Dairy Cattle Evaluation

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Dairy Cattle Evaluation

• By
• Jennifer L. Tereba

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Why Judge Dairy Cattle?

• Gain a better understanding of what makes a
  productive and functional dairy cow
• Improve observational skills
• Learn how to present yourself in a clear manner
• Have fun

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Dairy Cow Unified Scorecard

• 40 Mammary System
• 20 Dairy Character
• 15 Frame
• 15 Feet Legs
• 10 Body Capacity

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Mammary System 40
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Udder Depth

• How high above the hock is the udder?

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Teat placement Size

• Where are the teats placed on the quarters?
• Pay particular attention to the front teats.
• Teats should be about 2 inches long and
  cylindrical

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Rear Udder Width Height

• Rear udder width is measured at the attachment
• The higher the rear udder the better!

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Fore Udder Udder Quality

• Look at the length smoothness of the fore udder
  attachment
• Look at the balance from both side and rear
• Look at the veining of the udder

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Dairy Character 20

• What is dairy character?
• Dairy character indicates the ability of the
  cow to efficiently convert feed to milk.
• Evidence of dairy character includes flat bone
  and angularity

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Rib Bone

• Look for rib that sweeps back toward the flank
• Look for ribs that are wide apart and flat
• The bone should also be flat refined

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Cleanliness Angularity

• Look for sharp withers, hips pins
• Clean down the neck and thigh

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Frame 15

• Components of Frame
• Rump
• Stature
• Front end
• Back
• Head Breed Character

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Rump, Stature Back

• The rump should have a slight slope from hips to
  pins
• The rump should be wide from hip to hip and pin
  to pin
• Stature is how tall the cow is at the withers.
• The back should be slightly higher at the withers
  than hips and straight all the way across.

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Rump, Stature Back
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Front End Strength

• Front end assembly is the shoulder and chest
• It should be smooth and tight
• Strength width of chest muzzle.

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Head Breed Character

• Look for
• a feminine head
• correct breed colors and shape of head
• Deep jaw wide muzzle

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Feet Legs 15

• Components of Feet and Legs
• Feet deep heel, short toe
• Rear legs straight from rear
• Rear legs moderate angle from side
• Pasterns short and strong

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Legs Side View

• View the rear legs from the side
• The leg should have a moderate angle to the hock
• The hock should be clean and flexible

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Body Capacity 10

• Body capacity is simply the volume of the cow
• Length X Width X Depth
• Look for
• a long body
• a wide chest
• a deep barrel

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Length Depth of Barrel
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Lets Practice!

• Here is a practice class of Brown Swiss cows
• Look at each cow and think about the parts of the
  Unified Scorecard.
• Then write down several things that you like or
  dislike about that cow.
• Finally, write down how you would place the
  class

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Brown Swiss - Cow A
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Brown Swiss - Cow B
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Brown Swiss - Cow C
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Brown Swiss - Cow D
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Time for Decisions

• Which cow has the best udder? What about 2nd.
  Best?
• Which cow has the worst udder?
• Which cow has the most dairy character?
• Which cow has the least dairy character?

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What do you think?

• Which cow had the best frame? The worst frame?
• Which cow had the best feet? the worst feet?
• Which cow has the most body capacity? the least
  body capacity?

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Did you see what the judge saw?

• Udder A C D B
• Dairy character C A D B
• Frame A C B D
• Feet Legs C D A B
• Body Capacity A D C B

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Did you see what the judge saw?

• The judges final placing was
• A C D B
• To read what the judge had to say about this
  class of cows go to
• HOARD'S DAIRYMAN -- The
  National Dairy Farm Magazine

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How did you do?

• Did you see it like the judge did?
• Even if you didnt, thats O.K.
• Learning to judge livestock takes time
• As long as youre willing to learn and are having
  fun judging can be a great experience!