S88 



Home Nature-Study Course. 



Cattle of the beef type. 



stout; the neck thick and short and the face short. The Hne of the back is straight 

 and the stomach line parallel with it. Verj' diflferent is the appearance of the 

 milch cow. Her body is oval instead of being approximately square in cross sec- 

 tion. The outline of her back is not straight, but sags in front of the hips which 

 are prominent and bony. The shoulders have little flesh on them, and if looked 

 at from above her body is also wedge shaped widening from shoulders liackward. 

 The stomach line is not parallel with the back bone, but slants downward from 

 shoulders to the udder. The following are the points that indicate a good milch 

 cow : Head wide between the eyes, showing large air passages and indicating 

 strong lungs. Eyes clear, large and placid, indicating good disposition. Mouth 

 large, with a muscular lower jaw showing ability to chew efficiently and rapidljs 

 and the neck should be thin and fine showing veins through the skin. Chest deep 

 and wide, showing plenty of room for heart and lungs. The abdomen .should be 

 large but well supported and increase in size toward the rear. The ribs should 

 be well spread, not meeting the spine like the peak to a roof, and the spine must 

 be prominent revealing to the touch the separate vertebrre. The hips should be 

 much broader than the shoulders. The udder should be large, the four quarters 

 of equal size and it should not be fat. The " milk veins " which carry the blood 

 from the udder should be large and crooked, passing into the abdomen through 

 large openings. The skin of the cow should be soft and pliable and covered with 

 fine, oily hair showing a good digestion and assimilation. .'Vbove all Ihc milch 

 cow should always be hungry, for she is a milk making machine, and the more 

 fuel (food) she can use, the greater her production. 



