DAIRY AND SEED IMPROVEMENT MEETINGS. 247 



BUILDING UP THE DAIRY HERD. 

 By Herbert L. Seekins^ Hartland. 



(Prize Essay) 



Dairy farming depends for its success upon a few funda- 

 mental conditions. The first is the owner or the one who has 

 direct control of the work. He must have a liking for the 

 business, treat the animals, kindly and have good judgment in 

 selection, breeding and care. Second, the herd must be as good 

 as the dairyman can afford to have and must be a breed suited 

 to the work required of them. The third is the markets, which 

 sometimes control the line of dairying and also the location. 

 The most important of these three conditions is the second, 

 the herd, mainly upon which the success of dairying depends. 



There are two methods of forming a dairy herd. One is by 

 purchase and the other is by breeding and these two ways may 

 be combined. The first method, by purchase, is not considered 

 a very successful one. 



By the former method cows are usually bought when mature 

 and at their prime and are judged by the flow of milk they are 

 giving at the time. The cows are then fed heavily and when 

 they get old and the flow of milk decreases they are fattened 

 and sold for beef. Sometimes a few heifers are raised from 

 some of the best cows to keep up the herd. The bull that is 

 used may be any kind of a scrub so long as the cows are 

 freshened. This way of keeping up a herd takes a large capital, 

 the best of judgment in buying and selling, and one runs the 

 risk of bringing disease into the herd. 



The second method, by breeding, takes many years to build 

 up a good herd, but it is considered the safest method and brings 

 about better results. 



A man that is just starting in dairying should not be advised 

 to buy pure bred stock. He should buy the best grade stock 

 he can afford. If he wishes to raise the standard of his herd 



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