286 IOWA DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
Care should be taken to discriminate between oflBcial records and pri- 
vate records of milk and butter production, especially where the latte^ 
are churn tests that test the ability of the buttermaker as much as 
he butter production of the cow. An oflacial record means what it says 
and so do many private records, but there is always an element of 
uncertainty about the latter that detracts from their value. Much more 
attention should be given to years records than to those covering seven 
days. Of course, there are other things to be taken into account in 
buying a young bull, but the records of the ancestors is of first con- 
sideration. 
In buying a bull of any age it should be required that he have a 
good conformation, strong vitality and constitution and good breed char- 
acteristics. In buying a young bull the choice should fall upon one from 
a cow medium to large for the breed. She should be a regular breeder 
and a cow of strong constitution and vitality. She should have a well 
developed, symmetrical udder and teats and a large year's milk and 
butter test, preferably official. While most dairymen favor the selec- 
tion of a young bull as a herd bull, there always is the uncertainty 
about how he will transmit the dairy characteristics. 
A tested bull. There is a more certain but more difficult way; that 
is to get an old tested bull, one who has sired daughters of merit and 
showed himself to be the exceptional animal wanted by every breeder. 
The most skilled breeders are always on the outlook for such an animal 
but many are never discovered and many others only after it is too 
late. Whenever possible it is always advisable to retain an old bull 
until the results of his breeding can be ascertained. Then if not satis- 
factory, the sooner he is gone, the better, but there is always a chance 
of finding a bull like Missouri Rioter 3d, previously mentioned. 
The wonderful prepotency of Stoke Pogis 3d was not recognized un- 
til he had been sold for beef. Hengerveld DeKol, the great Holstein 
that recently died, on the other hand, was retained until it was discov- 
ered he was one of the greatest bulls of the breed and as a result he 
was sold for $1,500.00 at nine years of age for breeding purposes. 
One of the great unnecessary losses among dairymen is the sacrifice 
of the bulls when they are mature and at their best. The average 
dairyman buys a young bull, uses him two years and offers him for sale 
without waiting to learn the quality of his daughters. His neighbor, 
instead of buying the old bull buys a young one and the older one that 
may be worth a fortune to the community is sold for beef while the 
neighbor is experimenting with the young one. 
There is one danger connected with the aged bull that should be un- 
derstood and guarded against. This is the introduction of contagious 
abortion. If I had a valuable herd free from this disease, I would exert 
the greatest precaution about introducing an aged bull. If I was not 
entirely satisfied on this point, I would select the young calf which is 
safe from abortion even if coming from a herd where the disease exists. 
I thank you. 
