JUDGING BEEF CATTLE. 



E. H. Thompson, 

 Animal Husbandry Division. 



CONTENTS. 



Page. 



G ood judgment valuable to buyer and feeder . 3 



Qualifications of a judge 4 



Beef type — definition and description 4 



Points of the beef animal 5 



Parts of the beef carcass 5 



Classification used in judging beef cattle 5 



Judging fat cattle 8 



Judging feeders 9 



Page. 



Classification used in judging beef cattle— Con. 



Judging breeding cattle 10 



Score card for fat and feeder cattle 12 



Discussion of the score card 13 



Score card for breeding cattle 17 



Discussion of score card for breeding cattle 17 



Procedure in judging 19 



Comparative judging 20 



GOOD JUDGMENT VALUABLE TO BUYER AND FEEDER. 



THE art of judging beef cattle is the foundation of all stock shows 

 and is largely the means of determining the value of cattle 

 offered in public sales. The line of breeding and the pedigree enter 

 into the value of a breeding animal, but the individual should be a 

 good specimen from the utility standpoint as well. Each breeder, 

 in order to attain the greatest degree of success, must be a good judge 

 so that he can mate individuals and get the best possible offspring. 

 This knowledge may be obtained through years of experience in 

 handling and showing cattle, but by means of a systematic course in 

 judging the same ends may be accomplished at less expense and in a 

 much shorter time. 



A thorough knowledge of beef -cattle judging is a prime requisite 

 in the successful buying of feeders. By no means all the men who 

 buy feeders at the markets or from* breeders are capable buyers. 

 Most of the feeders bought at markets are bought through commis- 

 sion men, but if a farmer were a competent judge of this class of 

 cattle he could go to the market, as he usually does anyhow, and save 

 the buying charges or commission. There is both profit and satis- 

 faction in being able to buy cattle which when put into the feed lot 

 make rapid, consistent, and profitable gains. To the man who feeds 

 cattle for commercial purposes it is more important to study how to 

 judge feeders than fat cattle, because it requires more skill to judge 

 feeder cattle than fat cattle. Knowledge of judging feeders is also 

 important in view of the fact that profit in cattle feeding often depends 

 upon knowledge and skill in buying the cattle. 



