HERD IMPROVEMENT
POINTS IN PRODUCTION SIRE SURVEY WORK. ADDRESS BY MR NIELSEN. There was a poor attendance of farmers to hear a splendid address given by Mr E. P. Nielsen, consulting officer of the New Zealand Dairy Board in the Farmers’ Rooms, Perry Street, last night. Mr Eric Wilton presided. Fully illustrating his remarks with charts. Mr Nielsen spoke on herd improvement, on food supply as it affected production and the health of the cow. and on sire survey work and genetics. The speaker further emphasised his remarks on genetics with live poultry, stating that the principles on which purebred stock were bred were the same for the various orders of life. Mr Nielsen briefly outlined the herd improvement plan, which has been reported in full in a recent issue of the “Times-Age,” stressing the fact that it covered all phases of the industry and was not a Government but a Dairy Board measure. Under the scheme dairy farmers would be required to furnish the effective average production per cow from August to February, and the exact number of cows milked. “In a herd which is not fed to capacity throughout the season the high producer suffers to a greater extent than the low producer,” stated Mr Nielsen. He pointed out that if a high producer was not fed to its complete requirement its capacity to resist troubles, in particular mastitis, was lowered. On the sire side over 50 per cent of the bulls in the industry were culled before any knowledge had been acquired as to their capacity as breeders, which represented a serious loss to the industry. Mr Nielsen stated that Mr Ward, technical officer to the Dairy Board, had gathered considerable data on the prevalence of mastitis, and considered, after a great deal of research work, that the susceptibility to the disease was inherited. The speaker considered that in a herd below 3001 b fat production the chief fault was in the feeding, while over 3501 b fat production the chief fault was in the feeding, while over 3501 b production the main factor was in the breeding. Mr Nielsen stated that the first two months after a cow came in were the most important from the production point of view, and if there was not sufficient feed to completely fulfil requirements the retarding effect would be fully realised the following season. Mr Nielsen stated that in New Zealand there was a tendency to standardise farm management, but in his opinion it was a case of individual management to suit the individual farm. The speaker concluded his remarks by demonstrating with poultry how he had bred a white bantam from a White Legnorn rooster and a grey bantam hen. “We are very fortunate in being privileged to hear such an interesting address from a practical farmer,” stated Mr Wilton, in moving a hearty vote of thanks to Mr Nielsen.
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Wairarapa Times-Age, 27 July 1940, Page 7
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482HERD IMPROVEMENT Wairarapa Times-Age, 27 July 1940, Page 7
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