174 



BEGINNINGS IN ANIMAL HUSBANDRY 



JUDGING BEEF CATTLE 



The form of the beef animal, as indicated by the score 

 card which follows, should show breadth, depth, and com- 

 pactness. Then if this includes an excellent degree of fat- 

 ness over the body, known as condition, the butcher will 

 obtain from such a carcass the greatest percentage of the 

 most valuable cuts. Some writers on live stock have com- 

 pared the body of fat cattle to a rectangle, when viewed from 

 one side. The body of the animal, excepting the head, neck, 

 and legs, would very well fill a rectangular form. Viewed 



from. either the front or 

 the rear, the body should 

 fill a square. Long ago 

 English writers made 

 use of this illustration of 

 correct beef cattle form, 

 and judges of today 

 very generally approve 

 of the same description. 



Fig. 98. Diagram showing the way the If W6 examine B, body 

 carcass of fat cattle cuts into wholesale . . i j 



pieces, and comparative values. By courtesy that IS described as 

 The Farmer, ,, ... . 



"blocky," it will be 



noticed that those parts containing the highest priced 

 meats are well developed. The part from the hips 

 forward to the last rib comprises the loin. The highest 

 priced meat is found here, and makes up about 17 per 

 cent of the carcass. The section of the back and ribs 

 from the loin up to the sixth rib, known as the rib or 

 prime-of-rib cut, makes up about 9 per cent of the carcass, 

 and is worth two or three cents less a pound than the loin. 

 The rib part of the back at the shoulders makes up about 26 

 per cent of the carcass, and is still cheaper than the prime- 



