The weight of the cows is from 1,000 to 1,500 pounds. The skin, where the hair is white, in the ears, around the eyes, and about the udder, is of a characteristic yellow color. The milk and butter is the yellowest of any breed of dairy stock. The heifers do not mature quite so early as the Jersey, coming into milk at 22 to 26 months. AYRSHIRES History: The home of this breed is the county of Ayrshire, in the southwestern part of Scotland. It is a country of moory hills, much woodland, and a climate moist and rather windy, although not severe. The natural pasturage is so distributed that grazing animals must travel long distances in a day to satisfy their hunger. The Ayrshire breed has been developed within the last hundred years into its present well-established type. On the other hand, it was one of the earliest of the present breeds imported into the United States and Canada, and is a special favorite in those sections, perhaps due to its ready adaptation to natural conditions similar to its Scottish home. In the West the breed has only recently become known, but it is growing rapidly in favor. Characteristics: Ayrshires are of medium weight for the dairy type, the cows weighing from 1,000 to 1,400 pounds, the bulls from 1,400 to 1,800 pounds. The prevailing body colors are red, brown, and white, variously proportioned, and but rarely mixed. They are short-legged, fine-boned, and extremely active. Where the pasturage is rugged and broken, and the forage coarse and scanty, it is probable that no other breed will so readily adapt itself to adverse conditions and produce as much milk. The cows are mettlesome, somewhat high-strung, and rapid movers. The udder of the Ayrshire is a remarkable gland, due chiefly to its capacity. After milking, or when the animal is dry, the udder shrinks into a comparatively small bag, utterly deceptive to the untrained observer of its real capacity. At the proper time its folds smooth out and it distends to hold a surprising quantity of milk. BROWN SWISS History: The ancestry of this breed is the Canton Schwyz, Switzerland, where dairying and cheese-making have been carried on for centuries. The breed was introduced into the United States in the '80s, and has become more or less widely distributed, although but a limited number are found in the extreme West. Characteristics: The cows are more plump and compact than the other dairy types, weighing from 1,200 to 1,400 pounds when matured. The bulls run to 2,000 pounds and over, but are not so much heavier than the cows as in other breeds. The distinctive brown of the breed runs through various shades, sometimes being almost mouse color and again a brownish dun. The nose, tongue, hoofs, and switch are quite black. The horns are small. Bulls and cows alike are docile and easily managed. The udder and teats are large, well formed, and white, with milk-veins very prominent. In temperament they are more stolid than the other dairy breeds. Extremely hardy, docile, and of even appearance, they take on flesh readily and give it off slowly even under heavy milking. While their BROWN SWISS College Bravura 2d. In Four Years She Produced 62,274 pounds of Milk and 2,411.7 pounds of Butter-Fat. maximum records have not approached those of the Holstein-Friesian, Ayrshire, and Channel Island cattle, their average production is high and shows considerable uniformity. They are one of the longest-lived breeds; cows frequently continue to breed up to 16 and 17 years old. It should be noted, however, that some authorities regard the Brown Swiss as belonging to the dual-purpose classification. MINOR DAIRY BREEDS There are three minor breeds of dairy cattle, as follows: "DutchBelted" (or "Lakenfeld"), "French-Canadian," and "Kerry” (or “Dexter") cattle. The Dutch-Belted cattle resemble the Holsteins somewhat, but are smaller, give less milk, and are valuable chiefly for their picturesque appearance, being jet black, except a broad white blanket encircling the barrel. CLUB WORK Club members will inquire what dairy breeds are represented in their respective districts and make it a point to visit farms where there are pure-bred cattle. After becoming familiar with the breed characteristics of the pure-bred types, the next step is to learn to distinguish breed characteristics as they reappear in cross-bred and grade animals. If, for example, you are studying a cross-bred-say, a Holstein-Jerseyyou will find in the animal a mixture of the two breed types, yet with sufficient of the characteristics of each breed discoverable to enable you to determine the cross. Likewise with grade cattle, the dominant purebred strain should be readily distinguishable, leaving the minor strains interesting to discover. When the club is out on a stock-judging expedition as described in the next three lessons on "Dual-Purpose and Beef Cattle," the members should try out one another's knowledge of breed characteristics as above, as also the names of the parts of the dairy cow, shown in Fig. 1. Supplementary Reading: Read all of Bulletin No. 2, and pay special attention to subjects of "Milk" and "Feeds and Feeding." Exercises: Perform the first six experiments given in Bulletin No. 2. in any event, and as many of the others as you can. UNION LABEL |