REARING CATTLE 



THE REARING OF CATTLE, WITH A VIEW TO EARLY MATURITY, AS PRACTICED 

 IN BERWICKSHIRE, ENGLAND. 



BY MK. JOHN WILSON, EDINGTON MAINS, BERWICKSHIRE. 



The valley of the Tweed has long been 

 famed for the rearing and fattening of cattle, its 

 rich pastures, wann turnip-soils, and proximity 

 to England, affording peculiar facilities forprcs- 

 eculiug this branch of rural economy'. The 

 " Short Horns ' were early introduced into it, and 

 soon became its established breed ; and. though 

 still inferior to the Tynesidc herds in symmetry, 

 color, and grazing quality, yet nowhere, perhaps, 

 are they brought to market, at two years old, in 

 such perfection of weight and fatness. 



The production of beef, at the quickest and 

 cheapest rate.being the object in view, the first re- 

 quisite is a stock of cows possessing qualities suit- 

 able for this purpose. Accordingly, theyshouldbe 

 good milkers — able to keep at the rate of two and 

 a half to three calves each — of a kind known to 

 have a tendency to fatten readilyTand to come 

 early to maturity, and of a structure likely to 

 produce a vigorous, Avell-grown steer. In other 

 words, they must be good Short-Horns ; only hav- 

 ing more regard to their milking properties than 

 is usually done by breeders of bulls. And here 

 it may be well to notice, that it is in general high- 

 ly inexpedient for the beef-grower ; the farmer 

 who depends largely on his regular cast of fat 

 cattle — to attempt breeding his own bull. It is 

 only a few individuals in any diad-icf uiio have 

 the taste and skill requisite for this difficult de- 

 partment of the business, not to mention the 

 large capital which must necessarily be invest- 

 ed in it, the precarionsness of the return, the 

 greater liability to casualties of such high-bred 

 animals, and, the additional expense of their 

 housing and marntennnce. On Tweed-side, the 

 breeding of bulls is confined to a very limited 

 number of persons, chiefly Northumbrians, who, 

 by devoting their whole attention to this depart- 

 ment, are able, from year to year, to furnish a 

 class of bulls \vhich are steadily improving the 

 general breed of the district. The contrary prac- 

 tice is at this moment compromising the charac- 

 ter of this valuable breed of cattle in several dis- 

 tricts of Scotland into which they have been 

 more recently introduced. Made wiser on this 

 paint by experience, the farmer of the Border 

 purchases fro^n some breeder of established rep- 

 utation a good yearling hull, which he uses for 

 two or three seasons, and. then, replaces by an- 

 otherin like maimer. This bull serves his own 

 cows and those of his kinds, and some of the 

 neighboring villagers', and thus, though his own 

 stud be limited to six or eight cows, he can se- 

 lect from the progeny of his own bull as many 

 calves as he requires to made up his lot, and has 

 them more uniform in color ami quality than 

 could othersvise be the ca.«e. As the male 

 parent, among sheep and cattle, is known to ex- 

 ert by far the greatest influence in giving char- 

 acter to the progeny, and increasingly so in pro- 

 portion to the purity of his breeding, it is evi- 

 dently much tor the advantage of the beef-grow- 

 er to spare no reasonable trouble and expense in 

 (111.0) 



obtaining a bull of thorough purity, and then 

 to select )cis calves with the most scrupnlovs at- 

 tention. From overlooking all this, how often 

 may cattle be seen, on the best of land, too, 

 which can only be fattened at an enormous ex- 

 pense of food and time, and after all, are so 

 coarse in quality as to realize an inferior price 

 per stone. Occasionally a few beasts of the right 

 sort will seen in such lots, ^vhich. by going ahead 

 of their fellows, to the extent of £i or £5 a-piece 

 of actual market value, show what might have 

 been done by greater skill or attention on the 

 part of the owner. 



It is very desirable to have all the cows to 

 calve betwixt the 1st Febmary and 1st April. If 

 earlier, they will get almost dry ere the grass 

 conies, and calves later than this will scarcelj-be 

 fit for sale with the rest of the lot. When a calf is 

 dropped, it is immediately removed from its dam, 

 rubbed drj-, with a coarse cloth or wisp of straw, 

 (this being what the cow would do for it with 

 her tongue, if allowed.) and then placed in a crib 

 in the calf-house among dry straw, when it re- 

 ceives a portion of its own mother's first milk, 

 which, being of a purgative quality, isju.st what 

 is needed by the young animal. For a fortnight, 

 new milk is the only food suitable for it, and of 

 this it should receive a liberal allo^\•ance thrice 

 a-day ; but means .should now- be used to train 

 it to eat linseed-cake and sliced Swedish turnip ; 

 and the readiest way of doing so is to put a bit 

 of cake into its mouth immediately after getting 

 its milk, as it will then suck greedily at auj'thing 

 it can get hold of By repeating this a few 

 times, and placing a few pieces in its trough, it 

 will usually take to this food freely, and. when- 

 ever this is the case, it should have as much as 

 it can eat, that its allowance of milk may be di- 

 minished, to meet the necessities of the younger 

 calves which are coming in succession. ' This is 

 of the greater importance that it is always mosti 

 desirable to avoid mixing anything with their 

 milk by way of helping the quantity. When a 

 substitute must be resorted to, oatmeal porridge 

 mixed with the new milk is perhaps the best. 

 Sago of late years has been much used for this 

 purpose; but an eminent English veterinary 

 surgeon has recently expres.scd a very decided 

 opinion tliat its use impairs the digestive powers 

 of the animal and predisposes to disease. The 

 sour smell invariably found in a calf-house, 

 where porridge or jelly of any kind is mixed 

 with the milk, is proof sufficient that indigestion 

 is the consequence. An egg put into each calf s 

 allowance, and mi.xed with the milk by stirring 

 with the hand, is a good help, and never does 

 harm ; but, w ith this exception, it is best to give 

 the milk warm and unadulterated, however 

 small the quantity, and, along with this, dry fari- 

 naceous food, turnips and hay, ad lUiitnm. If 

 more liquid is needed, a pail with water 

 may be put within their reach, as this does not 

 produce the bad effects of mixed milk. Indeed, 



