276 The Boofc of the Goat. 



an improved system was obtained, more attention was 

 given to milk, and this is now the prevailing feature. The 

 following is the order of precedence under which points 

 are generally considered by judges at the present day : 

 (i) Milking qualities; (2) size and shape; (3) quality and 

 condition; (4) colour and markings. It will be, perhaps/ 

 of advantage if I discuss each of these several qualifica- 

 tions in detail under their respective headings : 



MILKING QUALITIES. It should perhaps be explained 

 that in awarding prizes under inspection the actual 

 amount of milk a goat gives at a " meal " is not taken 

 into account : it is the appearance of the udder in con- 

 junction with the length of time the animal has been in 

 profit since the birth of its last kids. Nor is this all, for 

 the mere appearance of the bag is not sufficient. It has 

 to be handled to see if it is hard and fleshy or soft and 

 pliable, and this very frequently cannot be ascertained 

 until the goat has been -milked. Lookers-on are thus apt 

 to think, when they see the exhibit under inspection being 

 milked out, that the judge is having this done to ascertain 

 the amount yielded and not the state of the udder after 

 the operation. Next to the udder come the teats, and 

 these have to be considered in regard to their size, con- 

 venience of handling, their position in respect to the 

 udder, and their evenness. Some goats have false teats, 

 and these are more or less a defect. When large they come 

 in the way of the milker, and if, as occasionally happens, 

 milk issues from them, it is a great fault, and a really 

 good milker would lose place considerably in consequence. 

 To estimate properly the quality of a goat as a milker 

 the judge should milk her himself, as in some animals the 

 milk flows freely, whilst in others it is hard to obtain, and 

 appears in a thin stream, which makes the process tedious 

 and tiresome. Where the same goat, however, is entered 

 in a milking class this cannot justly be done, or only to a 



