THE GOOD DAIRY COW

Matamata Record, Volume XIX, Issue 1750, 23 July 1936, Page 6

THE GOOD DAIRY COW

SHOW JUDGE’S ADVICE To Putaruru District Farmers The opinion that at the present it was particularly desirable that farmers should concentrate on the production. of a better type of dairy cow was stated by Mr. A. C. Lovelock, of Matangi, a wellknown Jersey judge, who regarded the Jersey as the ideal breed for the economical production of butterfat. With guaranteed prices and other changes pending, the farmer must try to consolidate his position within the next 12 months, and this required the production of a really good herd. Discussing the points to be studied, Mr. Lovelock stressed the fact that to produce well, the cow must eat well and required a good muzzle. A good broad strong mouth was needed together with good open nostrils, so that the large amount of air necessary could be inhaled to obtain the blood stream required for heavy work. A strong lip was needed and the chin should not recede as was the fault of many cows. When feed was short the animal required a prominent chin to pick it up. A strong j well centred jaw ensured good pow-1 ers of assimilation. The eyes should be Weli apart and prominent. The eye indicated the value of the food eaten and the beast’s temperament. A good kindly eye showed a good temperament, and this was absolutely essential, Mr. Lovelock recommending that herd sires be selected from cows of an even temper. Butterfat backing and constitution alone were »o guarantee of success. When buying cows the mother should first be inspected for temperament. The neck should be nice, long, well set and blanced and clean and straight to the withers. A V neck was too common a fault. In pedigree stock particularly the straight neck to tail line was essential. A thin, well set head above a lengthening throat generally indicated a long seasoned cow. With the backbone just showing over well shaped sholders, and with the* blades properly set, the brisket should not be too low, so that with the chest floor well down and broad the cow would have the desirable V shape from chest up. This gave room for a large heart and lungs. A broad flat chest floor gave a nice bottom line. The ribs should be sweeping and well sprung, but not over sprung. They should not be almost horizontal, for this generally resulted in a round body like a beef type. A large sweep gave the necessary roomy paunch. The hips should be wide with the pin bones as wide as possible. Jerseys were often inclined to be rather pinched at this point. The udder usually followed the j line of what was above, the hips and ! pin bones. A bad shape meant a

heavy back and a small front udder. The tail bones should be one to one and a half inches above the pins. Good rumps ran straight down and had a wide expanse forward, thus providing ample room for the udder. There should be a good “ donkey ” hoof, flat-footed animals being more subject to foot rot. The udder should be well caught up with, a slight bulge on the back sweep and with the teats well centred in each quarter and well apart. A good udder floor was fairly even and not cut up between the teats. A fair indication of the worth of a cow lay in the mammary system. A very tortuous milk vein and a well defined milk well would be found on all good Jerseys and the -older the cows, the more enlarged would be the vein. This was a good sign when the animal was dry. The tail should be strong, not too beefy at the top and sufficiently powerful, gradually tapering to the hairy part like a whip. The length was not essential, but a neat tail might reach to -the hock. I The hams should not be weak at the base but should not be too strong, tapering neatly to black tips. Mr. Lovelock laid heavy stress on the importance of good bones. The hips should be flat, not fat and heavy, while the other bones also should be flat and sharp and lean. Rounded bones usually meant an unwanted roundness everywhere and a shortened-up animal. The cow itself should not be too large. In answer to a question as to whether it was preferable to leave, say, a pint in the cow or dry it out completely, Mr. Lovelock thought it depended upon the animal. When it was first coming in, however, it was not advisable to milk it quite dry as this encouraged milk fever j and allowed chill to affect the' .quarters.