THE HERD SIRE

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 80, 30 December 1918, Page 8

THE HERD SIRE

SECURE ONLY THE BEST. . ■ Every successful breeder will be tho first to acknowledge hoiv much of his success has'"been due to the fortunate : purchase of a good sire, and therefore it ;behove3 every breeder who aims at success to spare neither time nor money in liia endeavour to Eecuro tho best sires available When on the look-out for u : stock bull it is quite as well to be more lavish of time than .money, for the latter ,can be much more easily thrown away !than the former in selecting a sire to head a herd of cattle.

; Before setting out to buy a.slock bull, Borne time can .be 1 profitably spent in 1 taking.gopd Ktock of the herd and making a careful examination of those points which, aro not as good as they should bo or are absent altogether, so that the weak i.ipoints in che-females may be corrected - or. strengthened by tho sire, , who should j be; naturally strong in those points in jjvh'ich the females aro weak. A good deal of timo, too, should be devoted to tho study of pedigree, and the eire's breeding should bi> very carefully tfqne into. Somo lines of blood niek well iTvith others and vice versa, and selection .should be made from those lines of breeding, which are the most likely to fit in [with the blood of the female portion of 'ithe'herd and which will not copstituto : a.clean outcross. On the principlo that ' ""like begets like," it is only reasonable ' to assumo that a eire of good shapo and 6u'bstance will beget offspring with the I same characteristics, but it is necessary iogo back'much further than this. His 'breeding must bo good, not necessarily ■fashionable, but tho imircals that figure in : his pedigree must be good for several ■generations back. Especially is this ea- ■ eential in tho choice of a sire for a dairy herd. Not only should his siro bo bred , from deep-milking lines on both sides, ■ hut his dam also, and grandsire ami sranddam .too, and as far-back as possible if reliability as a. milking siro is to bo obtained. Then, again, if re- ■ quired to head a beef herd and to produce 'first-class young bulls and prize-winning: stock, tho more prize-win. .sing blood there 19 in the siro the better. However good an'animal may be, there can never bo any degree, of certainty as to- his capabilities as a sire unless he has the best of breeding at his back, and ' for this reason it is well worth the time epent in visiting the best herds and seeing tho class of stock from which tho sire is bred.

It is the easiesi thing in the world tol attend a big bull sale and give a "cool thousand" or so for a good-looking bull calf which has been suckling on three or four cows, and is as full of new milk as his skin will hold. Selecting a, stock bull on those lines is only a gamble, and that was not the way in which the great breeders of the past made their eolec■tions. ■■ They visited many herds and spent much time in travel and in thought beforo they chose a sire which they deemed good enough to head their herds. They knew the risk of selecting any sire haphazardly, and flvould not dream 'of buying a bull without inspecting his ancestors and seeing from what sort of stock he was sprung. ~ Too much cannot be said in favour of purchasing a really good un<l proved sire ■when such an animal is obtainable. Many very good aged bulls are often offered for sale, proved good sires which have been used in their herds, as long as possible, and these old sires can'geaorally bo obtained very'reasonably, and are a Kuch better and safer investment than an overfed bull calf or untried yearling. It is really much more difficult to select a sire for a dairy than a beef herd, albeit bulls from mild-recorded dams can nsuSlly be relied on to • propagate milking qualities; but that is not all. Cowh may Lave good records, but their udders may Dot be wll-shaped or their teats correctly placed, so that it is always well if possible to takp good stock of the dam of a dairv sire

■ There are many important points to be considered in selecting a .stock bull for whatever purpose he may be required, whether beef or milk. Constitution, character, and conformation are three great points to be Bought for. ; Vigour is most essential. ( Without a sound constitution thero can be no hope of thrift or fertility in the produce. A strong masculine appearance, with a strong head and neck, with n good crest, is another essential point. Weak heads never go with prepotency, "Character" is most essential in a good breeding sko If he has ■'^character ,, or individuality he is aliriost certain to be", impressive. Good ■handling qualities must never be ignored. Feeding capacity is indicated by the hide and coat, and milk by'the softness and pliability of tho skin. Form and symmetry are of the greatest importance, but an otherwise good animal need not be discarded for being a ibit Jiigh at the tail or low fit the rump, ffhere aie many worse faults than tlicsa.

.A good colour is a good finish to a good animal, and a badly marked sire should always be avoided. Perfect ani- , mals are well nigh unobtainable, but if , ;we'cannot secure perfection we can at ■'toy rate try to secure'-as many of tho ' chief, point/?' as possible,' and whatever the breeder's object may bo ho should at •'Kill times.bo endeavouring to-work improvement in his herd, so as to pet it up ■ to the highest possible -standard of excellence and keep it there, and that can only be accomplished through the use • of the best and most carefully-toed sires, ' on the selection of which no timo can be

Vcalled wasted however long may bo j : taken.:. Nor ig any journey too far if the ;, right animal is at th 6 end of it, and .'yrhen a good sire is proved let liim be ; "tised as long as ho is fruitful, for it is |)often difficult enough to find a worthy ; successor.—"Livo Stock Journal."