Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1903-12-24
Horse Breeding in Scotland.

IoTSc bTScuin9 IN SCotldno.
The maxim that the ram is half Of
the flock is even more true when ap-
piled to the stallion. The great cost
of a pure bred stallion limits personal
ownership for individual use to men OF
large wealth who make a business of
raising pure bred stock. The ordinary
farmer cannot afford to own such a
stallion, and as a result inferior
animals are kept for general neighbor-
hood uses, making it a difficult and
slow matter to improve the general
average of farm horses.
Scotch farmers and breeders have
solved the question in an effective
might copy with advantage. Clydes-
dales have been bred for about a
century in that country and the
present high rank of the breed is the
result of the careful methods of the
ordinary Scotch farmer rather than
the work of the professional breeder.
The plan in concrete is cooperative
hiring of stations instead OF personal
or cooperative ownership. The ad-
vantage is that the best horses can be
obtained, and if an animal proves un-
satisfactory for any reason the COM
munity of farmers not having sunk
their capital in the horse can change
for another horse and be out of pocket
only the cost of one seasons service.
On the other hand, the owners of the
stations have the years business as
sured at paying prices and must keep
only good animals if they would re-
tain their patronage.
Out of this has grown stallion shows
where horses that are for hire are ex-
hlblted and passed upon and Judged
in competition. Representatives of
the little cooperative associations OF
farmers attend these fairs and hire for
the season the exclusive service of the
horse of their choice. Until 1860
these fairs were local affairs, but in
that year the Glasgow society took the
lead and combined the small fairs
into one great annual show, it bearing
all the expense and to have firs,
choice of horses. This continued un-
til 1884, and sometimes fifty and sixty
horses were hired at this show, and
placed out in all parts of the country.
In 1870 the first Clydesdale stud
book was published, thus making pedi-
grees and names OF owners available
Tor every one, where before such
knowledge could only be obtained from
the catalogue of the Glasgow fair.
When knowledge Of horses and owners
hug hro 81,
operative associations became rivals
to secure the services of the best
horses, and they went directly to the
owners to make their bargains. This
is now the rule, and the fairs are now
of less Importance, as the hiring is
done before the horses are shown
there, and sometimes contracts are
made as much as a year ahead when
some horse of great reputation is
wanted.
There are different ways in which
horses are hired. The usual plan is
for sufficient number of farmers to
club together and pay lump sum for
the exclusive use of the stallion. Each
member contributes to this sum, and
agrees to furnish definite number of
mares, for which he pays the price of
service as agreed upon between the
association and the owner. Under
this plan the horse secured is one that
has an established reputation as a
sire, and his exclusive use for the sea-
son is guaranteed. The member must
make the service payment whether he
furnishes a mare or not There are
other plans of hiring, but the principle
is the same.
The result of this system is that
each neighborhood secures the serv-
ices of better horse than Individual
members of the association could
afford to keep, and horse owners strive
to own the best type, or otherwise
they will get no business. A plan
similar TO this might be worked out
in this country to the great betterment
of quality of our farm breed horses.
Allen.