CHAPTER VI 

 AYRSHIRES 



ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS 



Origin and Distribution in Europe. The native home 

 of this breed is the county or shire of Ayr in southwest 

 Scotland. It is comparatively a new breed, but has made 

 wonderful advancement in a short time. The origin of this 

 breed is veiled in some obscurity, but traces back to the latter 

 part of the eighteenth century. The cattle of this district 

 are described in 1750 as being small, ill-fed, ill-shaped, and 

 producing but little milk. In color they were black and 

 white. This foundation stock was probably descended from 

 or kin to the original wild white cattle described in early 

 historic records and represented now by the wild park cattle. 



During the latter half of the eighteenth century a wide- 

 spread movement for better cattle spread over Great Britain, 

 and resulted in an immense improvement being made in the 

 cattle of Ayrshire as elsewhere. This improvement was 

 brought about by more careful selection and breeding, and 

 especially by the introduction of blood from several other 

 regions. According to Howard, 1 writing in 1863, cattle im- 

 ported from Holland furnished one of the most important 

 crBsses made. Another important cross was made with cattle 



1 Vol. 1, Herd Record of the Association of Breeders of Thoroughbred 

 Neat Cattle. 



63 



