HISTORY The Tuli Story In the Beginning The Sanga breed originated several thousand years ago in Africa. It is thought that the breed was the result of natural mixing of indigenous cattle with the Zebu cattle, which were herded through the continent by nomads during the first Arab invasion. Today, the Sanga cattle can be found throughout South, Central, and Western Equatorial Africa. They have most likely existed in their present form for more than 5,000 years. The Sanga breed is prone to wide variations in constitution and appearance. Most are a light shade, ranging from yellow to reddish - brown and have a humped neck. They can have either short or long horns, depending on the exact ancestry of any given animal. Of the many Sanga derivations, the Tswana cattle are perhaps the most interesting for Tuli enthusiasts. The Tswana cattle wandered South into Zimbabwe and developed the rugged heartiness that typifies the Tuli breed. Due to the extreme climate, the Tswana became heat and drought tolerant, and learned to find new food sources when conditions worsened. Because the Tswana had to become scavengers, they developed thick, strong legs and hard hooves from walking to water and food sources. Those that could handle the long daily walks survived, and those that could not eventually died off. Wrought with parasites, disease, heat, drought, and famine, these cattle experienced a harsh evolution that should have driven them to extinction. The tougher animals survived and through natural selection passed their ruggedness on to their progeny. The most docile and domesticated Tswana cattle were selected by local Matabele chiefs for their herds, and their selective breeding practices and domestication enhanced the breed and refined its evolution. Thanks to the Matabele, the Tswana continued to prosper, and only 60 years ago became the foundation for the Tuli breed as we know it today. Why"Tuli"? Of all the names they could have chosen, why Tuli? In the early 1940s, near Tuli, Rhodesia, a South African named Len Harvey began his life's work establishing an indigenous domestic breed of cattle that could withstand the harsh conditions of the region and still provide quality food and dairy attributes to the native farmers. Harvey's dream was that communal farmers might benefit from his work. After observing the many variations of cattle native to the region, he chose the specimens that were the healthiest, heartiest, and most fertile. These, from the Sanga breed, became the "mother herd" for today's Tuli. Through his position with the Rhodesian Agricultural Department, he established a government breeding program in Gwanda, Rhodesia, on a 3,000 acre farm he aptly named Tuli Station. By 1948, Harvey's cattle were competing at block shows throughout Zimbabwe and Rhodesia. They won consistently year after year, beating out European contenders that had over 300 years of formal breeding management behind them. What made Harvey's cattle so much better? In a word, genetics. They had all of the ruggedness that thousands of years of evolution in Southern Africa had fostered, yet still maintained a high beef and dairy quality that rivaled established breeds. These characteristics are the driving force behind the Tuli's growing popularity today. Commercial farmers soon began taking an interest in Harvey's breed. Struggling with a name for the breed, many farmers wanted them to be called Harvey's Cattle. But Len Harvey had another name in mind. Since the breed originated in Tuli, Rhodesia, and they were the color of the red silt of the Tuli River, Mr. Harvey thought Tuli was a fitting name. It stuck.

These cattle experienced a harsh evolution that should have driven them to extinction. The tougher animals survived and through natural selection passed their ruggedness on to their progeny