The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1886-06-03
SELECTING HElFERS.
The Five Cardinal Features of a Good
and Profitable Mich Cow.

The Five Cardinal Features of a Good
and Profitable Mich Cow.
When the burning passion to become
famous and money-making dairyman
first takes possession of man, he puts
the whole strength OF his mind to the task
OF overcoming the hard places that q
little contemplation teaches him are to
be found in each department of the Oc-
cupation.
1t will not take him long to learn
that the first requisite of a profitable
dairy is good herd of cows. He will
not read far either in books on dairying
or in the current papers of the agricul-
tural press before he comes across this
statement that not more than half the
COWS in the dairy herds of the country
pay for their keep, and that the good
COWS carry the poor ones, to the great
loss OF their owners. He rapidly solves
this problem in his own mind by deter
mining not to have any but good cows
in his herd. Now his trouble begins.
How is he to get up herd of first-class,
good, profitable cows. If he happens to
have plenty of money he is almost GER
tain to fall into the very common error
of thinking he can buy them. Certainly
this can be done, but it would be long
list that contained the names of all the
men who have sunk fortunes in carving
out this plain proposition. The trouble
Is that COWS possess such infinite varie-
ties of form and character. Some are
neither physically or mentally adapted
to the dairy, while others possess char
acteriSticS that are absolutely startling
in their capacity for dairy work, while
the intermediate space is filled with
every variety of cow, having good and
bad qualities ineXtricably mixed.
In view of these difficulties, the besi
we can do is to set before the mind the
ideal animal and then educate ourselves
to the work OF securing what we consid-
er the best. To do this there should be
no cast-iron rules, but breed and buy as
presents itself. To become
educated in selecting the best dairy
COWS, we naturally look to the books on
dairying and the agricultural papers.
With single pen they describe the ideal
COW beautifully balanced. beginning
with fine bOny head, incurving horns,
a slender neck, thin withers, and,
spreading as you proceed, she has a
barrel, high, broad hips; a
long, thin tail, square udder and
escutcheon. Now 90 into
the Woodworking herd of some success
full dairyman and ask him to point you
out his best paying animals, and the
chances are that he will not exhibit n
single ideal cow, simply because the act
Of milk-giving is not, SO far as we know,
directly connected with or in any great
degree dependent upon any external
feature of the cow, if we except the size
and shape of the udder. Like the trOt-
ters, they 90 in all forms, while the
ideal may fail to raise her
own calf.
For many years the writer made a
close study of the outward form and the
mental characteristics of the best cows,
paying every regard to popular notions
with view to duplicating the best ami
mails by selecting the most promising
heifers to be found. Our success was
quite equal to that of the average dairy
man, but faith in the ideal forms and
signs of inward excellence was
badly shaken. In order to supplement
experience with that of the best Judges,
we attended many of the sales of blood
I'd dairy cattle of late years, and con-
suited the herdsmen who have brought
nerds up to national regulations fer ex-
,ellence of product, and find the follow
ng points make up the sum of a good
leifer: O Large teats. (2) Teats
set wide apart. 60 Open twist with
udder showing well from
he rear. a. Deep in the flank. 90
Slender neck. These are the cardinal
eatures that have been found by prac-
ical men to lead most directly to a cor
ect judgment in selecting young
leiferS.
The slim neck is generally indicative
If mountaineering tendency. With these
heifer is not certain to |
urn out good one, but you have this
that she has every requisite |
If a good cow, and if she fails it is no
ault of yours, while many heifers prove
absolutely that they possessed the ca
,acity for making the milk, but that
misfortune of small teats, narrow quar-
ers, or delicate constitution, forbids
heir ever becoming profitable cows.
Nothing has been said about pedigree in
young heifers, but we merely |
all attention to those outward signs |
hat apply to all breeds, whether of blue
blood or the daughters of nobody in
oarticular.-Anaericam Dairyman.