30 THE COW 



it was established veterinary procedure within the 

 memory of living men. 



The normal udder of the cow has four teats as 

 compared with two teats in the mare and sheep 

 and twelve to sixteen in the sow. However, it is 

 not at all uncommon to find two smaller additional 

 or supernumerary teats and these have frequently 

 been regarded as an evidence of special dairy excel- 

 lence, but they detract from the appearance of the 

 udder and many breeders make it a rule to cut 

 them off as soon as noted in the calf. 



Twins among cattle are exceedingly rare. 

 Within the memory of the writer there have been 

 more than a thousand calves born on Hillside 

 Farm, and among all these only one pair of twins; 

 but probably twins are rather more usual than 

 would be indicated by this particular experience. 

 When one twin is a bull and the other a heifer, the 

 latter is called a "free-martin" and there is a very 

 old and persitent notion that she will prove barren. 

 This is not what we would expect if reasoning from 

 analogy, but the idea is widely accepted and two 

 trustworthy men have assured me they have tried 

 it out and that the popular belief is correct. Twins 

 among horses are the rarest possible occurrence 

 and horsemen aver that they never survive. On the 

 other hand, among sheep, especially some breeds, 

 twins are the rule rather than the exception while 

 triplets are not rare. Piggies come into the world 

 all the way from one up to twenty or more, and 



