The Romagnola is a robust animal showing marked evidence of thickness and muscularity
throughout.
The top line and hindquarter are the areas where the beef producing ability of the
breed is most obvious. The body should show good length
with a rounded, well sprung rib cage and trim underline.
A study of its proportions, (the rib cage is at least as deep as the distance from the
brisket to the ground), places the Romagnola among
the meso branchy-morphous breeds.
The breed has a number of distinctive characteristics such as the horns, which are
lyre-shaped in cows and half-moon shaped in bulls;
the hair which is ivory colored in cows and gray around the eyes and shoulders in the bulls. The skin is
black pigmented as also are the extremities, muzzle,
horn tips, tail switch, hoofs, vulva, tip of sheath, and base of scrotum.
This coloration is a survival factor in hot climates as is the dense winter coat in
extremely cold regions.
Adult weights on average are 1250 kg for bulls and 750 kg for cows.
Early maturity is characteristic of the breed.
Mother cows are the foundation of the Romagnola breed of cattle. Romagnola have always
been selected for maternal characteristics, resulting
in early maturing and highly fertile females, most important maternal traits. Their milk production
heritability evaluates to be approximately 40 percent.
Romagnola cows are well known for their ease in calving. Calves are sturdy, alert, and
are usually up and nursing quickly after birth.
Romagnola milk is rich and produces weaning age calves that weigh 500 to 700 pounds at 205 days. The udder
is well tucked under her and the teat placement is correct.
