The calves will have no trouble at birth with smaller birth weights than most of the recently imported breeds and yet they are renowned for their rapid growth. The use of a Santa Gertrudis bull will introduce heat tolerance, tick resistance, and most importantly, when crossed with British breeds, an immediate drop in the number of losses due to eye cancer and pink eye. Santa cattle have the ability to thrive on lush pasture without suffering from bloat - a problem that causes untold losses every year. Mature Santa Gertrudis bulls weigh in excess of 2,000 pounds with 2,200 to 2,800 pounds not uncommon. The average scrotal circumference is frequently in excess of 40cm.
Weight gain is one of the most highly heritable performance traits in beef cattle.
Daily weight gains of Santa Gertrudis bulls are regularly monitored at more than 3.3 pounds per day. Santa bulls have outstanding foraging ability to thrive even under the harshest conditions and they are noted as very active and athletic sires. An inherent trait of Bos Indicus is their unlabored gait that enables them to easily cope with long distances to food or water, unlike some European and British breeds. The mature Santa cow can weigh up to 1,650 pounds, she has excellent milking ability with high butterfat content, few calving problems and in competitive tests has produced consistently larger calf crops than other breeds. One of the major attractions of Santa Gertrudis female is their longevity.