FRIESIAN BREEDERS.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 7 November 1924, Page 6

FRIESIAN BREEDERS.

MEETING OF NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION. A general meeting of the Friesian Breeders’ Association was held on Wednesday night in the breeders’ Club, the Dominion president, Mr. W. D. Hunt, of Wellington, presiding. The chairman said that the testing charge of ten guineas made by the Government in respect to the first cow of a herd put under test had caused the society some perturbation, as it was likely to prevent new breeders from taking advantage of the Government testing machinery. It had been decided that, in order to ease the position, the association pay five of the ten guineas’’ charged. Since that decision was made the total first charge of the Government had been reduced to eight guineas, so that the breeder now had actually to pay . only three guineas for the first cow. The speaker stressed the value of herd-testing, and said that he would like to see the first cow of a herd go through free of charge. That, he thought, would encourage men. to breed under test. Turning- his attention to the position of the association, Mr. Hunt said that at the council meeting held the previous day they had elected 52 new members and had accepted for registration 25 new herd names.

The president then proceeded to deal with what had been done in connection with the rules and herd hooks. Incidentally he mentioned that he had nevjer seen the country looking better than at the present time. Air. E. C\ Banks (Matamata) brought up the question of what recognition they were to give herd-testing. He thought that in advertising cows they could more fully stress their records under a herd-testing association or associations. In other words he thought the testing undfer an association all right for grade cows, but hardly'■sufficient for pedigree stock.

Air. AT. 0. Kidd (Matangi) said that, although he himself wa_s a director of a herd-testing association; he had to admit, for obvious reasons, that the association’s tests could not be quite so reliable as a semi-official test. 'J lie president then moved, and it was carried: “That, while herd-testing 'S a most valuable aid to improving dairy cattle, certificate/! records issued under the present semi-official test adopted by the Department of Agriculture are the only records that should be recognised hv breed societies.” Mr. Banks urged the necessity for all dairymen ioinino- herd-testing associations find moved r tlie fissocintion advises all its members to join herd-testing associations in. order to prove the production of the purebred cow under herd conditions.” The motion was carried.