HERD TESTING

Wairarapa Times-Age, 4 August 1938, Page 4

HERD TESTING

(Continued from Page 9.) SIRE, DAM AND PROGENY When choosing a sire for the herd the main feature is good butterfat backing, combined with good constitution and type. It is generally found wise, when one has proved a bull efficient, to replace, as occasion requires, with an animal with a fair percentage of the same blood. Even should a big price be given for a bull, having a pedigree, a yard long, it does not follow that he will leave good butterfat producing stock. If this were so, it would not take long for all farmers to breed herds of high producers. It is not as easy as all that. There is only one way of proving the herd sire, and that is by testing his progeny. In the first year of herd testing, the young stock in the various herds were tested, and by this means the herd sires proven, when it was found that many exceptional bulls had already been “potted.” What a loss to the farming community and today, through thousands of herds not be under test, hundreds of outstanding bulls are still being potted, the loss in this respect alone being enormous. Before purchasing a bull, the wise farmer will inspect the dam and see that she includes all the requirements so necessary in passing on the reproduction of her kind. LOOKS AND PERFORMANCE When breeding and saving calves to replace the animals culled from the herd, through low production, disease and other causes, classify and analyse your herd. The first classification will be butterfat production, and, when considering this important factor inspect the production of the cow’s dam, and, if possible, grand-dam, to judge consistency over a period of years. Next is type and this is in close affinity to production. Yet, in many instances, has the ungainly looking cow; long, rubber-necked, goose-rumped and altogether unlovely looking animal been proved a high-producer of butterfat. There is no hard and fast rule; but farmers should endeavour to breed animals of type combined with production.

So much is heard of ‘show type’ surely there should be one type only, and that ‘dairy type,’ and when animals are shown as dairy type with production and substantial butterfat backing; then these strains will be much sought after by dairymen. In following the production of animals under herd test during the past 15 years, it has been ascertained that what stand for type in producers, are three main factors —sharp withers, deep body and hip-bones well spaced. When breeding, do not overlook, the often, many-featured udder and teats as many faults which often here abounds you will not want to be reproduced. Constitution, incorporating capacity, means greater resistance to disease and goes a long way towards the ability of the cow to stand up to the heavy strain of production.

THE “DUD” COW Some farmers class a “dud” cow as one recording up to lOOlbs fat; others, cows recording up to 2001bs fat, and again others that cull all animals recording up to 2501bs fat. This is, according to their ideas of production or the standard the farmer sets for his herd. Take the cow returning lOOlbs fat on an average of 270 days, and the cow returning 2001bs fat in 270 days.—These cows are milked 540 times in the year and, taking butterfat at Is 4d per lb, return 3d and 6d per cow, per milking respectively. Can the farmer afford to keep on the farm an animal returning 6d per day or afford to milk her at 3d per milking? Your herd average may have stood round about 2501bs of fat for years, and still taking butterfat at Is 4d per lb, a 3001 b fat producer will return £2O a 2501 b producer, £l6 13s 4d. Raise the herd average from 250 to 3001bs fat, and on a herd of 50 cows the income is increased by £166 13s 4d per season. It is found that some cows in herds are milked at even 2d per milking, why give them place when it is so much nicer to everyone concerned to milk cows at from 9d to Is per milking, or Is 6d to 2s per day. A good producer in the flush period is yielding round about the rate of 21bs of milk per hour for each of the 24 hours, so, like your car, keep her filled, otherwise you cannot expect to get far. NEED OF SUPERVISION Dairy requires close supervision of the milking of the herd —the cows are all individualists and should be milked and humoured accordingly. The animals’ udders and teats vary, and, at least the stripping of these cows should be manipulated according to the structure of the udder and peculiarity of the animal. The temperament of the cow must be allowed for —The “nervy” cow, the sulky animal, and the fiery bad-tempered cow —as, when these two latter species are kept in the shed, the best must be done by them —otherwise they should be culled. They are the class of animal that often impedes the milking and cause the shed hands irritation. Herd-testing demonstrates that testing, with systematic culling and breeding, is a very necessary part of dairyfarming, and prevents a farmer expending his labour and time in milking unprofitable cows. It is pleasing to note that for the coming season applications to test are coming in freely, and a successful year seems assured. Dairymen: “On the great clock of time there is but one word —NOW.” OPERATION STATISTICS ■The number of calves marked during the 1937-38 season was as follows:— Greytown Group, 48; Gladstone Group, 23; Featherston Group, 13; Martinborough Group, 31. During the 1937-38 season, 8621 group cows were under test, as compared with 8396 in the previous season, there being a small increase in the number of cows. Own Samples’ Association cows tested this season, 267; 1936-37 season, 124, A summary of the com-

bined figures for all groups in the association shows: —Total number of cows in average 8621; average production per cow, 263.541b5fat; average days 247; average production per day, 1.06. The average production per cow and average number of days in earlier seasons were respectively as follow: — . 1936-37, 282.92, 255; 1935-36, 282.98, 264; 1934-35, 239.84, 254’ 1933-34, 252.93, 249; 1932-33, 237.31, 249’ 1931-32, 230.18, 244; 1930-31, 237.64, 248;

WAIRARAPA ASSOCIATION ANNUAL MEETING PUBLICATION OF RECORDS TO CONTINUE. MR L. R. WILTON RE-ELECTED CHAIRMAN. Mr L. R. Wilton presided over a good attendance of delegates representing Gladstone, Greytown, Martinborough, Featherston and Pahautea, at the annual meeting of the Wairarapa Herd Testing Association, held at Greytown. It was decided to donate two guineas to the Wairarapa Boys’ and Girls’ Agricultural Clubs, the amount to be utilised as prize money for calves from dams in herds tested in the 1937-38 season, and calves from dams under test in the 1938-39 season. The chairman and secretary (Mr A. H. Humphrey) gave a resume of the work done at the annual meeting of the council of the federation. The secretary was instructed to take out a licence for herd testing for the Wairarapa Herd Testing Association. A recommendation was received from the Grey town Association: “That the publication of end-of-season records be discontinued.” After a full and lengthy discussion upon the advantages and disadvantages of publishing these records, which had been published yearly for the past 15 years, Mr Martin moved “That the Association continue to publish the end-of-season records as hitherto.” This was seconded by Mr Fuge. The procedure of testing for mastitis was explained by the secretary and fully discussed by the meeting. It was pointed out that testing for mastitis is optional and not compulsory. The test is to be carried out on the day of taking samples for butterfat by the sampling or testing officer, a shed hand to take the samples for the mastitis test. Mr L. R. Wilton was unanimously re-elected chairman for the ensuing year and Mr J. Watson was reappointed auditor. A hearty vote of thanks was accorded the Press for the splendid assistance it had given the Herd Testing movement. The chairman moved a vote of thanks to his fellow-directors and the secretary for the assistance he had received from them. A vote of thanks was also passed to the Working Mens’ Club for generously granting the use of their room. A hearty vote of thanks was passed to the chairman for his services to the association.

VALUE OF TESTING

OPERATIONS OF PAST YEAR THE CHAIRMAN’S REVIEW Presenting the eleventh annual report of the association, the chairman (Mr L. R. Wilton) said:— Butterfat production is lower by 19.38 lbs per cow than the previous season, this being due mostly to the erratic weather and dairying conditions experienced, and the inclusion this season of “B” class cows under test. Production, however, still stands at a good level. The intelligent, progressive farmer tests his herd because he realises that it is a most necessary adjunct to carry out dairying successfully and enable him to accomplish that at which he aims, a greater quantity of butterfat from the least number of cows, with the natural accompaniment of the greatest possible production of butterfat per acre. Once a dairyman commences testing he will find that there is no limit to what will be disclosed through this helpful method of assisting herd and farm improvement. The extra interest and enthusiasm which is created in the herd is untold and this alone, with the opportunity of following the progress of every individual member of the herd, does in itself spur the owner and shed hands to greater efforts. It is noticeable that many farmers are still “putting off” having their herds tested; surely they must see that years of extra profit are being lost. Remember: “The mill can never grind with the water that has passed.” FIFTEEN YEARS' PROGRESS Looking back over fifteen years to the time when Group Herd Testing was initiated in the Wairarapa, it is interesting to note the wonderful improvement made in butterfat production. In the first year of operation there were two herds which averaged 1341bs butterfat, and in this group of 26 herds, at least half were under a 2001 b butterfat average, and, if one herd reached the 3001bs, fat average mark, this herd soon became known far and wide. What a difference today, when, for instance, in the 1936-37 season, the whole of the Gladstone Group averaged, 3151bs fat in 262 days. Surely this is positive proof that herd-test-ing has assisted in it’s ultimate aim of increased production. Most dairymen aim at least at a 300 fat average for the herd, and even when this 300 average or more;, is reached, testing must be continued if it is to be maintained or increased.