales with his cattle as they were transported by train to his farm in Namibia.
Mr. Cranz took some bulls to the Pretoria Show in 1955 where they attracted a large curious crowd of cattle farmers. He sold one to a South African farmer and thus Brahmans completed the long trip from India to South Africa.
Soon a flood of Brahmans were imported into southern Africa. Today, according to the Namibian Brahman Breeders Society, 70% of all beef exported to Europe and South Africa come from Brahman crossbreds.
Every Brahman farmer will tell you that the infamous temper of the Brahman is more a product of the cattle’s intelligence and the handlers’ stupidity more than anything else. A Brahman can be provoked by bad human behaviour as well. At Dirk Mudge’s last stud bull auction in 2004 the bulls were all led into a small bidding kraal individually. A boy about 7 or 8 years old kept running back and forth between his seat and the edge of the kraal. One of the bulls took exception to the unruly child and charged. The boy very promptly took his seat and remained there for the rest of the auction.
Several years ago some Zambian farmers had a Brahman bull that was the grand champion at the Lusaka Agricultural Show. At the closing ceremonies all the grand champions were paraded together around the centre field. During the parade the Zambian Army brass and drum band marched onto the field in full force. The bull took one look, broke loose from his handler and charged into the band. Drums, instruments and leopard skin clad musicians went flying in all directions. The audience thought the whole spectacle was prearranged and applauded enthusiastically.