FARMING NOTES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 12, Issue 79, 9 August 1948, Page 3

FARMING NOTES

CALF IDENTIFICATION IS IMPORTANT FACTOR IN HERD IMPROVEMENT : SERVICE OF ASSOCIATION EXPLAINED As co-operation between the farmers and Testing Officer is fundamental in obtaining the benefits of Herd Improvement, it is well for dairymen to be acquainted with the work. The dairy farmers, through the Dairy Board, have m operation a Herd Improvement Plan which covers the eo-ordination of Herd Improvement Associations, the compilation of Sire Survey and Lifetime Merit Register, research by analysis of statistics from farmers and advisory services through Consulting Officers.

The Herd Improvement Association, as its name implies, is not merely an organisation concerned with the testing of cows. It has a vital part to play in the progress of the district, in the same way that an accountant acts for a business. In this regard it is of interest to see that farmers with good results take testing as a matter of course. Figures taken out up to, and including the 46/47 season indicate that farmers testing for one season and then dropping out of testing averaged 2131bs fat in 199 days, whilst farmers testing for 5-9 years continuously averaged 26libs fat in 247 days, and those testing 10 or more years averaged 2921bs fat in 254 days. Superficially this may suggest that anyone can increase his “per cow” returns merely by testing. There is however more to it than that. It is in the application of test returns and use of the services offered by the Association that progress can become effective.

value could be known without delay. A revised book of rules and regulations of Group Herd Testing is now available from Testing Officers. It is in the farmers interest that these are printed and he should know the principles involved and where to find details, regarding pro-, cedure, in case of abnormalities. Similarly there are other publications obtainable on request from the Herd Improvement Association. The Fourth Edition of the Sire Survey and Merit Register contains material useful in determining the source of breeding stock, and the Annual Report of the Herd Recording Department shows the statistical side of dairy cow production in New Zealand along with current research work vitally affecting the industry.

At this time of the year the Association member has the details relevant to breed, identification marks, herd book number and age, recorded on his shed sheets, which are issued by the Dairy Board, enabling the recording of mating and calving to be correlated with the testing of the herd. This enables the Testing Officer to take a record for use on the test sheets which will appear neatly typed for a permanent record of herd production. It is important that pedigree cows should have their Herd Book numbers entered to ensure later recognition of the records for Lifetime Merit Register .or Special Pedigree Group Herd Test (S.P.G.H.T.) During the early part of the season it is the duty of the Testing Officer to tattoo calves submitted. It is, however, the farmer’s responsibility to see that these are done and to receive a sheet indicating the ntimbers allocated to each calf with a record of its Sire end Dam. As identification of calves is so fundamental in herd improvement these Allocation Sheets are gummed into the Test Folder to form a readily accessible and permanent record of the breeding of the herd. It is necessary to complete this sheet by entering the names and test numbers when the heifers calve. All heifers, whether pedigree or grade, are tattooed according Breed Society Regulations or as grades, and are listed on the sheets. A copy of this goes to the Herd Recording Department of the Dairy Board to enable a Sire Survey to be issued as soon as sufficient daughters complete a lactation.

details may not appear of great importance at the time of entry, but several owners have found, to their dismay, that through not giving it their personal attention they have not ensured the complete recording' of Sires and Dams for the calves. Although there are many ways of temporarily identifying calves till the Testing Officer comes around, it is customary, in large herds, for applicaation to be made for official serial numbers which can be tattooed by the owner at birth. These numbers are then checked, and recorded, at the monthly test. By the use of the ear tattoo any animal can later be traced back to the farmer who bred it—wherever he may be in New Zealand. Just as with pedigree stock, the official identification enables the real breeding quality of the parents to be determined,' when the progeny of stock in grade herds is known. It is surprising how many cows in a herd can often be traced back to common female ancestors, and it is from these families that heifer calves ate usuaHy saved. More important, however, is the informa-; tion about the Herd Sire. Only when about ten daughters have milked for a season can the owner. be sure of the quality of his bull. For this reason as many calves as possible should be got by a bull in his first season, and be identified at birth. With the high cost of -well-bred bulls it is important that their real