In 1996 the conservation group in Germany started to crossbreed Heck cattle with primitive cattle from Southern Europe such as
Chianina,
Sayaguesa Cattle and the
Spanish fighting bull in the Lippeaue reserve near the town of
Soest. The purpose was and is an increased
resemblance to the extinct aurochs, because they considered
Heck cattle not satisfying. For example, they write in one of their publications: "The 'recreations' by the Heck brothers are too small, too short-legged, not elegant and their horns are not satisfying". Therefore, the goal is to breed cattle that are considerably larger, more long-legged and long-snouted and have horns curving forwards, in addition to possessing the
wild type colour scheme that was already present in the population. In 2003 breeding herds were started in Hungary and Denmark, and in 2004 one was begun in Latvia. Taurus cattle are listed in the herdbook X of the German Heck cattle association VFA. There is an increasing interest of Heck cattle breeders in using Taurus cattle because of their larger resemblance to the aurochs, so that there is a continuum between Taurus cattle and un-crossed Heck cattle.
Hungary Hortobágy National Park in Hungary has the largest herd of Taurus cattle so far. In 2012, the herd counted 500–600 individuals of which around 200 are mature cows. In addition to crossbred cattle that were imported from Germany,
Ankole-Watusi,
Hungarian Grey cattle crosses and one half-
Holstein Friesian cow are used. There are two sub-herds, a main herd at Pentezug and another one at Karácsonyfok. Studies in the national park showed that cattle are less adapted to dry, cold grasslands than the park's
Przewalski horses, and until a few years ago the cattle were supplementary fed. The winter of 2011 was the first winter in which additional food was not necessary.
Denmark ×
Heck) from Lille Vildmose, 2004 Taurus breeding was initiated in
Lille Vildmose Nature Reserve under the name Projekt Urokse ("Project Aurochs"). The founding herd consisted of one Chianina × Heck bull, four Heck cows and one Sayaguesa × Heck cow, and in 2009 three Sayaguesa bulls were added; by 2010 the herd had grown to 56 individuals.
Latvia In Latvia, Taurus cattle are being bred by
WWF Latvia. in October another 18 head of Dutch Heck cattle followed. == External features of Taurus cattle ==