LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

Southland Times, Issue 18617, 15 August 1919, Page 7

LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

The Herd-Testing Movement TWO ASSOCIATIONS FORMED IN SOUTH OTAGO Southlanders Buy More Pedigres Dairy Cattle (BY “PLOUGHMAN.”)

The movement to establish Herd-testing Associations in the South Island has been launched by the Department of Agriculture. Mr A. C. Ross, Dairy Instructor, with headquarters at Dunedin, on July 28 and 29 addressed meetings of dairy farmers at Owaka Valley and Tahatika Valley with the object of giving all information on the subject. As a result, at Owaka a committee was set up to organise an association at once, and at Tahatika it was unanimously decided to form an association and to meet the Owaka committee and endeavour to organise a cow-testing association for the whole of the Owaka district, making Owaka the central testing station. Southland dairymen are here given a good lead, and from discussions we have heard on this subject there is little doubt that a great proportion of dairy farmers in this province are ready for the adoption of this progressive aid to success in their industry. At one of the meetings mentioned, a local dairyman, Mr Dooley, who has been testing his cows for some time, gave valuable information regarding his experience of testing. He also stated that he had gone in for a pedigree bull without a milking record, and found, to his sorrow, that his herd had deteriorated. He was now convinced that every farmer must head his milking herd with a purebred sire showing a milking record on both the sire’s and dam’s side.

fat per cow did not come to 1401b. On his last visit to the district he; could not help noting the number of scrub bulls on the various farms. If these same suppliers continued to breed along these lines they would find their averages go still lower. Where a sire from a certificate of record cow was used the results were:—

The semi-official testing had brought to light quite a number of high producing herds, so that their dairymen could, through inquiries, get in touch with these breeders if they were anxious to secure a purebred sire with milking records. The only sure way to improve the butter-fat production was to select the heifers from the best cows and mate them with a purebred bull with a milking record. When buying a bull they should ask for the production of butterfat of his dam and grand dam, also the production of butter-fat of the dam and grand dam of his sire. By getting a bull whose ancestors’ record of fat was better than their best they were sure to raise the production of their herd. To show the influence of a sire on progeny the following came under the notice of the division. A. cow, the best in the herd, had a record of 2811b butter-fat;, her daughter, by a scrub bull, was the worst, with 1381b fat.

The following interesting points are taken from the address given by Mr Ross: — Rr Ross said there was no more important move that our dairymen could undertake , to-day than the improving of their dairy herds. The basis of the dairy industry was the cow, and upon the individual returns per cow depended the income of the dairy farmer. Considering the very great importance olF* knowing which of their cows were paying and which were not, it was astonishing that so few farmers in the south had adopted the best principle in connection with the improvement of their herds'. Cow-testing was not the cure all, but it enabled the dairyman to act with better judgment. The first cow-test-ing association in New Zealand was established in the North Island in 1909, when 800 cows were tested. The year after several associations were started in the North Island, with two in the South Island, when ’ 4500 cows were under test. Last season there were some 20 associations or more in the North Id and where no fewer than 17,000 cows were tested. The association method of the testing of dairy herds as adopted by the Dairy Division at the inception of this work, was well known. The accuracy of the work accomplished on association lines had been checked in two ways—viz. (a) Against the semi-official testing of such cows as happened to be tested in both methods during the same season; (b) against the factory returns. Evidence from both these sources went to show that the association system of testing individual cows in dairy herds was as accurate as was required for the purpose of the work. Association tests showed that dairymen, as a whole knew far less about their individual cows than they had reason to suppose. Dairymen often bought cows, with unsatisfactory results, and one cow-testing association’s member’s experience was a criterion of many. This member, at the beginning of .the season, purchased for £lO a cow which in 233 days produced only 96113 of butter-fat. Not only has testing evidenced injudicious buying, but it had also evidenced injudicious selling. A dairyman tested a cow once during the season, and, being dissatisfied, with the exceptionally low test, he sold her to a neighbour. During the succeeding season the neighbour had his herd tested on the usual plan, and was gratified to find that his recent purchase produced 3961b of butterfat.

Discussing the working of an association, Mr Ross said the milk for four consecutive milkings was weighed and sampled by the fanner himself at about the same date ever}' month during the whole milking season. The box of bottles with the chart of weights, was then sent to the central station to be tested, and the fat computed for the 30 days on the average of the two days weighed. The results were sent to the dairymen each month, after having had the previous month’s records added to it, so that it could be seen at once how much butter-fat each cow had produced since the date of calving. The cost of the outfit, which included a set of scales, dipper, bottles with brass number, and a box with lock and duplicate key, was about Is per cow for 40 cows. The actual cost of testing and compiling records ran out at about 2s per cow for the season for 2000 cows. It was not a question of would it pay to do it, or time to do it, or numerous other excuses used by the man who was doing well and did not want to be disturbed. Cow-testing enabled the dairyman to get right down to bedrock in herd improvement, and stopped one of the biggest leaks he had at present on the farm.

Convincing argument built upon actual New Zealand experiences given here is very valuable to dairymen at the present juncture. Mr Ross has put together a great deal of valuable information from which the above are some of the chief points. It hardly seems fair to criticise so excellent an address, but Mr Ross has erred in one particular. This was when he made the statement: “The only sure way to improve the butter-fat production was to select the heifers from the best cows and mate them with a purebred bull with a milking record.” The purebred bull should, in the first place, be mated to the best cows, and the heifers from this mating retained to build up the herd with. Mr Ross has given an example of where a heifer out of the best cow in the herd with a record of 2811b of butter-fat, only gave 1381b of butter-fat. It is much easier to retrogress than advance, therefore discard the crossbred bull now and use a milk-re-cord bull on the herd, retaining the heifers from the best cows. Otherwise, if you are only to use the good bull on the heifers, these will be sired by the scrub, and you will be 1501b of fat behind scratch to start.

Quite a number of dairymen took too much notice of the test, and did not consider how much butter fat their cows averaged, and one had only to note the different remarks made at the factories on the mornings the test sheet for the fortnightly period is posted up, A farmer with a high test was often the envy of his neighbours, and to show how erroneous a high test really was a fanner with a test giving 4.3 per cent, of butter-fat for every 1001b of milk was congratulating himself that he was the best at the factory, his butter-fat for the month of November being 281b per cow. Another fanner who was rather envious of the high test, and considered his test of 3.4 on the low side, averaged 431b for the month. The man with the high test valued his cows on the test, rather than on the pounds of butter-fat. The average test of his herd for the season was 4.4 with 1881b of fat. This at Is fid per lb meant £l4 2s per cow. The other man's herd averaged 3.7 with 2511b, representing £lB 16s 6d, a difference of G3lb fat per cow, or a difference of £4 14s 6d per cow for the season. Further preof that dairymen did not know the respective merits of their cows was shown in the experience of the division in asking members of various associations to select their eight best cows, and place them in order of merit before the season’s testing commenced. One man had placed a cow giving 1201b fat ahead of one producing 2401b, a difference of £9, Another man preferred a cow producing 2901b fat to one giving 5071b. The mistakes that were made by almost every dairyman in this connection should satisfy ch|iry farmers that the taking of the weights and regular monthly testings were essential to accurate knowledge of the individuals of the herd. The improvement in the average yield of the herd which had been brought about by culling low producers was manifest from the figures of all the associations. During the second year of testing, 15 herds produced 2GBlb of butter-fat for the average cow, whereas during the first year the same herds averaged only 2091b of butterfat, a difference of 591b of butter-fat per cow for the 15 herds. In herds the division had found a general increased yield per average cow of as much as 761b of fat. Further figures which indicated the same conclusion were as follows:—

The champion Clydesdale stallion, Black Douglas (imp.), has been purchased from Mr Bogg by Mr H. E. B. Watson, of Tai Tapu, Canterbury.

Entries for the first annual Cattle Fair under the auspices of the Southland A. and P. Association close on September 27. The Fair will be held in conjunction with the Horse Parade on Wednesday, October 8. The sale is limited to purebreds of any breed. The minimum bids have been fixed at £lO 10s, for all cattle calved since July 1, 1918, and £ls 15s for those calved prior to that date. Entries must be made through the selling agents.

It will interest New Zealand breeders to know that at the latest Kilmarnock show, the second prize two-year-old colt, Royal Ensign, is out of a Bancor mare. Bancor was imported to New Zealand after seeing some service in Scotland, and for a considerable time he was in the hands of Mr Donald Macdonald, of Edendale, Southland. He left many good breeding mares in the South. The class in which the colt out of the Bancor mare competed in, is thus described. At the top of the two-year-old class was one of the best colts of his age seen for years. This was Mr Thomas Clark’s Rising Star, from Pitlandie, Stanley, Perth. He is by Dunure Footprint, out of a Star o’ Doon mare. Rising Star has already made history in the show yard, having been first at the Royal Northern at Aberdeen when a yearling, and first this year at the Stallion Show at Glasgow. Built upon true carthorse lines, he is going the right way all the lime. Mr Robert Graham, Kaimflat, Kelso, was second with another big massive colt in Royal Ensign, by. Dunure Footprint out of a dam by Bancor. He was third at '.he Stallion Show, and is a great mover. A Dunure-Footprint colt out of a mare by Sir Hugo was third. Telegraphic communication has been received that the sale of the Monavale Friesian herd in the Auckland province on Tuesday was very successful, despite the adverse railway conditions. Several enterprising Southlanders succeeded in purchasing some of the very best in the large catalogue offered. The prices for the heifers under test at the present time which are putting up very good records were easily records for New Zealand cattle of their age at public auction. Monavale Made line Paxton, a three-year-old, which lias made 3421b of butter in 147 days, sold for 415 guineas. Twin heifers, two years old, one of which has made 4441b of fat in 258 days and the other 4591b in 262 days, sold for 350 guineas each. All three go to Australia. Mr W. D. Hunt bought an imported cow called Oakland Jessie Moida, which has left some great producing stock. Mr Hunt also bought this heifer's calf, and three other fine heifers, Monavale Freda de Kol, Monavale Queen Mimosa and a calf; Mr C. E. Robertson secured the champion cow, Longbeach 7th. which has a record of 5661b of fat in 299 days, ami also a two-year-old heifer, Monavale Aurora Pietertje, bred from imported stock, Mr R. King, of Dipton, secured a two-year-old heifer, which was not named in the advice forwarded.

The average in association (A) for the first year gave 1951b of fat, and for the second year 2551b of fat. In association (B) the average cow for the first year produced 2051b of butter-fat and in the second year 2431b of butterfat. In association (Cl the average cow produced 2091b of fat for the first year as against 2571b for the second.

Those figures gave ample evidence of the efficiency of culling cows which the association indicated as inferior. To show what it meant in money to a district one of these three associations increased the production of its average cow from 218.771b fat the first season to 241.561b fat for the following season, equal to 22.791b fat per cow. The factory supporting this association handled at the height of the season the milk from some 6786 cows. The increased yield of the 583 association cows at 22.791b fat per cow amounted to 13,286.57!b fat, worth, at Is 6d per lb, £996 9s 9d. Had this same increase obtained throughout all the herds supplying this factory it would have meant in money £11,598 19s Cd. This amount would make a pretty handsome bonus for a factory to pay out to its suppliers. From the figures given him that week of a certain factory in the district, said the speaker, showing the amount of produce manufactured from the number of cows supplying it, the average pounds of buttcr-

There is a revival in Clydesdale breeding apparent, and increased activity amongst the breed is anticipated this season. The sale by Mr H. E. B. Watson, of Tai Tapu, Canterbury, of the two-year-old colt Elegance is reported. The purchasers are Messrs Mitchell and O’Brien, who have shipped this and a Bonnie Dunkeld colt, also bought from Mr Watson, to Australia. Elegance is undoubtedly a fine colt, and in getting him the buyers had to pay what is a New Zealand record for a two-year-old. He had an unbeaten record as a yearling, winning at Leeston, Christchurch and Dunedin. This season he was champion at Leeston and at Ashburton, where Mr Wat-

son had the unique distinction of winning both championships with mother and son. Owing to the influenza epidemic he was not brought out at Christchurch in the spring. It will be interesting to see what value Australian breeders will place on the colts bred by Mr Watson,, as they will probably be offered at the Melbourne sales by the shippers.

The Dam. The Daughter. Days Fat. Days. Fat. 231 215.79 273 326.34 207 287.40 238 330.50 241 241.68 247 297.53