LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

Southland Times, Issue 18816, 8 May 1920, Page 7

LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

More Red Poll Records.

DEHOENING AND MILK PRODUCTION.

BY “HARVESTSR."

Tim''animal "Review of the Frown “Meat Trade,” by Messes Weddel and. Co., Ltd, which bae 'just been issued, deals in its usual exhaustive manner with the meat pdritian of the Empire. - The Review is an acknowledged authority on the meat question, and the opinions contained in' it may be of value in assuring the average reader to form a sensible judgment on the position. This, it must be confessed, might be difficult' if, on the one hand, he I had to accept the recent cabled statement j of the Food Minister, that be was “excellently impnesaed” with the meat position during a recent visit to the London docks, and, on the other, he was to give credence to what one' writer has described as the “terrifying' position” there as a result of the inability of the vessels to unload their cargoes. Possibly the Minister's statement supplies an instance of the j wish being father .to the thought. No matter what may be the reasons—perhaps quite justifiable—that prompted the Imperial Government' to retain control of meat, the fact is that during 1919 meat consumption in the United Kingdom dropped 30 per cent., on. the pre-itar standard. To producers that fact is a*, serious one, and the obvious' cause is emphasised, in the Review as being “the .disability of high prices.” Incidentally, the Government is severely castigated for its “extraordinary pertinacity” in regaining control, and with it the continued high prices. Passing on to the production side of the position, the Review notes that imports of frpzen meat into the United.Kingdom,in 1919 amounted to 528,354 tons. The aggregate weight of meat shipped by the freezing companies in the world was 1,078,000 tons. These

figures represent. an ' increase of 310,689 tons over those of 1913 the final prewar year. . They ratJtcr tend to discount the Food .Minister's recently-express-ed theory' that there was ■ a serious prospective world shortage, particularly when cool stores in the Dominions, are congested, and the weight of British-grown meat is considered about equal to that of 1913. "The figures reveal “a satisfactory growth in the industry," the Review proceeds, “despite all the difficulties of transport under war conditions, and they augur well for supplies when trade is again free .to be developed by private enterprise. ,1a the total weight of 528,354 tons imported into Britain, New Zealand was the second exporting country on the list, the Argentine being firat with 242,128. tana, New Zealand’s contribution being 121,209 tons, and Australia’s 60,044, The total import value was of which this Dominion’s share 'was The value per ton paid to the respective exporting, countries indicates what a good arrangement the Imperial Government made when it contracted for the Dominion’s meat. The United States received £llO per. ton for her contribution of 42,809 tons, the Argentine and Uruguay £95, “other countries £94, and New Zealand £BS per ton. On "the American basis" of payment our 121,209 tons would have given the meat producers of this country another two and a half mihons sterling, less the difference in transport chargee. The Review, summarises critically the food prospects of the Continent, and the various sources of world supply, the potential export surplus in 1920 being put down at 1,250,000 tons. This calculation is based upon the existence of over 100 freezing works operating in the principal countries of production, with a maximum aggregate freezing capacity -of not less titan 10,000 tons daily. Xbe calculation assumes that there are available for the carriage of meat three-fourths of the 600,000 tons of refrigerated apace, with 150,000 tons of additional space in shipping •under construction. The Review, is not optimistic as to the future, until, that is, the demand is augmented by the only means known to traders—a material reduction in prices. Hitherto, the • Government has declined to adopt this, remedy, fearing to face heavy losses on their Australasian purchases. “Every week witnesses an aggravation in “the accumulation of imported stocks, “Everything points to lower prices being “forced upon the Government for their more or less stale Australasian stocks, | “in competition with the fresh goods com“ing from South America.” It concludes with a rather gloomy forecast of the course of 'the market, under the conditions of disposal obtaining. . “The outlook is full of “menace to the producer, . . . and prices “must be reduced in order to bring about “the increased consumption needed to clear “present Government supplies and imports I “on their account.” Fortunately, accor- | ding to recent cables, the Imperial Governi ment has resolved to accept the inevitable, j and “cut its losses’’ by reducing the retail ! price of Australasian mutton. The wholc- : sale maximum price of imported mutton 1 is to remain unaltered, at 9d per lb, and i the retention of this high figure is causimg strong criticism. However, butchers anticipate a greatly increased demand in future, and it is hoped that the concession, j though certainly belated, will avert the | dire results that the experts, with remark- ! able unanimity, prophesied as inevitable J from the stubborn policy hitherto .pursued :by the Food Ministry. There were six j months’ supply of meat in store and afloat j at the end of the year, and it is to be j hoped that the Englishman's appetite will 1 prove equal to the task of reducing this quantity to proportions satisfactory to the trade and to the producers. In the meantime, it is a matter for satisfaction that the exigencies of his purse have been considered to an extent, and met. The record price of 1780gs for an Ayrshire bull calf was paid recently at tbe | anneal sale in England of Mr Thos. Harr’s l anious . Monkton herd. Among the Fricsians in the New Zealand Register of Merit there are three cows with records of 9001b of butter-fat or over. These are Messrs North and Son’s Buskeyje Sylvia Poach "(imported from Canada), Westmore Princess Pietertje (bred in New Zealand(, - and Mutual Pearl of Rock (imported from Wisconsin, U.S.A.) The . last named’s latest record gives her third place. Her figures are impressive; at 3 years 187 days she started at testing, producing 15,6771b milk and 533.58 lb but-ter-fat. Next year the figures _ were . 19,568.81b milk, 6504|21b butter-fat; the following year, 19,646.11b milk, and 736,381b butter-fat, and last year (which was commenced at 7 years 11 months) 25,648.21b milk and 903.441b butter-fat. Mutual Pearl of Rock was not tested at six years, but 28141b butter-fat in five years is s wonderful performance. ® When milk fever is detected those cowkeepers who • can quickly obtain the services of a competent veterinary, surgeon are fortunate, and are well advised to do so, but in too many instances the patient has to wait while tbe risk is increasing and the chances of recovery are diminished by the further elimination of the toxin—-what-ever it may be. There are many reasons for the. driay besides the distance from the nearest practitioner. When summoned, he may have started on a long round or gone to perform operations by previous appointment, and cannot be immediately recalled. Hence the importance of being able to give first aid. Most folks now know that the chief means in the cure of milt: fever is the inflation of thtj udder, but how many take the proper precaution ? How few do the job with thoroughness. In the fintt place, (writes “Vet.” in the Farmer and Stockbroker) it .is of much more importance to sterihaß all instruments employed. The milk fever syringe put away after a perfunctory wash, oat is quite

FROZEN MEAT PROSPECTS.

Is dangerous 1 weapon, and' likely to cans garget afterwards, adthough it may haw , stopped milk fever. A trustworthy die infectant, such as I per cent, solution o lysol or chinoeol should be made' and tin syringe Bushed- with it two or three' times giving special attention to the metal pqrtioi to be inserted ’up -the ■ teat .cataaL ; I should be introduced gently. Tftjie udde is quite 'emptied of milk, the dStribbtior of the medicament is not as good as i some is allowed to remain and 'absorb' it milk having a great affinity !or other thin© whether inside or out. Some 1 men relj upon air alone. Others pump in an anti septic, and then "the ; air, which' inuet pas a fairly well sterilised channe before entering the intricate chahels of tin milk glands. Chinosbl is, or yras, a Ger man product,' and other tbdnga''have been used during tbe war 1 period, such aa 1 pa cent, lysol; but, the writer’s', prefereocr is for a rather- 'dihire ’peroxide of hydrogen injection, such as lo*. in a pint oi water, of which a gill is syringed into'each quarter, rather forcibly, and promptly fidlowed 'by pumping 'of air. This" neede vigour and persistanee. The udder should feel like a drum, and the fluid and gases rush out unless the teats , are eompresßect Proper compressors are carried by “vets.” and save ' time, as one can put.-on the pressure on 1 one teat while injecting the next quarter, and so bn round the four. The medicament sent in and the air following should be foitrid into all the numerous channels of. the . gland by just such action 'as a vigorous calf adopts, only "that one does’ it with the hand instead of the bead. Forceful pushes in an upward direction, and a good many of them, ’ will not braise the tissues; because the udder is 1 for tbe time being like an air eoehion, and as resilient 1 as an 1 inflated rubber tyre. These are ti» essential things for one who 'would give first' aid while writing for a veterinary surgeon. He can aifford to wait if he has dime' the job thoroughly. There ace other things often necessary, such as ensuring the action of the bowel* by mechanically nnloadingthe rectum, and, if the cow is sensible, giving a laxative draught. 'ln this connection it abeold be remembeeed'that many a cow haa been killed by getting inaolubte into tbe lungs—the medicine going the “wrong way.” No draught ahoakl be given that contains any. ground roots, dr seeds, bat only soluble salines, which,- if goes wrong, will not cane® any serious damage. A couple of ounces ofbicarbonate of potash and half an ounce,. of tinctureof. nux vomica, wHh!a,pound of saS«, is saiteble. Men .unaccustomed to drench ' cattle .should be impressed with the risk*, attendant on a crooked neck.The. animal’s bead should be .held straight .. out when giving medkane. It is so much: easier to . bold a bullock firmly if yon, get its bead, on bfie sido that every one naturally adopts it, but the. beast is much more liable to get the medicine the

wrong way... - -.... : The popularity of the practice' of ' dehorning milk cows grew fdowly, principally' because the element that knew little about the business condemned it as cruel, and secondly because the benefits from a milk production viewpoint were very slowly realised. That the dehorning of cows will improve the yields has been rather strikingly proved at the Kansu; .Agricultural College. In comparing the averages amount' of milk from the cows for the five daysvbefore -iocl that. produccdv-titiring the five-days following de-horning. it was found in a recent College test that the loss of milk incidental to de-horning was only one-half a pound a day for each day. Ten days after dc-horning the cows had all regained the one-halt,-pound, and all except two were giving more than they gave previous to dc-horning. The gain in milk was with the cows that had been booked and crowded away from the feed rock by the “boss” cows in -the herd.- The only instance v if is advisable not to dehorn is with high-class animals that are to be used for show purposes, or in the ease of certain breeds, like the Ayrshire*, whose uniform and well shaped horns, are characteristic of the breed -and add to the attractiveness.of the appearance of the animal. While there will be butting by the domineering cows in a hornless herd, serious injury to the animals does not occur as in the case of goring with horns. Some advocate—that - a ..polled., nr de-horned _cow can do almost; if not as much, damage in a herd by butting an can a horned animal in goring, but experience has not shown this to be true. There is usually no more force exerted by- a cow in goring. than there is in butting, but the difference in effect lies in the fact that .all the force is applied at a small point. The production of hornless animals by killing the horn button in young calves by the use of caustic is advocated widely in America, Experience with the use of caustic is that if done right it is an excellent way of preventing the development of horns. On the other band, if improperly done it results in simply stunting the growth of the horns. The caustic must be applied to the horn-button before' the calf is a week old, preferably when three or four days old, if it is to be effective. -The hair should first be cut away from around the base of the horn, and the. button robbed with a piece of-rough material like a piece of burlap, corn cob, or similar article, until the blood shows red through ■ the skin. It is not necessary, or best, to

rub until the blood creaks: through the skin. The button 7 should- then be moist ened and rubbed with the , caustic. The rubbing with the ■ caustic should be vigorous, and for about a half, a. minute.. Care must be taken not to fallow, the dissolving caustic to run down on the skin' as it will bum the skin severely. The - piece of caustic should be wrapped/with paper to prevent burning the hands in applying it. The striking progress the Red Poll cattle breed has met with even is illustrated in several ways/ but most surprising of all is theunexpected . demand Jbr bulls by buyers from, the colonics, and South America, .for which parte, of the world several from noted herds axe about to be exported. Nowhere Ls therc. keener trade for the dual purpose_Red Poll than in Australia, where .pew herds are.bevpg established. The action of Australians in selecting stock from reputed milking gtrains, although the breeding of beef-making-stock is their principal aim is a'proof of their estimate of the dual purpose qualities of .the. Red Poll One of thU type of bull, Easton Laughing Fawn, who is under two years old, .has been sold to Mr H. H. tear, bn' behalf ijf the owner, the Marchioness of Graham, for what is 4 four-figure record price for a .Red Poll bulL This typical, well-grown, ana nicely-made young bull'was purchased by Mr Frank P. Matthews on behalf of the New Zealand and Australian Land Company fpr , export to Australia, where there Js also going to the same purchasers, likewise at .a big figure, another young buU , from the Eastoh Park herd of Lady Graham’s. Her ladyship had the .distinction last July of giving the record price for a Red Poll cow, which , was one of three all of them Red Phils, which were outstanding: at the Dairy., Show at Islington, giving six gallons sad over.on each day of the. milking trials, a performance which, was equalled by «<tply- two other cows of other breeds. Easton Laughing' Pawn was bred by Lady -Graham, was thrire.Bhqwm.last year, and .he .was twice second I ,..and reserve championship at the Norfolk, Show. He is a type of bull who is likely to rebate a highly favourable impression for - the Red Poll breed in Australia. His sire, Ashlyns Fawn,- won, at tax shows, seven firsts and three second- prises. The

I London Daily Show did ranch to further the interests of the Red Poll breed, as after events have shown.. Since then new breedeitt bare been joining in good numbers, until, with recent additions, there are long lines of Red Poll herds extending from Cornwall to Inverness,’ and from Suffolk through Pembroke in South Waifs to, the West of Ireland. Itys the performance of such cows as Minerva, a six-y«sar-old belonging to Sir Merrill B. Burrell, Bart;, one of the breed’s best friends, which is helping to attract new breeders. : This cow, a daughter of Sudbourne Minnie, the only Red Poll which, before 1919, was champion, at the Dairy Show, gained the highest number of points on:inspection,.in the mflk trials and in the batter [teste. . She was, therefore, truly typical, In . the twelve weeks following the Daily Show, Minerva, milking continuously at six galhma a day, with well over a daily average of . 4 pe? cept.'. in butter-fat, has given [.four times. her own ‘ weight in milk. ■'»,./ 'i V ' An interesting study of .prepotency in Jersey sires hasbeen, completed in the United States by'the Maine Experiment Station. Two hundred and' twejrfcy-four Register of Merit bu|ls supplip-’ data for the .determination ofthe trapstnittipg abiKty of Jexney tires foremilk production. The work covers | sun anriyrisof. several thousand records and I constitutes .the. first ." comprehensive meas- | dree pf the breeding qnalitißs of the I many’ blood' lines''of the breed. Out of the 224 tires' whose breeding: capabilities were ceueulsred, 11%, or lere tibtin fißy per cent, bred daughters winch produced more milk than their' darns. ' Among 225 sires there wereonlyTOl whichamreascd the butter-fat percentages of their' daughters* mdk over that of their dams, and only 90 out of 224 sired • heifers' which ' produced more pounds of fat’ than Uaeir dama. In this list of sires wriri ; ls!J which had sons whose progeny's production ‘is' known. Of’ this number only SO, or’4l per cent., had sons whose daughters produced more heavily than their dams. Trrtuty-eight sires were, found superior in their ability, to transmit milk raid' Butter-fat qualities. There ' were 47 which were clearly inferior,, being shown to be deficient in' dairy qualities by the decreasedl production of, their daughters below that of their dams. The ratio, 28 to 47, shows the great need- for such' studies as this one made by the* University of Maine. From data it appears that, with owaers-ef herds of‘the average quality of those in which the Register of Merit records are made, a ' buyer who' lacks the information which such’ studies discover staads a 1.7 to 1 chance of decreasing his herd through the uae of a new sire. Tbe second report ' by Mr J. C. Brown, vice-principal. Harper Adams Agricultural College,, on the sailing of' milch cows experiment, which was continued at the college during 1919, is' most interesting readDR and shows that considerably more milk can be- obtained "'per cow under the soiling system ‘-than from cows- kept in their usual way. He uniform supply of fodder and the more even life led by the cows, no doubt contributed to this result. Under tbe soiling system the same cow gave higher average yields than they had at any time previously given, in spite of great age in several of the anrinria. Cbws kept on the Goding-eystm> without any grating, and with the .'minimum of exercise, milk well and maintain good ’condition, hold to the bull as . readily as cows kept under the usual conditions, ;• and the calves produced are bead thy and grew well. A succession of fodder crops can be grown on arable land which will maintain-milch cows in perfect health and profit througout the year without the. employment of any grass land whatever. I And under forage. crops practically cleans itself of weeds, and there is good ißuuu to believe that land can be successfully farmed without tbe rotation system, which has been the base principle of British agriculture dace the daws of Lord Coke. The soiling farm system is .financially sound, and can be generally recommended in suitable districts , especially in regions with a high rainfall where cereal growing is risky. The Argentine’s predominating position ■in the freezing industry invests anything relating to that country’s flocks with general interest. Tbe U.S. Consul has provided his Department with figures of the registered breeds, and it is rather striking ‘the extent to which the oldrcstablisfaed- English Breeds occur in the list. Tbe pure tweeds, as ft&stcred in the Argentine Flock Book, are the Lincoln, Argentine merino, Shropshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Down, Romney Marsh, Border Leicester, Duty, and Dorset Horn, although the Rambbuißet and the Southdown are mentioned also in the census ns among the breeds declared pure. The predominating breed is the Lincoln and -its crosses, as shown by the following figures, which are for the whole Republic at the end °f 1914; Lincoln 425,907, Rambouillet 156,976, Shropshire 20,082, Southdown 14,538, Leicester 5304, and other breeds 28,185, 'making a total of 642, 992, excluding young lambs, etc. The total number of sheep in the-whole Republic at the end of 1914 was as follows .—Purebred (including young lambs, etc;) . 713,304, crossbred 33,700,947, native 8,811,201, a total of 43,235,452. Tbe flocks vary in size from 200 up to 158,000 sheep. The prevalence of the Lincoln and Rambouillet (which is practically our merino) leads to the assumption that an effort may be made in the Argentine to cater, by crossing on Corricdale lines, for the fine wool market. At a.meeting of the Cotta Walla branch of the Agricultural Bureau of New South Wales, Mr C. W. Howard said it is impossible to be arbitrary regarding the time to breed, a heifer, as so much depends on the breed, the size of strain*of family, the character of the. feeds and pastures, and c!im ate. Information ’that has been collected from different farms and herds, and experiments that have been conducted in the dominion 'of Canada have demonstrated two things:—-(1) Heifers'well reared by good feeding reach mature weight and production much sooner than if’ less generously

fed while young; (2)/good rearing will result in .a ccrwwei&hLng from 3001b to 5001b more than a poorly reared animal, the increase, in weight-representing greater frame and muscle—in other words, a stronger, more durable machine, of greater capacity for milk production.- If it is found profitable to force the calves to a good size at an early- age by good feeding, then the heifer may be' bred 'at 17 to 20 months old.-■ Where weather and feed conditions warrant slower . growth and maturity heif- i era should not be bred till 24 to 27 months \ bid. Even' then they should be sufficiently i well nourished to reach a good size before breeding. ./The wclLgrown heifer that is bred to calve between 26 and 30 months old should produce well from the.Start, and will reach mature weight and production at 5 or 6 .years of age. The slower-grown heifer' bred to calve first between 30 and 36- months -old -may, if properly handled, reach the same mature weight, and produc : tion _,as. the other cow, but a little later. The poorly-grown. heifer, bred to calve first at under 30 months old, will probably continue to increase in weight and production till 7 years of age, but will never reach the desired size, nor be as profitable as those better handled. The foregoing, ages make allowances for different breeds, the smaller and less hardy , breeds requiring to be bred at; the later ages. Within reasonable limits, the inherited tendency to pro'duction.of milk is a greater factor than the size of the cow. At • the .some time the larger cows, as a rule, produce most milk, and; are undoubtedly capable of manufacturing;, larger amounts of rough forage into milk, and with' increased., profit. Heifers that calve young—uniter 24 months —are undoubtedly led to develop dairy qualities very.'young; but , there-is a strong tendency to greatly reduce the size and constitution, and thus to lessen the-capacity for consumption of'fend and production of milk. Well-grownheifers that calve at the age of 26 to_3o-months, or even somewhat slowgrowing heifers that calve at 30 to 36 months old, will - not acquire the same de-gree-of dairy refinement until a year later than the foregoing class; but even so, will produce more heavily.