THE DAIRY COW.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXV, Issue 3372, 1 October 1931, Page 2

THE DAIRY COW.

POINTS IN SELECTION. Points to be taken into consideration in the selection of a dairy cow were-' recently explained by Mr. S. Dale, of Fairlie, South Canterbury. To judge a cow correctly, he said, one must look at her from a distance of about 20ft or 30ft. The idea was a fairly large cow with an alert look, type, good top and under lines, good udder, carriage ( and style, without any sign of weaving when walking as seen from behind.

In examining the cow more closely, five essential points were to be sought in the high producer, constitution, capacity, productive ability, dairy temperament and blood circulation. Indications of all these points were to be found in the head, more or less.

A high producing cow required a good muzzle, strong thick lips, wide distended nostrils, good strong jaws, a good under jaw without any sign of hog or parrot mouth, large prominent and placid eyes, long prominent and placid eyes, long prominent face from the eye to the nose, wide and forehead, rather high and narrow poll, horns nicely set in and not too wide at the back, but with incurving downward tendency, ears not too large but well set on and covered inside and out with fine silky hair; the skin should be of a deep orange colour.

The head should be well set on a long thin neck, which, in turn, should be nicely set on the shoulders. A large gullet and windpipe were desirable. The shoulders should slope backwards and outwards, giving a wedge-shaped appearance, with the vertebrae showing high between. The chest should be wide and deep, thick through at the points and full at the elbow. The fore ribs should be nicely sprung and well filled at the back of the shoulder, giving plenty of room for hearts and lungs. The barrel should be wide and deep, with ribs well rounded, broad and flat, with wide spaces between. The back should be long from the withers to the hip bones, and bare of flesh. .Each section of the vertebrae should be felt when passing the hand along. The hips should be broad and level, well covered but free from fleshiness. The rump should be long and level, the thurls thick through and set high. The pin bones should be high, wide and level with the hip bones, while the tail should be long, free from flesh, thin and whip-like, nicely set on but not too high between the pin-bones, dropping straight down between the hocks, and ending in a good switch. The escutcheon was the "milk mirror," and should be wide, distinctly marked, and free from breaks. The udder should be carried well forward, with a flat floor free from quartering, hung high and well out behind. The teats should be evenly placed, of fair size, and easily milked. The skin should be of fine texture, covered with fine, silky hair, and well veined. When milked out, the udder should

hang in folds, and be soft and pliable to the touch. The mammary system should be shown by large veins, which should be long, large and tortuous, extending well forward along the belly, entering large and numerous orifices known as the milk wells.

However, after going over all these points, the only true means of gauging the cow's production was in testing. It was the duty of every farmer and dairy breeder to test his cows. It was absolutely necessary to increase production, and the only sure means of doing this was by selection and testing.