SIZE OF DAIRY COWS.

Shannon News, 27 February 1925, Page 1

SIZE OF DAIRY COWS.

ONLY A MINOR FACTOR. Experience indicates that a cow representing the average stature of her breeds is, in the widest range of conditions, the most profitable. Stature is a factor of relatively small importance, unless it is extremely large or the opposite. In either case, it might then be a factor of decisive importance; that is, a cow either excessively large or small would not be profitable in the hands of most practical dairymen. Comparatively large cows are to be found in all dairy breeds. Some large cows are not proficient producers; neither are all small ones or all intermediates. Many small cows are less and many others are more efficient than large cows of the same or of a different breed. Accepting as his guide an old saying that! "the best goods come in small packages," an owner may select cows of a certain dairy breed for his working herd. He may claim "They are smaller than cows of some other dairy breeds, but they are just as healthy, as prolific, and as hardy, and they are more efficient as producers." Contrary to that conviction, as here expressed, another may prefer large cows to medium-sized and small ones, on the ground that they are hardier, stronger, and have the capacity to eat more feed and, therefore, to make more milk under the conditions that surround most dairy herds. The basis of practical utility in the dairy herd is not size, and it is not breed; it is the individuality and temperament of the cow. The best, animal of the herd or stud or flock is the accepted standard of its breed.