CHANGES IN CATTLE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXIV, Issue 19736, 8 September 1927, Page 5

CHANGES IN CATTLE.

ANCIENT AND MODERN TYPES. INTERESTING COMPARISONS. * IMPROVEMENTS IN PRODUCTION. BT SONDOWNKft. From what original wild stock our various breeds of domesticated cattle originated is hidden in the mists oi antiquity, but, broadly speaking, it ia generally supposed that the larger breeds are of Urns origin, and tho smaller oi Csltio derivation. Whether tho originating breed or breeds were polled or homed u also a debated subject, though man/ authorities contend, with reasonable arguments to back their theory, that the original stock were hornless and depended on their speed for safety. Later the practice of bulis of fighting for their females developed bony and horny growths on the heads, and through a process of the survival oi those best fitted in this direction to secure mates, the horned feature became hereditary. Certain it is that sports, or throwbacks to the polled condition, occur in all the horned breeds and these show a great disposition to perpetuate the polled characteristic in their offspring. This fact in made use of by breeders in various part* of the world and we now have polled purebreds of such breeds as Hercfords, Shorthorns, etc. From its original home the cattle beast has been transported by man to almost every part of the globe, and the worid's cattle stocks are now estimated in round numbers at 500,000,000 head, this total including Asian and African figures on which no great reliance can be placed. « The Ancient Ideal. Virgil's description of a choice heifer for breeding hardly tallies with what we look for to-day, but we must remember that in his day its flesh and its ability to draw or carry loads were its chief recommendation. The ideal cattle of the age, as portrayed in .Roman and Greek sculpture, are much as Virgil described them, and it is both interesting and instructive to follow through the years the process of'evolution through selective breeding, which has produced the highly-productive breeds which we have to-day. An English writer who chronicled his opinions only a hundred years ago in regard to tho Durham (Shorthorn) and Yorkshire breeds as dual-purpose animals, says: "The dairyfaririer is less concerned with high breeding than the grazier; yet he is not by any means indifferent in the matter; for his aim ought to be to obtain a breed no less valuable as milkers than for their disposition to fatten when the milk is dried. These two qualities are not to be attained very easily; yet they may be, and, indeed, have been attained, and especially among the improved Shorthorn breeds, as those of Durham and Yorkshire, or the crossbreds between the old Shropshire and the Holderness. The breeds most valued in the great dairies around the metropolis are mixed between the Yorkshire, the Holderness, and Durham. For quality and quantity of milk they are eminent; they yield, on the average, a gallon of milk per day, and often nine quarts; and when dry, they are, in general, readily fattened for the butcher.' Comparison of Production. . Modern dairyfarming, carried on with such cattle, would hardly prove a profitable business, but we must remember that even in those days there were outstanding dairy beasts which rivalled our own best. It is within only the last few years that the average production of milk and butter-fat has been raised to a high pitch when herds averaging 300 or 4001b. of butter-fat per head, with a corresponding large milk supply, have become common. Mr. Bakewell, about 1720 to 1760, devoted himself to improving the then popular breed of long-horn cattle, and, though- this breed was pre-eminently a beef breed, the success which followed his breeding methods encouraged owners of dairy cattle and dual-purpose cows to follow similar lines. * In Cheshire, some of the lean, angular crossbreds selected and bred solely for milk production produced six gallons of milk per day, but only for a short time, the average yield being two to two and ahalf gallons, each gallon returning a pound of cheese, or three gallons to a pound of butter. Regarding the profit that could be made out of dairying a hundred years ago in England, Mr. Rudge, in his "Agricultural View of Gloucestershire," considers that the profit on a dairy 1 20 good cows, costing £2O each (in all £400), fed "upon ,40 acres of land, would amount to about i £135 per annum. He calculated the cost ; of the dairy utensils as under £24. j The general tendency nowadays is to ! specialise in the breeding of cattle for one specific purpose. Thus in most dairy breeds the only considerations are strength of constitution and ability to produce an abnormal amount of milk or butter-fat. Beef cattle are similarly bred with a comparative neglect of milk production but the qualities of svmmetry, size and early maturity claim tW breeder's whole attention. One or two breeds, notably the milking j Shorthorn, the Red. Poll ar.cl tho Friesian, I are held by their supporters to be true dual-purpose cattle, but though a few individual beasts may warrant this title, in general practice the balance between [ the widely-differincr requirements of the two types is so difficult to keep that- they fail in reaching perfection in either direction. Pioneers in Improvement. The leading spirits in the making of the Shorthorn, which of all breeds most nearly approaches the type of dual-pur-pose beast, were Thomas Bates and the Booths, who rose to fame about the middle of the last century. Mr Bates is generally conceded to have been one of the greatest cattle breeders of his own or any time. At the same time it was Rohert Colling who selected a bull called Hubback, distinguished for his fine finish and mellow-handling quality, which really marked the turning point from tho old to the new type or beef Shorthorn. The work of these and other breedfounders has been ably carried on in Great Britain, the Colonies and America, and to-day a world's record for combined milk and butter-fat production in 12 months is held by the cow Melba 15th of Darbalard, New South Wales, Australia, with 32,5221b. of milk and 16141b. of butterfat. The record of the little Jersey breed for production within the British Empire is held in New Zealand, where Holly Oak Annie has an official test of 10361b. of butter-fat for one season. Such production proves that intelligent breeding is still raising the standard of production far beyond what our forebears dreamed possible. At the same time the improvement of beef-producing cattle has not been neglected, and "baby beef" under two years of age is now produced in Britain and America, killing ont at 8001b. and over per carcase, a weight not frequently attained some years in fattened three and four-year bullocks. All cattle measuring up to the modern standard are most assuredly not improved from the standpoint o{ the animals themselves. Hence, the first thing that Nature undertakes to do for them, when rnswi withdraws his supervision, is to begin restoring, them to their ancient form. Flreedmjr and selection mnst ,be continuous if _tne improvements gained are to be retained and further improved*