"Nearly 50 years ago a few progressive dairy farmers in Michigan organized the first cow-testing association in the United States. They wanted to improve the profitableness of their herds. They hired a tester to weigh and test the milk of each cow and keep a record of her food cost and income. They wanted that information so the could cull the low producers from their herds and feed the rest more economically. In the first 4 years of their pioneer effort these Michigan dairy farmers doubled the average profit per sow. since then thousands of other dairy farmers have followed their example with equally striking results. The cow-testing movement grew and eventually expanded into the present-day dairy-herd-improvement-association program. Members of these associations now use their records not only to test the cows but to prove the bulls. The improvement they have brought about in their herds is one of the outstanding 'success' stories in agriculture. No herd is so good that it cannot be made better by effective culling, good feeding, and the use of production-tested breeding stock. Breeding records and records of production, feed cost, and income are essential for carrying on such an improvement program. Membership in a dairy-herd improvement association is one of the best and most economical ways for any dairy farmer to obtain the necessary records."--Page ii.