28 FEEDING FARM ANIMALS 



In this respect, type and form are not always in abso- 

 lute agreement, though they ought to be. The standard 

 type is that set up by the association guarding the in- 

 terests of the breed, while the standard form is, or ought 

 to be, that form in which individuality usually results 

 in highest performance. There is the further distinction 

 that type is fixed by the breeders' associations, while form 

 is fixed by concurrent opinion based on practical results. 

 For instance, type in all the breeds of cattle differs to the 

 extent of the difference in breed peculiarities, while in 

 form there is general agreement as to the exact individual 

 shapes that are most likely to result in highest perform- 

 ance. The term type, therefore, is more correctly ap- 

 plied to breeds as such, while the term form is more prop- 

 erly applied to correct furnishings regardless of type 

 peculiarities. To illustrate, type in Shorthorns points 

 the horn up or down, form considers only its shape, re- 

 gardless of the pointings. Type includes color markings ; 

 form does not. The first more properly belongs to breeds ; 

 the second, to individuals. 



Both type and form have a very direct bearing on per- 

 formance. In this respect they have the strength of law 

 indisputable and decisive. For instance, the correct 

 form of a draught horse is very different from the correct 

 form for the standard bred horse, and the correct form 

 for an ideal beef producing animal is very different from 

 the correct form for an ideal milk producer. The per- 

 formance of the draught horse on the track and of the 

 beef type of cow in the dairy can never compare with the 

 performance of the standard bred horse in the one in- 

 stance, or of the dairy bred cow in the other. In this re- 

 spect a great gulf between them is fixed. 



But it is true, nevertheless, that two animals may have 

 exactly the same form and they may be of exactly similar 

 inheritance, and yet the performance from them may 

 vary considerably, hence, type or form is only a general 

 guide when selecting animals for feeding or rearing. This 



