The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-01-28
How to Improve
Florida Live Stock

1. DO not use scrub sire. BY this
We mean q sire Of no particular breed,
or from a mixture Of two or more
breeds.
?. DO not overcrowd the summer
range.
3. DO not expect your live stock
to obtain a good living on the open
range or among the pine trees during
the winter months, but supply them
with some good nutritious food in adj
ditions such as velvet beans and
japanese cane.
1. DO not select the sire from with
in the herd. Introduce sire that
win infuse new blood.
5. DO not use sire that is no
better than the one discarded.
s. Good blood improves the quality:
combination of good blood and good
feed win work wonders in the Inn
provement Of our Florida live stock.
Z. The native Florida live stock
makes a good foundation. All that Is
necessary is the use Of good sires
Two successive crosses on the native
stock, when the animals are properly
fed, win make q wonderful change
BY using scrub sires or sires OF no
particular breed, or q mixture Of two
ore more breeds, there can be no UNI
fornity in the herd. For instance, II
a Hereford sire be used for q year OF
two, for the next year an Angu sire.
and perhaps the following year q
Shorthorn sire. What is the result?
We win have cattle OF all sizes and
all colors from white to black. There
win be little uniformity in either size.
shape or color; although all sires used
were OF the beef breeds. II. as It often
happens. sire OF some one of the
dairy breeds be introduced IN a beef
herd, the injury sustained can only
be reclzoned by the number OF females
in the herd. The larger the number
Of breeding cows in the herd, the
greater the loss. Each producer of live
stock should have a fixed standard by
which to gauge the quality OF all his
breeding stock, whether horses, cattle,
sheep. swine or poultry. He should
take pride enough in his business to
see TO it that that standard lie MAIN
tanned. A well matched span of horses
or mules always sells for a better
price than a pair of broken color. A
carload OF cattle OF uniform color
rake a much better appearance and
as a rule the buyer win take the uni
fovm colored load in preference to a
better load of cattle that are mixed in
color.
We find that the native stock or
stock OF no particular breed are as a
rule from 40 to so per cent smaller
than the improved breeds. This is
perhaps due to several causes. AS a
rule. native cattle receive but little
attention. They are expected to hunt
for their own living both summer
and winter. IF they are not able to
do this they are not wanted, and the
huzzards get them. The result is that
during that period Of the year when
there is scarcity Of food the AMI
mails are starved. This means a check
ing Of growth and development, which
cannot be outgrown. A runty pig al
ways develops into q runty hog. This
we can overcome by supplying an
abundance of good nutritious food
during the season of the year when
rasturage is short.
Native stock generally run at large
ana breed at will This has a tend
eney to reduce the size. Breeding
the females when too young win also
reduce the size. More or less breed
Ing is sure to take place when run
uing at large. These causes all have