226 JUDGING BEEF AND DUAL PURPOSE CATTLE 



and square, full, compact quarters with the minimum of 

 waste products. The more highly developed, therefore, that 

 the breeder can perfect animal form, the nearer will he 

 approach the ultimate demands of the feeder or finisher and 

 the butcher. 



Relation of Structure to High-priced Cuts. In perfecting 

 animal form the breeder is vitally concerned with the 

 development of certain parts. This development must be 

 made, however, in perfect correlation with those character- 

 istics which give the animal life, vigor, and thriftiness. 

 The parts of a beef animal which are of greatest concern 

 to the packer, the butcher and the meat eater are not 

 directly concerned with the functions of life and vitality 

 which govern the breeder's operations. The butcher, from 

 his viewpoint, would be pleased to secure only those animals 

 which possessed the largest relative proportion of the highest- 

 priced cuts, providing his trade merited such selection. This 

 would be dependent on conditions. The better the quality 

 of the product which can be purchased on an equal-price basis, 

 the better the butcher and his patrons will be satisfied. 



A beef animal must possess, however, other attributes 

 aside from meat-producing qualities. It must possess con- 

 stitution, capacity, early maturity, quality, and the requisites 

 for prime finish. These, of necessity, call for development 

 of animal form which in most cases is antagonistic to the 

 production of the maximum of the highest priced cuts. There 

 must be, therefore, a close and direct correlation between 

 the attributes of life-giving functions and meat-producing 

 qualities. The higher the attributes of beef -productive con- 

 formation can be perfected without detracting from these 

 life-giving functions, the nearer the perfect animal will be 

 approached from the standpoint of the packer, the butcher, 

 and the meat eater. 



Coordination of Bone and Muscle. The muscular part of 

 an animal and associated fat-producing qualities represent 

 in the main the factors of importance in judging a beef 

 animal. In order to know what lies beneath the skin, the 

 examiner must have a thorough knowledge of the bony 

 development in its relation to muscle and fat formation. A 



