THE STUDY OF THE BREEDS 3 



The distinctive characters of each breed are the result 

 of definite factors operating during the formative period 

 of the breed. The chief of these are the origin, which 

 determines their hereditary bent; the environment, in- 

 cluding the location, topography, nature of the soil and 

 vegetation; and the ideals to which the breeders have 

 selected, governed, of course, by the type of farming or 

 industry in which they are engaged. Any one exclu- 

 sively, two or all may be chiefly responsible for the types 

 that prevail in the different breeds. 



The study of the breeds is most comprehensively con- 

 ducted, therefore, under the following headings: Intro- 

 ductory statement; history, both ancient fcnd modern, 

 the latter dealing with the breeds in this country especially , 

 in the case of foreign breeds ; a description of the typical 

 representative ; the uses to which his breed characteristics 

 best adapt him; his distribution throughout the world 

 as the result of his adaptability and usefulness; the or- 

 ganizations which promote the interests of the breed and 

 record the pedigrees; and finally, the best sources of 

 additional information concerning each breed. 



Breeds of live-stock, unlike many of the poultry breeds, 

 for instance, have been builded on a utility basis and 

 they can, therefore, be grouped according to the types 

 to which their representatives conform. Types, it should 

 be understood, are market or producer's creations, dif- 

 ferentiated on the principle that a distinct form is corre- 

 lated with a definite function. 



All members of a group possess the type characters 

 in common, while the features by which the members of 

 the type group may be distinguished constitute the breed 

 characters. 



