Birth weights

[Tim Watson]

We've just had a 21kg calf and wondered what calf birth weights people were experiencing?

[Louisa Gidney]

I discussed this topic at length in the Calf chapter of my thesis http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/10561/
A summary of the data was published in the Bulletin a few years ago.
In brief, in a sample of 553 births, the mean was 21kg, range 6-41kg, Standard Deviation 4kg.

[Rob R]

Louisa, your thesis is such a useful reference for many things Dexter, have you thought about publishing it in book form?

[JohnnyP]

I'd be somewhat interested to know my calves' birth weights, but have never been sufficiently motivated to weigh one. And if you're wondering what I put on the pedigree registration form - I make it up. Usually 21kg.

[Louisa Gidney]

Rob, I thought I had a small independent publisher interested in a populist version of the thesis but nothing has come of it. I'm trickle feeding more academic bits of it as conference posters and articles but the latter move at glacial speed. Posters are all on my Academia page at www.academia.edu but probably easier to find through Google.
I had thought DCS might show a bit of interest in promulgating parts of it, but I was mistaken.

[Rob R]

If I were you I'd seriously consider self publishing, as this is something I think Dexter breeders around the world would snap up on Amazon & ebay, and the money would go straight back to you.

[Louisa Gidney]

Rob, there doesn't seem a lot of point in self publishing when the university has put the whole thing online for anyone, anywhere to browse at their leisure.

[Rob R]

I think you'd be suprised - I'd certainly buy a copy as I hate reading off screen, and it took a small fortune in time to print it off.