CATTLE. 



mostly of a small, black breed, called 

 Kj'loes. They are very hardy, and, 

 when brought into good pasture, fat- 

 ten rapidly, and produce the finest 

 and best-flavoured beef They are 

 found in the greatest perfection in 

 the Isle of Skye, and are sent annu- 

 ally in large droves from their native 

 islands, and dispersed through Scot- 

 land and England. If they do not 

 produce so great a weight of beef as 

 many other breeds, they always bring 

 the highest price in the market, and 

 require but a very short time to get 

 fat. The Galloway is a peculiar 

 breed, which has many good quali- 

 ties : it has no horns ; the body is 

 compact, and the legs short ; and few 

 breeds can vie with the Galloway 

 oxen and heifers in aptitude to fatten. 

 There is a peculiar roundness in all 

 the parts of the body, which makes 

 the animal look well in flesh even 

 when he is lean. The skin is loose, 

 and the hair soft and silky to the 

 touch. They are mostly black, but 

 some are of a dun colour, which shows 

 a connexion between this breed and 

 the polled Suifolk ; it is only the col- 

 our which distinguishes them. Many 

 of the Galloway heifers are spayed, 

 and get very fat at an early age. The 

 Galloway cows are not very good 

 milkers, in which respect they differ 

 from the Suffolk, but their milk is 

 very rich. 



The Angus doddie is also a polled 

 breed, and has been long in repute. 

 It is probably a variety of the Gallo- 

 way, to which it bears a strong re- 

 semblance, but it has been found in 

 Angus from time immemorial. 



These are the principal breeds of 

 cattle in Britain. By selecting those 

 which are best suited to each situation 

 and pasture, the industrious farm- 

 er may add considerably to his prof- 

 its, and, at the same time, enrich his 

 land with the manure. In purchas- 

 ing cattle, it is very necessary that 

 the age should be readily ascertained: 

 the surest mode of doing this is by 

 examining the teeth. A calf has 

 usually two front teeth when he is 

 dropped, or they will appear a day or 

 two after his birth ; in a fortnight he 



138 



will have four, in three weeks six, 

 and at the end of a month eight. 

 After this, these milk-teeth, as they 

 are called, gradually wear, and fall 

 out, and are replaced by the second 

 and permanent teeth. At two years 

 old the two middle teeth are replaced ; 

 the next year there will be four new 

 teeth in all ; at four years there are 

 six permanent teeth, and at five the 

 whole eight are replaced. The milk- 

 teeth do not always fall out, but are 

 sometimes pushed back by the sec- 

 ond set ; and in this case they should 

 be removed with an instrument, as 

 they impede mastication and irritate 

 the mouth. After six years old the 

 edges of the teeth begin to wear flat, 

 and as they wear off the root of the 

 tooth is pushed up in the socket, and 

 the width of the teeth is diminished, 

 leaving interstices between them : 

 this begins in the middle teeth, and 

 extends gradually to the corners. 

 At ten years old the four middle 

 teeth are considerably diminished, 

 and the mark worn out of them. Af- 

 ter fifteen years of age few cows can 

 keep themselves in condition by pas- 

 turing, but they may conlmue to give 

 milk, or be fattened by stalling and 

 giving them ground food. Horned 

 cattle have rings at the root of their 

 horns, by which the age may also be 

 known. The first ring appears at 

 three years of age, and a new one is 

 formed between it and the scull ev- 

 ery year after. But this mode of 

 ascertaining the age is not so sure 

 as by the teeth, deception being much 

 easier by filing off the rings. 

 I In order to learn by experience 

 I what breed of cattle is most profita- 

 ble, it is very advantageous to wei^h 

 ! them occasionally and note their in- 

 ; crease. Experience has shown the 

 proportion between the saleable quar- 

 j ters and the offal in different states 

 of fatness, and tables have been con- 

 ' structed by which the nett weight 

 ! is found by mere inspection. Multi- 

 plying the live weight by 605 gives 

 a near approximation to the neat 

 dead weight in an ox moderately fat 

 and of a good breed. When an ox 

 J is fat, his weight may be very nearly 



