SELECTING THE BREED 57 



Some dairymen in selecting a breed look for a 

 "general purpose" or dual purpose cow, or a cow 

 from a specially developed milk producing family of 

 the beef breeds, or grades of such stock, the claim 

 being that even if such animals are not so productive 

 while in the dairy, their meat-producing tendencies 

 offset this. The dual purpose cow, however, is too 

 apt to prove a no-purpose cow. The consensus of opin- 

 ion among those who are strictly in the dairy busi- 

 ness is, that under most conditions, cattle of the dis- 

 tinct dairy type specially developed for dairy pur- 

 poses are best. Owners of the so-called "special 

 purpose" cows expect the dairy products to give 

 such profitable returns that the beef producing 

 qualities of the cow can be entirely ignored. In any 

 case the selection of the breed should be with a 

 view to profit, and this selection must be determined 

 by local conditions. 



Special adaptations. — While it is claimed for two 

 or three breeds of cattle that they possess the com- 

 bined qualities of meat and milk, there are a num- 

 ber of families and breeds which have marked char- 

 acteristics distinguishing them as milk and butter 

 producers. With this great variety, a dairyman who 

 is ambitious can find and select cows well adapted 

 to his particular conditions. Some breeds are noted 

 for the quantity of milk they produce, others for the 

 richness of their milk and the color of their product, 

 whether milk, cream or butter. Certain individual 

 cows combine quantity and quality in a marked de- 

 gree. Some breeds are very active and thrive on a 

 wide range of scanty pasture and consume coarse 



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