Editing Cattle age determination (section)

==Other methods==
Cattle age in a [[Meat packing industry|carcass]] is determined checking the physiological skeletal maturity (ossification) (red) of the tips or "buttons" of the [[thoracic vertebrae]]. The size and shape of the rib bones are important considerations as well as the colour and texture of the flesh.<ref name="Code of Federal Regulations: 1949-1984">{{cite book | title=Code of Federal Regulations: Containing a Codification of Documents of General Applicability and Future Effect as of December 31, 1948, with Ancillaries and Index | publisher=Division of the Federal Register, the National Archives | year=1959 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5ReZ6pvcfgcC&pg=PA23 | page=23}}</ref>

The use of number (year) branding, [[tattoo]]s or [[ear tag]]s with numbers or different colours are good methods of identifying the age of cattle, if they are used according to standards.