Mini Cows

迷你乳牛It’s only the size that makes these cows mini by Audrey Osment.


As farm animals go, cattle rank among the largest. Many of them weigh more than 500 kilograms! But it hasn't always been that way. Historically, cattle were far smaller until the mid-20th century when relatively low feed costs shifted the focus of farmers to getting more meat from each animal. Now, rising feed costs and environmental concerns are reversing that trend, and people in the agriculture business are once more investing in miniature cattle.


How did mini cows get so... small?
There are actually numerous types of mini cattle that come in different shapes, sizes and colors.
Generally, though, minis are far smaller than their larger cousins.


While you might suspect that these tiny cows are a modern wonder of genetic engineering, they actually aren't. The original mini cattle were developed hundreds of years ago by British farmers, primarily because their small farms couldn't accommodate larger cows. Traditionally viewed as ideal for small farms, mini cows were kept to provide a household with milk for a year. They could also annually produce a calf, which was raised to provide the family with beef.

The whys and hows of mini cows
These days, mini cows are proving increasingly popular with both commercial and hobby farmers. The most significant reason for this resurgent popularity is how much cheaper the little cows can be to raise. Regular-sized, brutes need a lot of space and food - both of which are costly. Mini cows simply consume less feed while producing proportionally more meat or milk. Miniature Herfords, for example, produce between 50 and 75 percent of the steak their full-sized cousins produce, but they only eat about half as much.

Miniature Jersey cows can generate up to 15 liters of milk a day though they are so short farmers have to squat way down to milk them. Perhaps more importantly, mini cows are far more environmentally friendly than their larger relatives. In fact, according to Professor Richard Gradwohl, it takes 10 mini cattle to create the same amount of methane that one regular cow produces.

With a long history and a bright future, it looks like mini cows are here to stay. And in this case, the old saying is true: Good things really do come in small packages. (the bigger is the better is not always true.)

Grammar Tips:
As farm animals go, cattle rank among the largest.
"as farm animals go"
"go"-here is not talk about farm animals moving anywhere.
"go" -here means "Generally, among farm animals, cattle rank among the largest."
"go" - generally speaking regarding a certain group or category.
As school tuition rates go, private schools are more costly than public schools.
As trucks go, the bigger they are, the more powerful they are.

Vocabulary Tips:
mini-迷你,袖珍型
*There's a mini library in the classroom; all the books were donated by the parents.
*The kids love to pet those mini horses. 輕輕拍打迷你馬
reverse-翻轉或逆轉. "re" 回來的意思.
*The new CEO reversed the recent decline of our sales and also helped the company to reduce unnecessary expenses.
accommodate-容納,提供膳宿.
*She reversed the big truck into the garage with ease. 很輕易的把卡車倒車入庫.
*We didn't have room to accommodate too many puppies, so we had to give up two of them.
*The dorm can accommodate around 1,500 students. 宿舍能容納...
resurgent-再起的,重新產生的. "re" -再一次
*David got his resurgent enthusiasm in work after a nice vacation with his family. 重心燃起工作熱情
*The resurgent tension between two countries drew international attention. 重新點燃緊張情勢.... 引起國際的重視.
proportionally- 按比例來説,相稱地. proportion -比例
*Male employees receive proportionally higher salaries than females. 男職員..
*The housing budget is distributed proportionally according to the number of the residences.
squat-蹲,蹲下 squatted/squatting
*She squatted down to pick up the boy. 蹲下來把孩子抱起來.
*The homeless people squatted on the ground and warmed their hands by the fire. 蹲坐在地上..
brute - large and strong, very useful, 特別高大強壯,塊頭大強有力的(人或動物)
Jersey - another "breed" of cow.
methane- smelly gas, came from cow, it's bad for green, environmental.

Chat Room:
Mini Cows -迷你牛
till the cows come home-等到牛自己囘家.意即"長期間的在做這件事, 有的好等了.牛一放出去,很難收心囘籠.
have a cow - 情緒很激動,大發脾氣.
Don't have a cow. Calm down.-別那麽情緒激動,先靜下來
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much cheaper - can not say "more cheaper" . if you use "more" before cheaper, faster, bigger, it is called " double comparative". it is not right in grammar. use "much" instead. 強調,在程度上更加多一些.
cheaper, faster, bigger -都是比較級
much cheaper, much faster, much bigger. 更便宜,更快,更大.
produce (v)-种音在第二節. 製造,生産.
Miniature Herefords produce between 50 and 75 percent.
produce (n) -重音在第一節. 農產品,蔬菜水果等.
the produce section -蔬果區.