"Herd-book" means "any book, register, file or data medium .... maintained by a breeder's organisation .... in which purebred breeding animals are entered or registered with mention of their ancestors".

The French Limousin breed standard is described in Article 1 of Title I of the Rules of Procedure of the French Limousin herd-book, 1 August 1991:

In 1920 the herd-book in Southern Germany was closed and the Fleckvieh was developed as an independent dual-purpose breed in Southern Germany, Austria, later also in parts of Italy and France.

The breed society was established in 1884 and a herdbook opened the following year.

The herdbook was closed in 1934 and the breed standard first defined.

Its breed society and herdbook were established in 1894.

Breeding for a uniform type began in the early 19th century and a herdbook was established in 1869.

The first herdbook published in 1881 had a small dairy type and a larger beef type.

Both types were later amalgamated into the Welsh Black breed for which a herdbook was opened in 1874.

More recently, the Hessen horse was also made into an extension of the Hanoverian herdbook.

Full blood cattle are fully pedigreed animals, where every ancestor is registered in the herdbook and shows the typical characteristics of the breed.

It became quite common in southern Ireland and was registered in the new Kerry herdbook established in 1887.

The breed was recognised under the Montbéliard name in 1870 and the herdbook and breed society were established in 1889.

In 1884, the Devon Cattle Breeders' Society was founded and took over the herdbook.

The Lincoln Red was originally included in the Shorthorn herdbook but split away in 1941 (see separate entry).

This herdbook includes both beef and dairy animals but the herdbook is divided between the two sections.

However, different breeders opted to concentrate on one purpose rather than the other, and in 1958, the beef breeders started their own section of the herdbook.

Official herdbook keeper for most of them is the Föreningen Allmogekon, the Allmogeko Society.

The 1886, the Dutch Belted Cattle Association of America herdbook was established, and still continues today as the oldest continual registry for the breed worldwide.

The American Aberdeen Angus Herdbook stopped registering red calves from 1917, leading to reds becoming very uncommon in the American population.

By 1949 Dutch cattle and crosses were accepted into the herdbook and the name was changed to Danish Black and White Cattle.

Fullblood Gelbvieh cattle are direct descendents of those registered in the German herdbook and originally imported to Canada and the United States.

The golden age of this breed was the second part of 19th century, with the French herdbook being established in 1893, making it one of the oldest in France.

In 1879, breeders in Friesland set up a separate herdbook, the Friesch Rundvee Stamboek (FRS).

In 1919 a herdbook was established for this breed of Central and Upper Belgium and its name was changed to Blanc-Bleu or Witblauw in 1971.

Colonel John Tanner Davy, son of John Tanner Davy, founded the Devon herdbook in 1850.

In Canada, selected Swedish Red genetics have been entered into the herdbook at 75% purity, while these genetics have 50% purity standing in the United States.