Learning about livestock

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32459, 20 November 1970, Page 8

Learning about livestock

The president of the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association, Mr J. R. Todhunter, was disappointed with the number of people who attended the livestock demonstrations—cattle and sheep—that were held at the Canterbury show last week. He emphasised that the demonstrations and lectures were intended to be for the general public as well as the breeder or commercial stock man. One of the criticisms of shows in the past has been that livestock sections, in particular, have tended to be primarily for the breeder or stock man. The aim is to broaden the scope of the exhibitions so that the public can learn more about the stock and the place that different breeds have to play in the farming industry. In the year to the end of June this year wool, mutton, lamb, beef, dairy cattle and pigs contributed $778.1m. to gross farm earnings of $924.5m., and the s77Bm. did not include the part of poultry and bees. While excellent in concept, the two demonstrations on sheep included on this year’s show programme —on Romneys and Poll Dorsets—still tended to be directed mainly at the breeder or commercial sheep man and would have largely gone over the head of the city dweller without a farming background. This is not to say, however, that the idea is not an excellent one. A few people who looked in as the sheep demonstrations were in progress last Friday withdrew again, perhaps thinking that this was a private session for an exclusive group of breeders, but earlier an announcement about the demonstrations

had been made over the loudspeaker system. Clearly, Mr Todhunter said afterwards that this innovation had to grow with experience and practice. An important requirement, he said, would be more publicity so that people would get to know about it Mr D. M. MacDonald, of Anui, Dannevirke, who did the session on the Romney, had some forthright comments to make. He said that the two enemies of the Romney were internal parasites and man himself. Noting that the breed was under criticism these days, he said that this came from well meaning but misdirected theorists and from commercial farmers who were not very competent. Of suggestions that sheep should be able to go totally unshepherded, Mr MacDonald asked how it would be possible to keep records right under such circumstances when a sheep with a high mothering instinct borrowed the Offspring of : another. However, he said he was prepared to go the whole way with advocates of unassisted lambing. To those who criticised show sheep for lack of fertility, he pointed to the feat recorded in “The Press” ' that morning of the Royal show champion ewe belonging to Mr C, Burrows, of Culverden, which has had twins and quadruplets in two lambings. j The visiting Poll Dorset . judge from South Austrai lia, Mr A. J. Martin, said . that this was a breed with ; a big potential. There were j 1500 studs in Australia and I 70 in New Zealand and so . long as standards were kept up here he predicted that much more would be heard of the breed in this country ; too. In Australia he noted ’ that a very high percen- ; tage of lambs were bom to 1 this breed of ram. Mr Martin emphasised t that one of the favourable ‘ characteristics of the breed s was it ability to breed at ’ any time of the year in . Australia and consequently t it was used in production s of out-of-season lambs that

would bring $lO or $ll each. To a local breeder who said that they could not get it to breed all the year round here, Mr Martin said that he could not see why it would not do likewise' here. He recalled that the polled breed had sprung from the mating 30 years ago of a Dorset Hom with a Ryeland and with a Corriedale. He emphasised that if people were too particular about polling they would not be able to comSete with the Southdown, ut they had to keep one poll gene in their sheep. A problem with the Down lambs in Australia, he said, was that they tended to be too woolly in the face and to get seed in the wool.

One of the criticisms of sheep he had seen at the show, Mr Martin said, was that quite a few did not walk well. If a sheep tended to walk "narrow” he said it did not have meat on the hind legs.

Mr Todbunter mentioned last week that he had had in mind putting breeds of sheep on trailers and parading them round the ring and then parking the trailers in a handy spot where people could inspect the breeds and at the same time read some information on them.