DAIRY HEIFERS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 73, Issue 424, 15 November 1930, Page 22 (Supplement)

DAIRY HEIFERS

QUESTION OF SELECTION POINTS FOR ATTENTION

In most districts where testing and marking have been established it is an easy matter to select those heifers which, from their breeding, have a propensity to produce heavily. At the same time it is necessary to keep one or two points in mind, which aro not recorded on the test sheet, if one is to purchase or select heifers that will give long years of profitable production, writes “H.B.T. ” in the New Zealand Herald.

First of all constitution is of greater importance than yield, for unless the heifer can stand the strain of the heavy production which is bred into her she will become a total loss. There are, however, points of conformation, which are a fairly accurate guide to this essential. The muzzle should be broad with big nostrils; the mouth should be large and jawbones strong, with plenty of width between them where they join the throat. The face from eyes to nose should not be too long, and at no part should it be pinched and narrow.

The neck of a dairy cow should nor be too heavy, but at the same time it should not be long and weak-looking. The length and formation of the neck is usually a good indication of the build of the animal elsewhere. While a milker should not be heavy in the shoulders, it must have depth of chest and great spring of ribs from the shoulders back to give abundant room for heart and lungs. This development in width and depth should carry on to give great food capacity, or the cow cannot be a consistent heavy producer. Reasons for Conformation

The dairy cow manufactures all her milk and butterfat from her blood, hence this must be in abundant supply. Blood, in turn, is manufactured from food and water, s 0 the cow, to have a full blood supply, must have the capacity for food and water. Great width across the hips is necessary for two reasons. In the first place the cow will be expected to bear a calf every year for a. number of years, and she must have room for the development of this to normal size without its growth interfering with or reducing her food capacity. Also a considerable space between the cow’s legs for a big udder is necessary.

Tn choosing marked heifers from tested cows, it is well to remember that milk and butterfat inheritance is “sex-linked,” that is, the mother transmits her propensity in these directions to her sons, and the sire to his daughters. Therefore, in choosing heifers which are admirable insofar as constitution and conformation are concerned, their production will depend chiefly on the performance of their sire’s dams, and to a much less extent on that of their own mothers. If. on fhp other hand, it is desired to select a pedigree hull calf, his mother s performance at the pail is of greater consec|uence than the production record of his father’s mother. The Escutcheon Theory Tn some districts herd-testing and marking have not been established nr long enough to enable young stock to he procured from among these desirable animals, and the dairy farmer must rely on his judgment to select those which will he the heaviest producers. In these cases a knowledge of what is known as the “Guenon System,” or escutcheon theory, may be of considerable help. Francis Guenon, as a lad of fourteen had to tend his father’s cows, and being fond of animals ho used to clean and scratch his charges. Ho then observed that the hair on the udder and thighs grew in “opposite direction” to the hair on the legs, and he noticed a sort of dandruff which detached itself in considerable quantities from certain spots on the hina parts where the two lots of hair met. He examined other cows for this dandruff, and found that great diversities existed among cows in respect to the shape of the bearded ears which produced the. dandruff. Those shapes suggested a new train of reflection and observation, “which resulted in his becoming convinced that they were signs by which to distinguish cows, and to know the goad and bad qualities of every individual among them.” Description of Escutcheon Guenon’s various classifications of escutcheons is too extensive to include here, but, briefly, can be described as follows: The escutcheon is formed by the upward growing hair on the thighs and udder of a cow. It commences as low down as the hocks on the legs and from the front of the udder, and extends upwards to the vulva, stretching out on the thighs in the form of a heraldic shield. The escutcheon can best be traced by passing the hand over it. when the upward growth of the hair which forms the escutcheon can bo easily distinguished from the descending hair. Guenon classified ten orders of escutcheons, and to each order four grades. In all these orders, the markings on the thigh should be the same, viz. two broad half-shields spreading out well on to the thigh, and the higher un they extend the better will be the cow. The markings on the thigh are the most important, although the markings up the back of the udder are confirmatory of the capabilities of the cow for milking. As a. general rule, it may be taken as correct that the higher up the thigh the shield markings extend the longer will the cow keep up her flow of milk, while the broader the markings are on the thign the larger will bo the yield of milk.