BREEDING DAIBY CATTLE 241 



the fact that such an animal is not hkely to be prepotent, and 

 that such being the case, the calves more nearly resemble the 

 sire. There may be two objections to this. In the first place, 

 animals that show much variation are as likely to vary toward 

 the bad as toward the good ; and in the second place, if the dam 

 has at some time made a low record, as she probably has if she 

 shows much improvement, it means that we are oftentimes 

 selecting our heifer calf from a low-producing dam. Such a 

 course is as likely to lead to failure as to success. There are 

 many experiments and an abundance of experience going to 

 show that greatest success is attained by retaining the heifers 

 from the high-producing dams and discarding those from the 

 low-producers. 



The second generation. — There are many perplexing questions 

 arising in the second generation of this grading-up process. In 

 the first place, there is the question of the sire. If the original 

 sire was young at the time of his purchase, there will be a 

 number of his half-blood offspring ready to breed while he is 

 still in the height of his power. If the bull has proved a good 

 one, the owner does not wish to sell him, and he does not feel 

 able to buy another to breed the heifers. The owner is at a loss 

 to know what to do, as he has heard much against the practice 

 of in-breeding. In a majority of such cases, if the sire is vigor- 

 ous, he is the very best bull to breed to a lot of high quality, 

 uniform, and half-blood heifers, if it is desired to receive greater 

 uniformity as well as greater average production, even though 

 he be their own sire. On the other hand, suppose the owner 

 wishes to change bulls and procures an animal equal in produc- 

 tive capacity, but of slightly different type from the original sire. 

 In all probability these second-generation calves, even though 

 they are three-fourth blood, will not be nearly so uniform a crop 

 as the first-generation or half-blood calves. Experience has 

 shown that the second generation is not nearly so uniform as 

 the first, and frequently shows little if any increase in average 



