BEST DAIRY BREED

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 19, 15 October 1937, Page 43 (Supplement)

BEST DAIRY BREED

Selection a Matter of Opinion « f The question which is the best dairy breed .is often asked, usually by those about to launch out into daifying, or perhaps make a start with pure-bred cattle, states the "Garden and Field." The wisest answer to this query is, "there is no better breed." As long as obe chooses good animals of one of the main recognised breeds he should b'e just as successful as he would be with any other. Most cattlemen have a fancy for one breed, and, although it is generally recognised that certain breeds do better in one 'district than another, with proper attention and care each will do as well. For real hard going, where feed has to be sought, perhaps the hardy Ayrshire may take pride of place, as this breed is noted for keeping its head tO' the ground and eating all and sundry herbage that comes in its path, This Scotch breed is exeeedingly thrifty, and does well under rough conditions. Under ideal pasture conditions the Jersey and Guernsey are capable of producing large quantities of butter fat from smaller quantities of milk, and where irrigated land is used with hugo bulk of fodder the Friesian seems to stand out prominently. From time immemorial the eelebrated niilking Shorthorn has strongly found favour as being the farniers' cow, one that mflks plentifully, and after a useful career as a dairy animal lays on flesh quickly, ready for the butcher in no time, and also realises good market values.

Each and all have their own charac teristics, and, as far as actual butte return during a lactation period i concerned, there is practically no dif ference. There is much more diffiej ence between the yields of cows of th same breed than there is between th average yield of different brocds. Supply of Whole Milk. If the breed chosen is for the pui pose of supplying whole milk to a mai ket, Friesians, Ayrshires and Milkin; Shorthorns would in all probabilit; prove the most suitable, since thes breeds are noted as milk producers. O; the other hand, with the herd produc ing only butter fat for the factory, th butter-fat content of the milk is jus as important as the quautity, providei the natural conditions are suitable. I: these circumstances the Jersey and th Guernsey will be favoured. As regards the age of each breec the famous black and whites can b traced back for 2000 years, and ar perhaps more popular in such countrie as New Zealand, Britain, Argentine Africa, and, of course, Western Europt This breed holds the world 's record fo milk, one cow giving nearly 4000 ga3 lons in 12 months, and another Cani dian Friesian " cow imported to Japa is reported to have yielded 17. gallon in 24 hours. The other breeds hav yielded 2000 gallons in a lactation. The main thing^in choosing a bree is to endeavour to stick to one selecl ed most suitable to the district, an endeavour by the selection of the bes bull on similar blood lines to bree heifers that will be an improvement i production and type over their dami Thus only will a dairyman be able t make good progress, providing he ev« keeps uppermost in his mind the nee for proper feeding of his stock.