Judging of cattle, buffalo, and poultry

1. JUDGING
OF
FARM ANIMALS
Dr. P. Ravikanth Reddy
MVSc, PhD
Guest Faculty
KBR College of Agriculture and Horticulture
Acharya NG Ranga Agricultural University
Dr. YSR Horticulture University

4. Body capacity – 10%
 Age is taken into consideration.
 Barrel – Long, deep and wide. Depth and spring of rib increases with
rear end.
 Chest – Deep and wide floor with well sprung fore ribs blending into
shoulders.
 Ribcage – Depth is directly proportional to increased feed intake.
 Ribs – Openness and sweep (Wide and slanted towards the rear).
Adequate depth.

5. BODY CAPACITY

6.  Based on closeness to ideal dairy confirmation.
 Points are given for certain characteristics.
FRAME – 15%
 Breed character – 1% - Strong jaw and broad muzzle.
 Rump – 5% - Long and wide. Slightly lower than hip bone. Moderate
slope decreases calving difficulty.
 Stature – 2% - Taller at withers and hip region.
 Front end – 5% - Front legs wide apart. Shoulder blades and elbows
need to be straight and against chest wall.
 Back or loin – 2% - Straight and strong.

8. PIN BONES HOOK(HIP) BONES

9. FRONT END

10. Feet and Leg – 15%
 Evidence of proper mobility.
 Rear view – Straight and wide apart with feet squarely placed.
 Side view – Prominent hock region.
 Hock – Free from coarseness and puffiness with adequate flexibility.
 Foot angle – Steep – Therefore, less hoof trimming. More steepness
puts pressure on the pastern joint (High heels).
 Hock in – Toe out condition – Increases pressure on feet and causes
damage to the udder.

11. REAR VIEW

12. FOOT ANGLE

13. SIDE VIEW

14. Diary character – 20%
 Physical evidence of milking ability.
 Openness or close to ribs – Ribs should be wide and slanted towards
the rear.
 Neck – Long and lean.
 Brisket – Free from fat.
 Withers – Sharp.
 Throat – Clear cut.

15. DAIRY CHARACTER

16. Udder – 40%
 Major contribution is given to this trait.
 Udder depth – Consideration given to lactation number and age. By
measuring udder floor relative to hock joint.
 Teat placement – Squarely placed under each quarter.
 Rear udder – Wide and high, firmly attached with uniform width from
top to bottom and slightly rounded.
 Udder cleft – Exact halving – indicates strong suspensory ligament.
 Fore udder – Firmly attached with moderate length and ample
capacity.

17. UDDER DEPTH

18. TEAT PLACEMENT

19. REAR UDDER - HEIGHT

20. REAR UDDER - WIDTH

21. 1 – Prominent medium suspensory ligament, tight udder, teats are
perpendicular to the ground
2 – Intermediate prominent medium suspensory ligament, Udder
suspended away from body cavity
3- Very weak median suspensory ligament, udder and teats
suspended below the hock, teats splay outward
4- Median suspensory ligament absent, udder and teats suspended
below the hock joint, teats splay outward
UDDER CLEFT

22. UDDER CLEFT

23. FORE UDDER

24.  Teats – Cylindrical shape and uniform size with medium length and
diameter.
 Udder balance and texture – Cylindrical shape and uniform size with
medium length and diameter.
 Udder height – From lower point of vulva to udder secretory
tissue.
 Rear udder width – At point of attachment.
 Udder depth – Depending on hock joint.
 ‘4’ Quarters – Even and well separated.
 Texture – Soft and pliable.

25. TEAT LENGTH

26. Teats status

27. a) Udder depth; b) Udder
circumference; c) Udder width; d)
Teat length; e) Teat diameter; f) Teat
distance; g) Teat-floor distance.
Udder and
Teat traits

28.  Teat placement – Second most important physical trait. If front teats
are placed outside the quarter – They will causes slippage during
milking.
 Should simulate teat cup.

29. JUDGING
OF
POULTRY BIRDS
FOR EGG
PRODUCTION

30.  Pigment loss – Yellow colour skin pigments are lost (Vent, Eye ring,
Ear lobe, Beak, Bottom of foot).
 Handling qualities – Palpate for fat.
 Healthy beak, combs, wattles.
 Good abdominal capacity.
 Mottling – Loss of primary feathers