THE ECONOMIC ASPECT OF MILK PRODUCTION 573 



Jerseys. — The home of this breed is the island of Jersey. They 

 are small, delicate, gentle, but nervous animals. They produce a 

 milk rich in butter-fat, the average being about 5 per cent., al- 

 though some individuals produce milk still richer in fat. The 

 color of the milk is rich and the globules are large. They are, 

 therefore, good butter producers. 



Brown Swiss. — This is a favorite breed in Switzerland, but is 

 scarce in this country. They are strong, muscular animals, able 

 to produce 6000 pounds of millc with 3.5 to 4 per cent, butter- 

 fat. 



Devons. — These cows come from Devonshire in southwestern 

 England. They are a hardy race, thriving on poor pastures and 

 able to live in hilly and mountainous countries. They yield 

 about 4000 pounds of rhilk of moderately rich quality. 



Dutch Belted. — This race is also at home in Holland. The 

 animals are hardy and vigorous. One herd, according to Lane, 

 averaged 5840 pounds per cow in a year. 



Shorthorns. — Originally this is a breed of beef producers, but 

 the cows are also used for milk production. The best herds 

 average 6000 to 7000 pounds of milk with 3.75 per cent. fat. The 

 globules are of medium size and very uniform. The cream 

 separates readily. 



Polled Durhams. — These cows are similar to Shorthorns, but 

 are hornless. 



Red Polls. — They are hornless, of medium size, and produce a 

 fair amount of milk of moderate richness. The fat percentage is 

 3.75. Select herds yield 6000 to 7000 pounds of milk. 



A dairy herd may be formed by breeding or by purchasing 

 animals. When formed by purchase there is constant danger of 

 introducing disease into a healthy herd. This is a serious dis- 

 advantage. There is the added disadvantage that, as a rule, poor 

 bulls will be coupled with cows of such herds, and as a result calves 

 with only meat value instead of good milk producers will be borne. 



Breeding as a means of building up a herd requires much at- 

 tention, but is usually considered the safer and more profitable 

 method. The herd is started with a few select animals and a 

 good bull chosen. "The bull is half the herd" is a common ex- 

 pression, and it is no doubt true that the productivity of the herd 

 depends largely upon the kind of bull used. Breeding a good bull 

 with recognized breeds of milk cows results in building up a pro- 

 ductive herd, and the calves from such herds have more than 

 mere meat value. As Winkjer says: "If the best bulls were used 

 to their full capacity in pure-bred herds, and if only good bulls 

 were used in the ordinary herds, the income from the dairy busi- 

 ness could be vastly increased." And further: "The influence of 



