REGISTRATION OF MILKING SHORTHORNS.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume VI, Issue 2, 15 February 1913, Page 170

REGISTRATION OF MILKING SHORTHORNS.

E. Clifton.

The capacity of the Shorthorn cow for the milking type is so well known that it may well be asked, Why is there no breeders’ society and its herd-book of these cattle ? The far-reaching effect of the Shorthorn Breeders’ Society of Great Britain is well known, and its herd-book is the pioneer of stock registers. It may be claimed that the New Zealand Society of Breeders of Shorthorns is sufficient; but this society and its herd-book are concerned chiefly in the registration of stock of pure descent: it must also be accepted that this is more in the interests of the grazier than of the dairy-farmer. It must appeal to the lover of the Shorthorn remains in the memory of many of us—that in the earlier days of the colony the Shorthorn cow, big. enough for. a bullock team, was a deep milker; and she may still be. found on station and on farm. Can there not then be formed a society for the encouragement of the breeding and for the registration of such cattle ? In Great Britain itself, in Australia, and in America, the milking Shorthorn breeders’ associations with their herd-books are in being. Our country is not usually a laggard in societies, associations, and unions. Does not this offer a useful field for another society ? There is good warrant for the recognition of the value of the Shorthorn on the dairy farm. In. New Zealand are many herds of cows of great milk - producing capacity that are to all intents and purposes true Shorthorns. They may be de scribed as unregistered. It is the owners of these cattle who should associate their interests and register their stock. This would increase the value of such herds; the. stock would be known. It would also obviate the difficulty, well known to breeders of this type of cattle, when a bull is wanted of knowing where to find it.

A well-known dairy-farmer whose herd is Shorthorn was quite recently asked, “ Where can a bull of a milking family of this breed be purchased ? ” The reply was, “ I do not know; you must do as I have to do : When I replace a bull I take my chance.” Surely this should be altered. A society of breeders of this type of Shorthorns should be formed.

The admission of stock to the register would depend on the production of a. defined quantity of milk, and the conformance of the individual to the Shorthorn type. At present the herd-book of this breed is a valuable guide to the grazier ; there the descent of stock famous in the show-yard can be traced, and the selection of sires and cows for the production of stock for the fattening-paddock can well be made; but there is no guide to the cow or the bull for the dairy farm. It is the utility cow that is in demand, and there are farmers who believe this to be in the stock of the Shorthorn type. It is suggested that the dairy-farmers who may approve of the proposal to form a milking Shorthorn breeders’ society should move in the direction of forming a society on the. lines of the Ayrshire, or Holstein, or Jersey societies. The next large gathering of farmers will be at the winter shows of Dunedin and Manawatu. Possibly some one interested will there propose and arrange to form, a society of breeders of milking Shorthorns. , . In making this, proposal it is not intended to recommend or disparage any breed of dairy stock, still less is it intended to enter upon the topic of dual or special-purpose cows : it is that there are many who prefer to breed the Shorthorn, and registration, under the auspices of a society, would materially assist such dairy-farmers.

International Agricultural Exhibition at Ghent in 1913. The International Agricultural Exhibition which is to be opened at Ghent on the 26th April, 1913, promises to make an unusually strong appeal to every one interested in agriculture and country life generally. A very large undertaking in connection with the Exhibition is to be an “ ideal village.” Erom an English point of view the dairies will probably be the most interesting part of the display. There will be one in each of two farms of the village, and also a co-operative dairy on a larger scale fitted with the very latest machinery and according to the most recent ideas. The farms will also be stocked with animals and machinery, while a series of competitions in shoeing and the repair of farm implements will be held at the blacksmith’s shop of the village. Horse and cattle shows and ploughing-competitions will also be held during the run of the Exhibition. Beside the actual village buildings, a number of halls for the display of agricultural machinery have been built. The Ghent Exhibition as a whole covers, roughly, 250 acres (about 50 acres more than the Brussels Exhibition), and will be the most important one since the Paris Exhibition of 1900. The English pavilion will be practically filled with a machinery exhibit. The twentieth International Congress on Agriculture will be held at the Exhibition from the Bth to the 13th June, under the patronage of the King of Belgium. Journal of the British Board of Agriculture.