OFFICIAL HERD-TESTING OF PUREBRED DAIRY COWS.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume 47, Issue 5, 20 November 1933, Page 278

OFFICIAL HERD-TESTING OF PUREBRED DAIRY COWS.

SUMMARY OF THE 1932-33 SEASON’S WORK.

W. M. Singleton,

Director of the Dairy Division, Wellington.

The present summary, which is for the year ending 30th September, 1933, covers the sixth year of operation of the Government Official Herd Test. The total number of cows tested under this system since its inception has now passed the ten thousand mark, being 10,548. Many of these cows have been tested more than once. The number tested last year was 1,692, a falling off of 106 cows from the 1931-32 total of 1,798. There was, however, a slight increase in number of herds, the 1932-33 figure being 163, as compared with 160 for the preceding twelve months. Average production rose by 19-84 lb. of butterfat, and reached the high level of 309-78 lb. This was in an average milking period of 283 days, and is based on all cows in milk 180 days or more. It must be taken into consideration that the great majority of O.H.T. cows would be run under ordinary dairy-herd conditions, which makes the average yield attained all the more creditable, and at the same time enables a satisfactory comparison with testing results for average dairy factory supply herds.

As already stated, there were fewer cows tested in 1932-33 than the year before, but it will be noticed from Table 1 that there was a slight increase in the number of cows qualifying for inclusion in the table. This merely means that fewer cows were withdrawn before they had been six months on test.

During the year testing was carried out for forty-nine cows other than registered purebreds. The records of these cows are not taken into consideration in the accompanying tables, while 118 registered purebred cows failed to remain on test 180 days, as compared with 86 for 1931-32. The. following particulars will be found useful for purposes of comparison:. New Zealand’s average herd-tested cow for last season, including all cows in milk 100 days or more, yielded 255-57. lb. butterfat in 257 days. The Official Herd Test average on the same basis was 302-92 lb. in 276 days. The Certificate-of-Record 305-day test average was 427-23 lb., and the C.O.R. 365-day test 500-35 lb. For the highest month of the past season there were 158 herds on Official Herd Test out of a total of 221 herds on Certificate-of-Record Test. The number of cows on O.H.T. per herd during that month was 10-2. The rapidly increasing number of C.O.R. and O.H.T. cows, and consequently bulls, with butterfat record backing is placing the prospective buyer and herd-builder in a more favourable position each year from the point of view of selection of foundation stock. We should, however, like to see each breeder who enters cows for C.O.R. test place the whole of his sound and untested cows under O.H.T., and we consider that the full benefit of this convenient, reliable, and comparatively cheap system of testing cannot be obtained until this practice becomes more general. The fact that the individual O.H.T. records are now published along with C.O.R. records by the breeders associations of those breeds participating in the test makes full 'information concerning tested cows conveniently available to those interested.

* One Friesian breeder also testing Jerseys.

Breed. Number of Breeders. Number of Cows. Average Yield for Season. Days. Milk. . Butterfat Season 1931-3. Jersey '.. .. 121 998 284 5.7 o 4-2 3O7-73 Friesian .. 20* ' ' 279 274 7,518-2 262-92 Ayrshire 4 37 260 6,462-3 273-96 Milking Shorthorn II 174 274 6,039-7 243-4I Red Poll 2 18 268 4,926-3 204-57 , Totals .. 158 I , 506 :• . 280 .6,088-4 ’ 289-92 Season 1932-33. Jersey 132 1,087 ' 284 5,988-6 320-44 Friesian ... ' 20 ' 253 280 ■. 8,506-0 301-91 Ayrshire . . 2 . 31 284 5-957'4 ' 233-28 Milking Shorthorn ' 7 ' 125 275 6,623-8 265-39 Red Poll 2 . 29 297 6209-8 251-81 Totals . 163 1,525 283 6,461-9 3O9-78

Table I. —Official Herd-testing in Two Past Seasons on Basis of all Cows on Test for 180 Days or more.

Class. Season Season 1932-33. Number of Average Days. Average Milk. Average Butterfat. Number of Average Days. Average Milk. Average Butterfat. Jersey. 1 lb. lb. lb. lb. ' J ersey. lb. lb. lb. lb. Two-year-old . 403 ' 286 5,126-8 277-24 462 283 5.365-9 290-57 Three-vear-old 1 191 283 6 774• 315-63 . T79 282 5,925-7 318-47 Four-vear-old 130 286 6 7 337’93 161 286 6,479-8 345 Mature - .. ■' 274 282 6 332-76 285 285 760 1 81 355Friesian, and • • . Two-year-old 8.5 280 116-9 217-61 56 281 139-7 252-96 Three-year-old • . . .60 273 6 3 7 270-02 49 281 8400• 297'54 Four-year-old . . 4° 275 8,035-6 281-13 . 47 281 9,293-2 t8 33°' Mature 94 268 8 408 60 •291 101 278 948 6 , 318-03 Ayrshire. under Two-year-old 9 234 649 5• 220-96 18 285 5.439’7 214-54 Three-year-old 2 233 ; 241• 66 6 ■ 288 6,434'0 ■ 257-00 5,522 • 2 241• 66 6 288 6,434'0 257• 00 ' Four-vear-old . .. 11 256 6,754-0 275-49 2 3°5 . 3 239-15 Mature i5 280 6,861-5 - ■ 308• 93 • 5 268 7>o3o-6 269-93 Milking Shorthorn. .' 1 15 280 1 6,861-5 308-93 5 268 7,o3o-6 269-93 Milking Shorthorn. under and Two-year-old 53 275 4• 198-83 34 270 5 205• Three-year-old 34. 268 -753 5. 231-67 21 75 6,431-8 262-16 ■ • • ... 10 273 600•, 267-96 21 '.. 281 5 7 27 ; 68277 ■ 6,953-4 277-16 . ,49 ,. 2 76 7,584-3 297-09 1 68 277 6,953'4 277 ■16 49 276 ! 7,584-3 297-09 Red Poll. ■ F • Red Poll. under and Two-year-old 8 283 4.937’4 199-05 ■■ 9 7 305 ' 5,151-9 210-28 ! 283 4-937'4 I 199'05 1! 9 305 5,151-9 210-28 Three-year-old • • . 6 239 4 196 09 ■ 5 ;. 305 5.589-3 223-40 Four-year-old . 3 274 5.321-7 66 225 ; 299 ■ 1 .7,063-8 293-76 7 299 7,063-8 293'76 Mature . 1 299 ,980-3 5 236-34 1 . 284 7,040-6 279-59

Table 2. - Average Production in Classes and Breeds for all O.H .T. Cows.