Shop
Illustration of the River View Nature Park logo, featuring rolling green hills, a winding river, and a bright sun above a blue sky. The logo emphasizes outdoor nature and conservation themes, highlighting the park's commitment to preserving natural beauty.

Our Cattle

Our beef is raised solely from our own cow herd, which is managed to work with the ecological principles of nature to enhance the pastures and habitat for our cows and the native wildlife.

Two brown cows grazing in a lush green field filled with yellow wildflowers, showcasing a serene rural landscape.

Working with Nature

Quite simply, this means that we match the cow herd's highest nutritional demands (the last 2 months before calving) with the peak of the grass’s nutritional value. Hence, our calves are born on lush pastures and warm sunny days, and not in the middle of winter as many conventional ranchers do. We work in concert with nature and follow wildlife's pattern of birthing in May/June, similar to when deer drop their fawns, and breed up in the fall around September. By nature, our beef herds are the most sexually active at the time of the equinoxes - or when the sun is directly over the equator. In the northern hemisphere, we key in on the autumnal equinox, which is about Sept. 23. Our cows are then exposed to bulls through both artificial insemination and natural service at the fall equinox. May-through-July breeding ignores this opportunity.

Brown cow standing in a green pasture, showcasing its healthy coat and ear tag. The image highlights the animal's natural habitat and farming environment.

Importance of Genetics

In our quest to provide you with the most succulent, flavorful, and healthy beef, we have improved our Angus, Hereford, and Shorthorn genetics by introducing Red Devons from Gearld Fry, a leader in sustainable cattle production. Our cows have been ultra sounded by Gearld Fry and Ridge Shinn of Bakewell Reproductions and by me (to measure for tenderness, back-fat thickness, and intramuscular fat). Many other items are measured and scrutinized to provide us with a scientific picture of our cows. Each cow is ear-tagged so individual records can be kept. By doing all of these measurements, we have been able to accurately select cows with a genetic predisposition to tender gourmet beef. The addition of Red Devon genetics is enhancing our native gene pool by bringing their traits of quality, quantity, tenderness, easy marbling, calm dispositions (less stress), and ability to finish solely on grass to fruition.

A herd of cattle, including both brown and black cows, grazing in a lush green pasture surrounded by trees and hills. The scene captures the tranquility of rural farm life in a natural setting.
Herd of brown cattle grazing on lush green pasture surrounded by trees in a sunny rural landscape.
A brown and white cow stands in a lush green field next to its calf, with rolling hills and trees in the background, showcasing a serene rural landscape.
A relaxed brown cow resting on green grass with rolling hills in the background, showcasing a tranquil rural landscape.
Cattle grazing in a fenced pasture with rolling hills and a clear blue sky in the background. The landscape features a mix of grass and sparse vegetation, showcasing a serene rural setting.
A group of healthy brown and white cattle grazing in a lush green pasture, with rolling hills and trees in the background under a clear blue sky. The cows are tagged with identification numbers on their ears, showcasing a peaceful rural farming scene.
45
A group of brown cattle grazing on lush green grass under a clear blue sky, with several calves visible among the adults in a serene pasture setting.

Healthy Cows

Pasture-raised and finished cattle live a very low-stress life, and we use every effort to handle our cattle in a stress-free manner. This is an important factor as meat from less-stressed animals is much more tender and of better quality. Once you have considered all the health benefits of eating grass-fed beef, it will not be surprising to learn that cattle raised on green pastures are also much healthier due to an improved immune system. Fertile soils provide the means for plants and grasses to have high protein and energy concentrations, and also provide essential minerals, allowing the cows to benefit from both. It is this process, from soil to grass, mixing in a little sunlight, that makes sugars (energy), proteins, and minerals bioavailable to cows. Cows eating this nutritious food convert it to protein and fat. This lends credence to the old saying, " You are what you eat.”

Brown and white calf standing in a green pasture with grass and wildflowers, showcasing its youthful features and healthy appearance.

Our Calves

Our calves are raised alongside their mothers until about 9 months of age, when they are then weaned and moved to new pastures to finish growing. The growth stage from weaned calf to finished grass-fed cattle is about 12-16 months. Eating only grass is a time-consuming method to finish cattle, but infinitely healthier for the cattle and the land than finishing them with grains (which fattens the cattle quickly, but also changes the quality of the beef and diminishes the quality of life for the cattle).

Summer Grasses - The Finishing Touch

The Gold Standard

Raising animals on pasture with "all grass, all the time" will always be the gold standard, as described by Jo Robinson, author of Pasture Perfect. This method produces food that is better for us, keeps the animals on their natural, native diet (no grains or animal by-products), and uses pasture to its maximum potential. This practice ensures environmentally friendly agriculture, which helps to sustain small Family Farms and promotes a healthy ecosystem.