198 ILLINOIS STATE DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION 



The first essential in grading up a herd is to decide 

 which one of the dairy breeds is best suited for the kind 

 of a market we have for our dairy products and then stickj 

 to this particular breed. Changing from one breed to an- 

 other will get us nowhere. 



While it is true that in selecting a sire some considei 

 tion should be given to type and appearance, it is of moj 

 importance to carefully consider the milk and fat recori 

 of his ancestors. This is especially true of the dam of th( 

 bull we expect to buy. A sire that has had high-producing 

 ancestors for four or five generations back of him is most 

 likely to make the largest improvement in the production^ 

 of his daughters over their dams and will increase the net^ 

 profits in the business. 'j 



The surest way to get a sire that will increase the 

 production of his daughters over their dams is to buy 4 

 proven sire, one that is old enough to have daughters iri; 

 milk and which are good producers. Many of our best 

 sires in all the dairy breeds were sold over the block before 

 their value as good breeders was known. 



The bull calf designed for breeding purposes should 

 be well fed during the growing period in order that hei 

 may develop to the full limits of his inheritance. If he iF 

 poorly fed during the growing period he may fail to reacK 

 his full size. His offspring may be smaller on account oi 

 the sire being undersize. ^, 



Until he is five months old he can be with heifer 

 calves and receive the usual ration of the calves in the 

 herd. He should receive skim milk until he is six months 

 old and a liberal allowance of grain composed of a mixture 

 of thirty pounds of corn or barley, thirty pounds of ground 

 oats, thirty pounds of wheat bran and ten pounds of oil 

 meal. He should have free access to good legume hay. 



At six months the skim milk can be discontinued, 01 

 if more skim milk is available it can be fed at a profit un- 

 til the calf is a year old. After six months old he should be 

 separated from the other calves and placed in clean quar- 

 ters where he can get sunlight and exercise. At the age oi 

 twelve to fifteen months he can be used for light service. 



