The Colfax chronicle. [volume] (Colfax, Grant Parish, La.) 1877-1981, 1880-04-10
SPRING CARE OF DAIRY cows.

Dairymen are looking for quick re-
turns, and many of them are not willing
to wait for the results of good feeding.
They are doubtful about trusting the
COW for two or three months for extra
winter feed, fearing it win not be re-
funded. They are too often unwilling
to give liberal ration even for the
month before calving. As the COW is
not giving milk, they think it sufficient
to feed enough to keep her from losing
flesh rapidly. If they quite understood
the rationale of milk production they
would have the greatest confidence in
the COW as savings bank for surplus
food. A good cow can always be trusted
to repay with liberal interest all the
extra food she can digest during the
time she goes dry. Such a COW is usu-
ally thin after season of milking, and
unless she is fed so literally as to recover
her fleshy condition, she win not give
her full quantity of milk. Every dairy
man is familiar with the fact that good
COW, coming in in full flesh, will milk
down thin unless literally fed during the
milking season. They ought to see from
this that the extra flesh is laid up in win
ter to be withdrawn during the sum-
mer. Every pound of extra flesh
represents about one gallon of milk, to
be drawn during summer. If two cows
of equal milking quality are taken, the
one poor and the other in good flesh on
coming in milk, and both placed in q
good pasture, the one in good condition
will be likely to yield a gallon of milk
in excess of the other, during the sea-
son, for every pound of extra flesh she
possesses over the other. If dairymen
would make such accurate observations
upon the effect of condition upon mich
cows-as they have every opportunity
to do-they would require no argument
to induce them to feed their dry COWS
most literally. The dairyman who has
not fed his cows as well as his interest
required during the early part of the
winter, should do what he can to re-
cover his lost ground, by feeding judi
ciously during the few weeks left. 1t
being so near calving time, he should be
cautious about giving food of too heat
ing nature. Corn-meal alone should
not be given, if that can be avoided /;
and, if nothing else is at hand, it
should be fed upon cut hay, so as
to have it thoroughly mixed with
fibrous food before entering the stom-
ach. Corn and eats, ground together
one bushel of corn to two of oats
makes one of the best foods for dry
cows. The food most needed by the
cow at this season is such as will build
up her muscular system, and re-invig-
crate her vitality. The food should be
rich in phosphate of lime; for she is
often depleted of this during the milk
/ ing period, so as to render her bones
spongy; and the diseases that affiict
cows in spring are usually occasioned
by the poverty of the food given through
the winter. Cows that are fed upon
good clover hay during winter, usually
recover their vigor, because clover Is
rich in muscle forming matter and phos-
plate of lime. Oats, peas, wheat-bran,
and oil-meal are all rich in phosphate
of lime, and are excellent to give the
COW renewed vitality during her non
tactical period. Care must be taken to
give oil-meal in very small quantity al
this period, rs the time of calving ap
proaches and especially If it has moi
been given through the winter; yet one
pint per day through the whole period
Of going dry will assist very materially
in keeping the COW in health; and Il
often prevents the evil effect of dry, in
nutritious fodder. When given through
the winter. we have never known i'm
FACTION of the manifolds. Oats and
bran, mixed together, win be excellent
food at this period; and II this foos
is continued after calying, 1t vii
help to establish good yield O
milk. During the first week aftel
calving the diet should be spare-not SC
necessary if the COW is thin-but |
, fieshy, she should be kept on hay, ex
cept quart of oil-meal, which is laxa
! tive and cooling. After all danger from
, milk fever is past, the feeding should b
: most liberal, so as to start the cow on |
large low of milk After ten days from
> calving no better extra food can b
) given than oats and wheat-bran, will
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