Lifespan of Cattle and Horses 



59 



that is to say the highest productivity is reached between 7 

 and 9 years, depending on the breed and the individual animal, 

 and then it decreases again gradually. This optimal age of 

 productivity is not attained by the average animal. 



Table I 



Average age of living cows of various breeds 



Breed 



Lowland cattle 

 Scottish cows 

 English breeds 



American breeds and Iowa 



Black-pied Schleswig-Holstein 

 Black-pied, East Prussia 

 Black-pied and red-pied 



(Rhineland) 

 Black-pied (Rhineland) 

 Various breeds (North-western 



Germany) 

 Unicoloured red cattle 

 Shorthorn 

 Anglia cattle 

 Red-pied lowland cattle 



(Minsterland) 



Black-pied coloured 

 (Saxony-Anhalt) 



cattle 



Highland cattle 



Swiss brown cattle 

 Spotted cattle (Simmental) 

 Spotted cattle (Bavaria) 

 Brown cattle (Wurtemberg) 



Number Average 



of cows age 



Author examined (y^s.) 



Wright (1933) — 



Smith, Buchanan and — 



Robinson (1932) 



Cannon and Hansen — 



(1940) 



Ripke (1938) 4,000 



Bauer (1940) — 



Mannes (1947) 4,000 



6-4 



(milk- 5-5- 

 fattened) 6 



4-7 



Schieren (1948) 

 Winnigstedt (1949) 



Winnigstedt (1949) 

 Winnigstedt (1949) 

 Ziegenhagen (1951) 

 Rottgermann (1953) 

 1910-1950 controlled 



cows 

 Hartmann (1953) 



Engeler (1947) 

 Stockklausner (1937) 

 Hagel (1939) 

 Piel and Rumbaur 

 (1948) 



Spotted cattle (Upper Bavaria) Martin (1950) 

 Spotted cattle (Northern Wurzel (1952) 



Baden) 



4,000 



1,455 



4,361 



30,000 



3,000 



2,150 

 166 



4 

 2 



81 



81 

 ■4^71 



7-2 

 6-6 



6-7 

 •6-70 



7-4 



8-5 



6-5-7-6 



90 



9-35 



9-23 

 711 



It is easy to see that the average productivity of many cows 

 would be considerably higher if they lived to a greater age. 

 This alarming circumstance has been pointed out repeatedly 

 in recent years. We cannot, however, fully agree with the 



