The Breeding Herd 59 
The first point to be considered is that there should never 
be too many cows to one bull, and that the bull is strong, 
vigorous and fertile. Some range-men test their bulls 
each year by breeding to a few named cowsinpasture. The 
other important factor is the elimination of the non- 
breeding, or shy-breeding, cows. In the beef herd there 
is but one course to take with a cow that comes from the 
range in the fall without a calf; namely, to send her to 
the butcher. Usually if she brings no calf she will be fat, 
and if she is not she should be given a few weeks in the 
feed-lot. About January one can often tell what cows 
are not going to bring calves in the spring, and it is not 
then too late to put them in the feed-lot and turn them for 
beef at a profit rather than to carry them another year. 
Such a practice will have a great influence in increasing 
the percentage of calves. When a shy-breeder does have 
a calf, that calf will not be so valuable to keep in the herd 
because of the tendency toward irregular breeding that is 
likely to be transmitted. It is generally admitted by 
those who have studied the matter, that the two most com- 
mon faults among all of our stock, and at the same time 
the two most damaging, are lack of constitution and low 
fertility. Not absolute barrenness, but breeding part of 
the time, is more dangerous; the former ends itself, but 
the latter is self-perpetuating. 
The time of the year when calves should come varies 
with the feed and the climate, but it should ordinarily be 
as early in the spring as the cow can take care of the calf. 
Where hay is abundant, the calf may come some little 
time before grass is good. The additional growth of the 
calf will pay for the extra care, since he obtains so much 
more good out of the succulent summer grass and goes 
into the winter quarters strong and vigorous. Late 
