Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1903-11-19
K A DAIRY HERD.

443 ~-~--~--~
Advice or nm Experienced Man ON
Brceding For Butter Production.
DIR. Herbert Watney, an English gen.
tieman Of large experience, contributes
to the London Live Stock Journal the
following:
1T is necessary TO have as founda-
ton stock not only prolific COW Of a
strong constitution that have made
good public or private trials. but, If
possible, those whose parents and
grandparents have also been known to
nave been great butter producers.
"If 1T be desired to improve the
character OF the herd or even to main
tain a very high standard three prac-
teal points are of great Importance
CAB never to sell any OF the best COWS
or % any of the COW calves from the
best COWS and (cp as Ear as possible to
guard against all illness.
ut is sometimes found that a cow
that has done exceedingly well and
that is very carefully bred does not
have good offspring. In many cases
no cause can be assigned for this ex-
cept the theoretical one that the prog
envy revert to some prepotent ances-
tor that was not OF a coed butter fam
lily. Fol this reason Ii Is necessary
to keep all the very good cows and all
the best calves, because. though one
COW may fail to improve the herd. the
general result In breeding from five
or six good cows is sure ii be in the
right direction IL the bull is well bred.
"a rider TO the first two general brin-
cpies might rum thus. That the result
Of breeding from any well bred animal
is somewhat uncertain, but that the re-
suits of breeding from a number Of
such animals will ON the whole be
successfuL. For this reason it is I'M
wise TO have less than two or three
bulls. 1t win also be at once apparent
that illness must be carefully guarded
against, as otherwise one Of the most
valuable cows might die land 1t has not
in~frequently hcppened that the best
COW in a herd has fallen a victim to
the Sc called milk fever'), and thus.
the cow that might have been expected
to transmit the very highest qualities
being lost. other and inferior animals
mast be bred from. and the progressive
improvement may be retarded d little.
"HNor very similar reasons it Is OF the
greatest importance that all the young
stock that are considered of value
should be successfully reared, as other
wise the results of careful breeding
will be very materially interfered with.
As a rule, we have found shat most
men overfeed the calves and do not
sufficiently dilute the milk in feeding
TIE quite young stock. During the last
four years in Ii herd no calf that has
been set aside ~ good enough to be
brought up has been lost.
when In a herd devoted to butter
production the introduction Of fresh
blood is requisite, 1t is difficult to OBJ
tain a bull whose ancestors have been
bred ON the lines indicated in describ-
ing foundation stock. as in many Jer-
sey herds the cattle are bred partly
for appearance and partly for their
dairy qualities. And a second difficulty
presents Itself in buying that the young
caiyes are SO exactly ali1c in size and
appearance that mistakes may be easily
made and a young bull of inferior
pedigree considered to be OF the very
highest value. and vice versa. 1t has
been custom when requiring fresh
blood to buy Il coy In calf Of the right
stamp and mated TO a suitable sire.
Her calf and the calf Of every other
cow In the herd are tattoocd with an
indelibIe earmark. IL possible within
six days OF It's birth, but In every case
the calf is marked before the cow and
calf are separated