1228 Rural School Leaflet 



wavy. The hide of the Galloway is especially prized for robes and fur 

 coats. This is a polled breed, also. 



The cows of the different breeds cannot always be distinguished by 

 color alone. Other characteristics, which have not been mentioned, may 

 need to be considered; but the color will enable one to determine the 

 breed in the great majority of cases. 



VIII. SCORING AND JUDGING DAIRY COWS 



E. S. Savage 



There is a noticeable connection between the form of a dairy cow and 

 her ability to produce milk, and it is a knowledge of this fact that enables 

 a dairyman to select a good producer. Familiarity with the relationships 

 between form and function may be gained by practice in scoring and 

 judging cows. For this purpose a score card, like the one given on the 

 next page, is used. It shows the various parts to be considered, describes 

 their ideal form, and gives a value to each. It will be seen at once, for 

 instance, that the milk-secreting organs -7- udder, teats, and milk veins — 

 are given thirty-six points out of one hundred, more than a third. They 

 are, therefore, more important than the other parts. The chest is given 

 ten points, because on its size and development the general health depends 

 as far as it is controlled by the lung power, the heart, and the circulation 

 of the blood. Thus each part receives a value, and it is important to 

 know which are most essential and when they are well developed and 

 proportioned. A single animal can be scored, deducting from the points 

 allowed for each part as much as the animal seems to fall short of the 

 ideal, and the simi of the points remaining will be the final score. Of 

 course, to do this well requires experience and the scoring of a large 

 number of animals. 



Method of inspection. — The cow should be studied as a whole for her 

 general appearance. She should be viewed first from the front, and 

 her wedge-shaped form from the top of her withers downward noted. 

 This will give an indication of her heart girth and the size and the strength 

 of her lungs. The appearance of the head and the neck and the symmetry 

 of this part of her body compared with the rest should be noted for 

 balance, feminine appearance, spareness, and a general lack of beefiness 

 or heaviness of neck and shoulder 



The cow should be viewed next from the side and the wedge shape 

 as formed by the top and the bottom lines should be noticed. If these 

 lines were extended, they would form the point of the wedge somewhere 

 in front of the cow. A large well-supported abdomen and udder, and 

 a straight back line make a well-defined wedge shape. The cow should 

 be spare in appearance with lack of beefiness along the ribs and the loin. 



