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    Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production
    Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production
    Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production
    Ebook66 pages1 hour

    Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production

    By Read Books Ltd.

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    About this ebook

    This vintage book contains a complete and comprehensive guide to cattle farming for beef and milk production. Although old, the information contained within this book is timeless and will be of considerable utility to modern farmers and smallholders. It includes instructions for every aspect of cattle farming and would make for a useful addition to collections of allied literature. Contents include: “Cattle Rearing”, “Breeding and Rearing of Cattle Milk and Beef Production”, “Milk Production”, “Feeding for Milk”, “Housing and Hygiene”, “Milking and Farm Dairy Equipment”, “Milk Secretion and Milking”, “Beef Production”, “Care and Management of Bulls”, etc. Many vintage books such as this are increasingly scarce and expensive. We are republishing “Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production” now in an affordable, modern, high-quality edition complete with a specially commissioned new introduction on cattle farming.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherRead Books Ltd.
    Release dateJan 29, 2013
    ISBN9781447484509
    Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production

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      Breeding and Rearing of Cattle - Milk and Beef Production - Read Books Ltd.

      BREEDING AND REARING OF CATTLE—MILK AND BEEF PRODUCTION

      THE age at which heifers should first be mated depends on their breed, on their individual characteristics, and on the system of feeding and general management to which they have been subjected during the earlier part of their lives. Females of the early maturing beef breeds, such as the beef Shorthorn, are sometimes, if they be well grown, mated at fifteen months of age, so that they calve down at two years old. Jerseys are frequently put to the bull quite as early. With breeds like the Dairy Shorthorn—which are about average in rate of growth and development, and are suited to average conditions of food and housing—the ordinary age at first service is about twenty-one months, bringing the first calf at thirty months. It is to be noted, however, that where there is a fixed breeding season—as, for example, in pedigree beef herds, cheese dairies, etc.—the choice will fall to be made as between mating at about fifteen months or twenty-seven months so that the heifer may calve in proper season either at two years or at three years old. Again, in whole-milk selling farms it is usually necessary to have a large proportion of the heifers calving in autumn, in order to secure a uniform output of milk throughout the year; and on this account the age for mating may be varied from that which would otherwise be chosen. Animals of the later maturing breeds (Galloway, Welsh, etc.) should not ordinarily calve before they are three years old, and on the poorest Highland grazings West Highlanders are sometimes not calved down till four. Heifers have been known to take the bull, and to conceive, at as early an age as four or five months, so that they must be kept apart from bull calves from this age until they are considered sufficiently developed to be served.

      In view of the many variable factors no precise statement can be made about the optimum age for first mating, but two general points must be borne in mind. First is that gestation makes comparatively small demands upon the heifer’s system, whereas lactation, in the case of deep-milking animals, makes very heavy demands. Hence an animal that is producing a considerable amount of milk at the age when rapid growth should still be going on, requires a highly concentrated ration if the combined needs for maintenance, growth, and milk production are all to be met in full. If they are not met the animal will be stunted permanently.

      On the other hand there is a widespread belief that has some support from experimental evidence, that delay in mating may prevent the full development of the inherent milking capacity.

      Bulls of the earliest maturing breeds may begin to be used at ten or twelve months old; those of average development at about fifteen months. Sixty cows may be put as a maximum allotment for a bull of two years old or over, but much depends on the length of the breeding season, which may extend over two or three months only or may cover most of the year. Breeding bulls must be kept in active and thrifty condition by arranging for sufficient regular exercise, and by so adjusting the ration that the animal is kept in healthy condition without becoming fat.

      The ordinary duration of life in cattle is twelve to fifteen years and there are many records of individuals surviving to eighteen or twenty. The average useful life of the dairy cow is very much shorter owing to such troubles as sterility, mastitis, and tuberculosis. The average milking life is about four lactations.

      The average period of gestation is 280 days. Œstrum generally begins to occur at from five to eight weeks after calving, so that it is possible for a cow to bear successive calves at intervals shorter than a year. Where all-the-year-round breeding is carried on the period between successive calvings, however, may average about thirteen months. When the calves are wanted at a particular season—e.g. March to May in the case of commercial beef-breeding herds—the number of living calves may reach 90 per cent. under good conditions and in the absence of any exceptional factor such as contagious disease. Under the poorest conditions—e.g. on mountain grazings—2 weaned calves from every 3 cows may be regarded as a satisfactory result.

      The interval between successive heats varies a little, the average being about twenty days. Females in good condition come in season at all times of the year, but most regularly in spring and summer, and least regularly in late autumn and early winter. The length of the heat period is on the average about eighteen hours, but it varies between six and thirty hours. Œstrum is shortest in mid-winter when it may easily pass unobserved. In the case of cows running out on pasture without artificial feeding, œstrum may occur only during the summer months. Unsuccessful matings are somewhat common and are due to a variety of causes. In the absence of widespread contagious disease among the cows, and with a fully fertile bull, about two-thirds of the services may be expected to result in conception. Twin calves are fairly rare—rather above 1 per cent. in dairy herds and about half of 1 per cent.

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