ARGENTINA 



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and no effort is spared to arrive at early maturity. In many 

 instances the cows as they calve are drafted from the dry 

 cows to give the calves a better chance, and again the cows 

 with steer calves are drafted from those with heifer calves, 

 and the former are given the best paddocks to help them 

 along. 



The steer calves are dehorned and castrated on most well- 

 managed places within the first two months from birth. On 

 some properties they are yarded to do this, but it is mostly 



A Point of "Freezer"' Stokes ready for Transport, Argentina 



done in the paddocks, the calves yeing caught with the lasso. 

 Owing to the fact that almost all the properties have no other 

 means of watering but troughs filled from wells, dehorning is 

 of great benefit to the steers, as they do not knock each other 

 about or take up much space at the trough while watering ; 

 furthermore, as almost always stock are trucked when passing 

 from one property to another, if any considerable distance 

 apart, or to market, the knocking about in the trucks is mini- 

 mised. The frigorificos find that there is a very much larger 

 percentage of bruised meat from a train-load of horned steers 

 compared with those that have been dehorned. 



