WM. C.
MILLER
455
production of milk, meat, eggs, etc. and far too little is paid to the less specta,
cular but basically more important characters of stamina, fertility, longevity
and disease resistance. Those who point to the success of the individual
3,000 gallon cow or the 300 or 320 egg hen, neglect to consider the repercussions
which such excessive production has upon the system or upon the progeny
if any. (3,000 gallons of milk = 13½ tons : 300 eggs = 48 lb. nearly ½ cwt.).
It is significant to note that many individual animals, perhaps cows
especially, which have achieved high production records, become barren
subsequently. High production is an expensive phenomenon to the animal
system: reproduction is also expensive, and the tissues cannot withstand a
double strain. However attractive the ephemeral fame of breaking or holding
a production record may be, it is more than cancelled by the consequential
harm that readily follows.
Some of the breed societies and associations are alive to the dangers and
have already taken steps to concentrate attention upon the risks of such a
one-sided selection, but the temptation to break a record, ignorance of the
dangers which may follow, or a lack of lively appreciation of the consequences,
tend to continue and encourage such practices.
Rearing.—More information concerning the diseases and disabilities of
young stock and their prevention is urgently needed. The annual loss of
lambs, piglings, and calves is enormous, and much of it would be prevented if
sound and adequate methods of feeding and rearing were widely practised.
Improvements to pastures, adequate supplies of vitamins and minerals during
winter and the avoidance of unsuitable foodstuffs during juvenile stages of
life, would do much to prevent losses and to improve the health, disease re-
sistance and quality of adult animals. More natural systems of rearing,
less forcing of young stock, a greater use of good quality, fresh, home-grown
food-stuffs, and a restriction in the use of manufactured compounds contain-
ing by-products from imported seeds, would effect improvement in health and
constitution in all species of young stock.
Feeding.—There is much evidence that modern methods of ' scientific
feeding ' are producing a cumulative deterioration in health of farm animals.
It is difficult to particularize but the increasing annual wastage in dairy herds
(now over 25 per cent), the rising incidence of sterility in cows and bulls of
mastitis, digestive troubles, and general metabolic disturbances in all classes
of farm livestock, and the almost paralysing effects of mortality in poultry
kept on the intensive system, point to deficiencies or inaccuracies in the present
regimes of feeding. Without doubt some of these troubles can be traced to
excessive use of imported vegetable proteins especially from tropical oleaginous
seeds after removal of the oil. Quality of proteins (amino-acid constitution)
is of more importance than quantity of crude protein or of protein equivalent,
which are practically the sole standards at the present day. Much harm also
arises from feeding badly conserved foods and foods which have been processed
too much, whereby natural nutritive factors, vitamins, etc. are destroyed
or reduced in activity.