AROUND THE DOMINION

Shannon News, 18 December 1928, Page 4

AROUND THE DOMINION

Notes of Interest I Clover in Pastures. Last season’s top-dressing experiments throughout Otago were of great interest, and one of the features of the use of phosphatic manures ivas the marked preponderance of clover that made its appearance in the pastures. Sc great was the proportion that it indicated a badly-balanced pasture in many eases. It is considered that the grasses can be forced to come away on these grasslands by the use of nitrogen, and to prove it the department, in conjunction with Nitram’s, Ltd., of England, is arranging for an. extensive scries of experiments with nitrogenous fertilisers. This work should prove invaluable to all graziers. Wool Demand. .. New Zealand superfine half bred wools are in keen demand in Scotland, according to Mr C. H. Itoberts, formerly of Dunedin, who has returned to New Zealand on holiday, after an absence of 26 years. , Mr Itoberts is now interested 4n a woollen manufacture business, in , Scotland. Scottish "woollen manufactures frequently contained a larger per cent of New Zealand ; than of Scottish fleece, Mr Roberts said, the Scottish manufacturer being convinced that New Zealand wool could not be elsewhere equalled for general purposes. Slaughter of Lambs.

Freezing works in Canterbury will commence slaughtering lambs for export to-day. A schedule of prices offered by one company offer for prime first quality to 361 b., dropping to 9Jd for 43-501 b and second quality stuff. It is doubtful whether killing will commence in Otago works before the New Year,. There may be a little stock slaughtered during the week, before Christmas, but it is not considered advisable or in the interests of the growers or the works to make a start before Christmas, and be handling too many seconds. The general opinion is that the stock will not be ready before, the New Year. The South Canterbury Works will be opened on the 10th of this month, and it is possible that inroads will be made on Otago supplies. If this proves to bo the case the local , works may find it expedient to open a little earlier. .Whether southern schedules will be as attractive as those offered in Canterbury for lambs for early shipment remain's to be seen. No information is available on the subject at present.

Cow-pox. A troublesome and somewhat irritating affection of the teats and udder of the cow is, described under the name of cow-pox. From time to time one oc more cows in a herd suffer from this complaint. The infection is easily carried from one cow to another by the hands of * the . milker or by the cups of the milking machine unless special care

‘ is taken to detect the first appearance of symptoms and take the necessary precautions. In the early stages there is noticed a tenderness of the teats when milking is being carried out. The teats are redder in colour and hotter to the feel than usual, and in a few days one or more blisters form, and with the constant handling at milking time thus formed .are difficult to heal. The blisters rupture and are later covered with a thick crust or scab -which comes away during the milking. Similar blisters may appear on the udder itself. When the first member of the herd shows any of the above symptoms precautions should be taken. The affected * animal should not be milked until the rest of the herd has been dealt with. An affected animal should be milked as carefully as possible by hand, using some emollient as vaseline. After milking

an application of boracic ointment should be liberally applied. The hands should be carefully w r ashed in some an-

tiseptic solution and every care taken to prevent the infection being spread by the hands to the other cows. A good deal ; of patience is required m milking an affected cow’ and also in treating the animal to effect a cure. An attempt should be made to treat the cases early, as there is a danger of mammitis being set up. Care and attention given to the first member of a herd showing symptoms may prevent the spread of the trouble to any of the other cows in the herd.

Leg-louse of Sheep. A species of louse on sheep w-hich is not frequently seen, and on account of this is not recognised by sheep owners, is one affecting the hairy portion o? the leg and known under the technical name of Ilaematopinus pcdalis. The parasite infests both the fore and hind limbs, but more frequently is seen on the hind limbs. The parasite is a blood-sucker and lays a large number of eggs which remain attached to the hair, giving the affected part a distinct brown appearance. The parasite first made its appearance so far as is known in 'the Banks Peninsula district. Since tlen it has appeared in various parts of the North Island, as well as the Nelson district. In a case which came Under notice recently the wool of a ram’s scrotum was found to be densely infected, while the scrotum itself was considerably enlarged and hardened. The. parasite can be readily detected at shearing or crutching time. Ordinary dipping methods are effectual in dealing with the vermin,, and as clean sheep iriay become infected by contact With affected animals immediate precautions should be taken to

safeguard the flock directly its presence has been detected.

Wool Growing in Poland,

Importations of raw wool into Poland are necessary yearly to an average worth of 20,000,000 dollars. Wool growing in Polafid still continues to decline. In. 1900 statistics show sheep stocks at 18,000,000, but to-day Poland possesses only about 2,000,000 shCep, and to supply the home industry alone at least 9,000,000 * would be necessary. The fanners’ reluctance to sheep rearing emanates chiefly from the uncertainty of demands at the sales. For this reason it is intended that regular wool sales will be held in future at Thorn, Warsaw, and Vilna, and the first of such sales, in conjunction with the sale of foreign wools was held in Thorn in October.

Meat Losses. The* accounts of tho Smithfield and Argentine Meat Company for 1927 show how severely and how seriously the Argentine meat war affected the companies operating in that country and Uruguay. Following the loss of £137,892, for 1926, the Smithfield and Argentine Meat Company has to report a loss of £112,738 for 1927. The result is that a credit balance of £93,603 brought in is converted into a deficit of £19,136. In their report the directors state that the companies engSgcd in the Argentine meat trade settled their differences in November, 1927, and the tradinng results reflect the lung drawn-out fight. For the first half of this year, with normal trade, the company has earned a profit, but the directors decided not to disburse any part of it in dividends. The meat war, while it lasted, seriously affected New Zealand and Australia, but the outlook now is for normal trade with the usual seasonal, price fluctuations.

Care of the Flock. In the care and management of the sheep flock; where the owner’s aim is to get as many as possible of his lambs drafted off the mother, the frequent change of pasture to maintain the milk supply of the mother is desirable (says a bulletin isguetl by the Animal Husbandry. Department of Agriculture). If there are any influences at work to check the milk supply such check will be reflected in the lambs. A setback in the early life of the lamb as with any young growing animal, is, very difficult to regain.

It is well-known that a young animal will show a greater increase in weight per day for the same amount of food consumed than an older animal, other factors being equal. As the trend in animal husbandly is in the direction of early maturity and increased, production the object of producinng fat lambs off the mother is certainly the most economical froip. the farmer’s point of view. In the spring and early summer, with an abundance of succulent food, and a careful management of tho pjistures, a large percentage of our fat lambs .for export thus reach the works. The greater the percentage of fat lambs the better the return to the farmer. The saving in feed alone, when the first draft goes away, is a big factor, especially as the season advances and growth decreases or the herbage loses its succulence and high producing qualities. The quicker return, with a minimum period of keep means a saving in feed for the remainder of the flock. It must be borne in mind always that, grass of short growth is richer in mineral contents than when it has grown longer, hence pasture management from this standpoint is important. Those lambs in the flock which have to be kept over and fattened on supplementary forage crops, or kept as stores, although not so profitable, are still worth attention in that a setback at this stage may mean losses later on from infestation with worms. The danger of internal parasites taking toll of some of the flock is greatly increased if the constitution or health of its members suffers through a shortage of feed. The danger from internal parasites is more pronounced in the late autumn and early winter and more common if this season of the year is rainy, -or if the animals are on land which is low' lying ami badly drained .

North island Lambing! Prom information furnished by inspectors of stock in the various districts, the average lambing for the current season in the North Island is estimated by the Government Statistician at 84.61 per cent., compared wfith 87.28 per cent last year. With 8,211,578 breeding ewes in the North Island, as shown in the 1928 sheep returns, the number of lambs this season is 'estimated at 6,984,380. The South Island returns are not ye-t available.

In 1927 the number of breeding ewes in the North Island was 7,905,432, and the average percentage of 87.28 produced an estimated lamb crop of 6,889861. In the South Island in 1927 ewes numbered 6,926,298, the estimated percentage was 86.17, and the estimated number of lambs 5,968,979.

Seedy Wool. Sometimes the whole clip is seedy, and if there is only one breed of sheep on the place two classes should bo made, one containing the fleeces which are slightly seedy and the other those which are carrying the most seed. The former should be entered in the wool book as "Slightly seedy” and the latter “Very seedy.” On no consideration should seedy wool be packed with clean wool. All lots must be kept separate if full value is to be received for clean lines. “Seedy fleece,” “Seedy pieces,” “Seedy bel-ly-wool,” “Seedy locks,” “Seedy

stained pieces, ’ ’ respectively is the best way to mark each line which is carrying seed. Enter it thus in the wool book, then there is no chance of it being put up for sale with the clean wool and interfering with the priced the latter will realise. Shy Breeders. Dairy farmers are substantial losers through well-bred heifers failing to hold, and there is no ' well-recognised rule to follow to overcome or even minimise the trouble. However, sonic success in other countries appears to have been achieved by feeding sprouted oats to the culprits. A recent, report from Hawaii supports conclusions arrived at elsewhere in this direction. The Hawaii experiment covered both cows and sows. The oats were fed to animals that had previously failed to show oestrum or had been bred but failed to conceive. Over half the animals treated seemed to have been definitely helped ? by the oats. The theory is that sprouted oats are ricb in Vitamin E, which has to do with reproduction. Cows were fed two pounds and sows one pound of sprouted oats daily, based on dry weight.

Horns and Hides. A deputation of Christchurch butchers recently waited upon the Miifister of Agriculture requesting legislation to compel the dehorning of beef cattle. Some time afterwards a reply was received by the deputation that there was not time last session for the Minister to introduce the desired legislation. As the Minister was among tho political casualties at the recent elections someone else will have to be persuaded of the necessity of this reform. There are no figures in the Dominion as to the damage as a result of the laxity in dehorning, but in the United States the loss in damage to hides alone is set down at the enormous figure of £4,000,000 annually. What is lost in the condition of travelling cattle , can only be estimated. It is interesting as showing what can be done by breeding that there are herds of Ayrshires in the States that secnv to have the polled or hornless characteristic firmly established. Is there not some significance in the fact that horns, Which cause much of that £4,000,000 loss in hides, have been successfully bred off in certain strains of Ayrshires—the breed with the most deadly horns of any of our common breeds of stock. It the best breeders of the country devoted all their, efforts to the task it would take generations probably to breed out the horn producing character from all of our domestic cattle, but so far few ,if any, individuals have made any attempt. In the meantime, however, much loss and suffering might be avoided among our herds and particularly among the market stock, if there was widespread use of the dehorning clippers and of caustic on the horn buttons of the calves. A decent hide to-day in New Zealand is worth about £3—surely worth while lookiilg afrer.