Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1869-10-12
House, Farm and Garden.
/. o. r. COLLINS, Editor.
What kind Of Stock should We Raise :?


What kind Of Stock should We Raise 2
As this is the time of year when farmers |
usually arrange their stock for the coming
year, word to young farmers in regard to
the quality Of stock to keep to make the
most profit, may not be amiss. We do not
propose now to discuss the question, wheth-
er it is more profitable to keep cows, or
sheep, young stock or horses and colts
whether we shall stall feed oxen or sheep,
either or both but simply, what quality
of stock shall we keep, whether we keep
one or all the kinds enumerated? To
this question we answer unhesitatingly,
keep good stock Never raise a poor ami
NAL if you can avoid it, and never pur-
chase poor one on any conditions. If it
will not pay to keep good animal it most
certainly will not poor one, for the chan
ces are that the Keeping of the poor animal
will be the most expensive, while the in
come will surely be much less. 1t may
seem to some that at the present day such
advice is needless. True, nearly every one
will admit this theory to be correct, but
how is it in practice? A large majority of
farmers in buying and selling utterly ig-
more this theory, and practice the direct
reverse. If they have stock to sell they
will sell that which will bring the most,
and if they buy they buy the cheapest.
There is an idea quite prevalent-though
we are sure it lisa mistaken one--that a
young animal, yearling steer or heifer
for instance, which has had rather hard
chance-perhaps has been wintered poorly
and is consequently rather small and poor
will do better or gain faster when put IN
| good feed than one which has always had
enough of good food and has consequently
kept growing all its life. Individual cases
| may occur, where an animal that is small
and poor in consequence of poor keeping,
when put upon good keeping will thrive
wonderfully WE'LL but as rule, an animal
that has always been kept thriftily growing
| will gain much faster with the same chance,
SO that it is net safe in buying to calculate
that because an animal is poor they are
going to give greater returns for good keep
| ing than vel fed and we'll grown one.
We have proved in our own experience
that there is much more money to be made
in keeping good, high priced stock, than
poor and CHEAP When we first commence
ed farming, wishing to buy some young
stock to eat Our hay, and having only a
certain amount of money to invest, we
chose to make it go as far as it would by
buying cheap yearlings. We purchased
seven at a total cost of sixty-three dollars,
or an average Of nine dollars each. We do
not wish to be understood that they were
very poor or very small. On the contrary,
they were about an average lot, some bet
ter perhaps than the average of yearlings
and some poorer. This was in 1883
About the sane time that we made the
purchase an acquaintance purchased two
pairs of yeaning steers at twelve dollars
per head, or forty-eight dollars for the lot,
making them cost one-fourth more per
head than ours. Had the two lots been
appraised at the time by every farmer in
town, we are confident that majority OF
them would have called our cattle the bet
ter trade at the respective prices. But SO
it did not prove The next year, 1854, wa:
extremely dry. Beef was low, the hay crop
short, and the cattle drug. Though our
cattle had been well wintered and summer.
ed, and had grown well, the best We could
do with them was thirteen dollars each
for four ofthem and seventeen per head
for the other three, and we sold them al
those prices, giving us forty dollars fol
keeping the whole seven year, or five dol
lars and seventy-one cents each. But how
did the other man come out with his! HI
had no difficulty in disposing of the foul
for one hundred and fifty dollars, giving
him one hundred and two dollars for theil
keeping, or twenty-five dollars and fifty
cents each, and they had been no bette
J fed than had ours. This experience con
, WINGED us of two facts which our observa
: ton as well as experience has since con
e irmed; First, that good formed, well pro
! portioned young animals, that have beer
well kept and have consequently got 1
) good growth, will gain much faster on tn
, same quality Of keeping than i'll formed
l or small and poor ones will; and second
t that in a hard time for selling stock a gooC
e animal will not only sell at much highe
: price than poor one but will be in mucl
t better demand. What we have said o
e young cattle is equally true of all othe
t kinds of stock. Therefore, we advise thos
4 who are about purchasing stock to white
!. to buy good stock. The highest priced
u not always the cheapest-but the best near
r ly always is the cheapest. A man ma,
o have an animal which he does not wish
i sell, and consequently may put so high
It price upon it that it may not be advisabl
d to purchase though the animal may be {
e the best quality, yet in purchasing we ar
IS not so likely to pay too high for good al
= imal as we are for a poor one.