STOCK RAISING AND SOIL FERTILITY 



183 



PURE BREED STOCK FARMING 



It was noted above that when the herd 

 of high grade cattle was changed into a 

 registered herd, the selling price of the 

 calves was raised from $15 to $100 a 

 head. This suggests at once the greater 

 profit in growing pure bred over grade 

 and scrub stock. There are a number 

 of matters that must be considered, 

 however, before taking up this kind of 

 farming. 



All our pure breeds of stock have 

 originated from the common species. 

 They have developed as a result of con- 

 stant, careful attention to feed, care and 

 breeding. Under conditions of neglect, 



ing to give his pure bred animals much 

 more care and attention as to shelter, 

 food and general well being, had better 

 keep out of pure breed stock farming. It 

 is like putting a piece of highly special- 

 ized machinery in the hands of a man 

 used to a grub hoe. 



Additional requirements of breeders 

 — Furthermore, if a man is willing to 

 give his pure bred stock this greater 

 care, he must still have in addition a 

 keen accurate judgment of the merits 

 and demerits of each individual animal 

 he breeds or buys, in order to sustain the 

 standard of the breeds he is handling. 

 This means he must know personally 



Fig. 133 A BREEDING HERD OF BERKSHIRE3 



therefore, there is a constant tendency 

 to revert to the original unimproved 

 form. The man who goes into the busi- 

 ness of raising pure bred stock, must 

 thoroughly understand this. 



Greater care necessary for im- 

 proved stock — Pure bred stock cannot 

 be handled in the same manner as scrub 

 or common grade stock. Scrub stock 

 has learned to shift for itself and will 

 make a living and will get along very 

 well where the most carefully reared 

 pure bred stock would be a failure. We 

 do not hesitate to say that under the 

 average conditions of farming, grade 

 stock will prove fully as profitable as 

 high priced pure bred stock and perhaps 

 much more. The man who is not will- 



every animal in his herd, its peculiari- 

 ties and capabilities. He must also 

 know the kinds of animals other men 

 are breeding so that when he introduces 

 new blood into his herd he may secure 

 animals that will add an element of im- 

 provement to them. 



Pure bred sires — Many men who do not 

 find it profitable to breed pure bred 

 stock because of inaptitude for the 

 business, may still find it profitable to 

 keep pure bred sires for mating with 

 grade animals. Such sires can be re- 

 lied upon to impress their chief charac- 

 teristics upon the offspring and thus 

 greatly raise the standard of excellence 

 of the herd. Even here, the breeder 

 must be prepared to give his stock thus 



