I860.] 



THE SOUTHERN PLANTER. 



653 



From the Transactions of the Highland and Agri- 

 cultural Society. 



On Breeding and Hearing Cattle. 



By Henry Tanner, Professor of Agricul- 

 ture, Queen's College, Birmingham. 

 [premium gold medal.] 

 NO. II. 



(Continued from October Number.) 



The Management of the Yearling Heifers 

 may now be noticed. These will be brought 

 from the fields in which they have been sum- 

 mered, and placed in sheltered situations near 

 the homestead. An open yard, with sufficient 

 shedding, is by far the best place for winter- 

 ing young growing stock, and especially in 

 preparing them for avoiding the quarter-evil, 

 to which heifers of this age are peculiarly lia- 

 ble. Exercise is of the greatest importance 

 to young and growing stock, as it enables them 

 to bring the various parts of the body into ac- 

 tion, and thus induces a healthy development 

 of the organism. In addition to which, if 

 young cattle have good shelter, and' can at all 

 times rest in a dry and comfortable position, 

 they become more hardy in their constitution, 

 and better able to withstand the attacks of dis- 

 ease, than that enervated and enfeebled class 

 of stock which are confined in warm and ill- 

 ventilated buildings during the winter months. 

 Ihave experienced the difference in a marked 

 degree, and I am fully persuaded that the 

 want of exercise, and the too. careful housing 

 which young stock sometimes .receive, are fre- 

 quently productive of much injury to the con- 

 stitution. On the other hand, when stock are 

 neglected, and have little or no shelter from 

 the storms of winter, they must necessarily 

 suffer therefrom. The medium course is the 

 best. Give the young cattle warm and com- 

 fortable shedding, with plenty of exercise, 

 fresh air, and a liberal supply of bedding, and 

 no fear need be entertained but that they will 

 thrive, and remain more healthy throughout 

 the winter and following summer, than when 

 kept in any other manner, especially under a 

 system which shields them from every change 

 of temperature, like conservatory plants. It 

 is needless for me to draw the attention of my 

 readers to the difference in their coats in the 

 spring. If they are thus treated they retain 

 their -rough coats, as nature intended they 

 should, until the weather renders it desirable 

 for them to be cast away ; but when young 

 stock come from the houses in the spring, they 

 generally have the sleek coat of summer to 

 withstand weather for which it is not sufficient, 

 and the result is a check, which- is in most 

 cases accompanied with an inflammatory ten- 

 dency. 



It may be argued that an economy of food 

 requires a different system of management. 

 I readily yield the point that stock which are 



(thus exposed require more food than others 

 will consume in more sheltered situations, and 

 ' hence there is a sacrifice made in this respect, 

 ■j .But I believe it to be a sacrifice which is well 

 worth making, because you obtain thereby a 

 degree of hardniness foj the animal which is 

 extremely valuable, and in comparison with 

 which the extra food consumed is^ot worthy 

 of consideration. 



The usual food for yearlings during the first 

 winter is hay and turnips. This is a very 

 suitable food, but the addition of 1 or 2 lb. of 

 oil-cake daily, according to the size of the 

 breed, will favour their growth and condition, 

 and much more than repay the expense (say 

 Id. to 2d. per day) in the animal, whilst the 

 manure in ihe yards will be of superior qual- 

 ity. Hitherto the use of oil-cake has been too 

 much confined to the fattening stock of the 

 farm, but I believe its use upon the store stock 

 is frequently attended with more profit than 

 upon the fat stock. It is, however, worthy of 

 passing remark, that store stock thus accus- 

 tomed to small quantities of oil-cake subse- 

 quently fatten more easily than others not thus 

 prepared for fattening. It will generally be 

 found desirable to fasten up store stock whilst 

 having their cake ; a more regular consump- 

 tion will then take place, and the stronger ani- 

 mals will be restrained from taking the share 

 of a weaker neighbor. 



Another -point in the management of grow- 

 ing stock, and w r hich is of great importance, 

 is quiet and gentle treatment — everything like 

 harshness being studiously avoided. They 

 should rather be accustomed to receive atten- 

 tion, and allow persons to approach them with- 

 out fear. In some yards it is almost impossi- 

 ble to approach them without the danger of 

 their injuring themselves in their attempts to 

 escape; whilst in other cases, when accustom- 

 ed to quiet treatment, strangers even may ap- 

 proach and examine them. 



By continuing such a careful and liberal 

 course of treatment throughout the winter, we 

 shall find the yearlings in good condition, and 

 ready for being turned out to grass as soon as 

 the season and the herbage are sufficiently ad- 

 vanced. During the second summer shelter 

 and good .keep will be equally beneficial, al- 

 though not equally imperative, still nothing 

 like a check should ever be allowed. The use 

 of oil-cake may be advantageously continued 

 to a small extent— say 1 lb. daily ; but when 

 the pasture is deficient, it may be increased. 

 This will improve the land, whilst the stock 

 will grow better and be much more healthy. 

 In fact, it has been found that the use of 

 small quantities of oil-cake has prevented the 

 quarter-evil — a disease much dreaded by most 

 stock-breeders.* 



* Mr. Wilson, Edington Mains, considers the 

 use of linsood-r;ike as a specific in quarter-evil. 

 His invaluable Prize Report on the Hearing of 



