The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1881-12-03
Keeping Cows in Winter,

question of food is the all important one,
and in order to secure an abundant supply !
many milk raisers are devoting money and
time to experiments with silos and ensilage.
Having little faith in the value of fodder
preserved by DR.. Bailcys methods, | AIN
content to allow others to pursue their IN
vcstigations undisturbcd. But l desire to
give the result of experiments made with
common dried fodder and little grain
and all interested are at liberty to preserve
this statement of facts for comparison with
the records made by silo builders. The
craze on ensilage among farmers would lead
one to think that their cattle could be kept
for little or next to nothing. Some claim
that milk can be made for one cent quart
and butter for ten cents pound. l am
perfectly willing that all who wish may en-
ter into this excitement, My opinion OF
it is that it is a thimble-rig game now you
see it lin mind) and now you don't On
fact. | have not seen a man who advo-
Gates it who can tell where or how they can
take out of the silo more food than they put
into it: while Prof Goessman, State chem
list. says there is loss in heterogeneous mat
ter. His paper was read before the meeting
of the State Board of Agriculture, at North
borough. in December last and will be pub
lished in the Boards report this winter,
All farmers who are stricken with the sllO
fever should read it; perhaps 1t might be
the means Of curing the malady.
If farmers are determined to experiment
- l. b, f.n+
aside an acre of land, plant it with corn,
manure it, give it thorough cultivation, and
when the corn ceases to draw nourishment
from the earth cut half of it and place it in
cheap silo from which the air is carefully
excluded Then take the other half, dry
it, stack it. and stow 1t away Take four
cows in milk and feed two with ensilage and
two with dried fodder, giving the same
amount of grain to each, for three weeks,
and then change the feed giving the ensi
lace to the COWS which had the dried corn
and vice versa, weigh the milk, and see
which gives the best results. Such an eX-
pertinent would, | think, give farmers some
! idea of the ACCESSIBILITY Of mourning the eX
pense of a large silo. At the present day
all business is being done with such close
ness that it is necessary that persons in any
occupation (not excepting farmers should
know exactly what their expenses, income,
profit or loss may be. How many farm
ers are there, keeping il herd Of cows. who
can give the daily cost of their keeping ?
Would it not be well for farmers to invest
a little more brains and time in getting at
such information before indulging i'll large
silos and feeding their cows with ensilage ?
The idea that butter can be produced for
ten cents a pound, or milk for a cent Il
quart, is, in my opinion, nonsensical. The
people who make such assertions do so with.
out adequate knowledge Of the cost Of pro-
ducing these articles, due in the majority
of cases to the fact that they have never
made any accurate calculation Of the cx-
pensc of raising and feeding their stock.
On nv farm there are from 20 to 40
acres devoted to the raising Of corn fodder
and rowen sufficient to keep from 25 to 30
cows through the winter | do not intend
to keep any more, and | expect the yield
will prove large enough to support the
. SIuCh HItnOuU lHlFCliCllS9 IioIi
The corn is cut as it ceases to grow, for the
reason that it is richer in nutritive proper
ties than at an earlier period, and dried
Last fall. when the stock was taken to barn,
[ had desire to learn the cost Of keeping
each COW per day. | fixed upon what |
considered fair amount of corn and rowen
to carry them through, and cut it with Il
machine, which, with the work of two men,
will cut between 500 and 600 pounds an
hour. | gave the same amount Of grain
by measure to each COW daily. On this
diet of dried corn, roWen and grain they
were fed from November 20 to January 3,
and at the latter date they were looking
better than when they went to the barn.
then directed that every ounce Of food con-
sumed should be weighed for period of
seven days, and that the time Of consuming
each meal should be accurately kept. At
the end of the week found they had CON
sumed ,057 pounds of corn fodder at 81
a ton, or $3.50 1,319 pounds of rowen at
so ton or $3.50; 974 pounds of shorts
at SIS ton, or S9.76; 1926 pounds of
meal at 1.30 hundred, or $3.50; in all
S2459 for the keeping of % COWS one
week, a cost for each COW Of II cents and
l mill day. Adding ; cents more for
attendance, and the expense was II cents
and ! mill All the cows are in excellent
condition, as will be apparent to anyone
who will take the trouble Of calling at the
barn, which all interested are invited to do.
Twelve were in milk at the time referred
to, and they We're given all the meal the
others were kept on the fodder and shorts.
believe that it is one quarter better to
feed the corn in fine pieces than whole.
Ny method is to mix the meal, shorts, and
chopped fodder together with as much
water as they will absorb, which | found to
be, for the quantity required for the %
COWS, 36 pailfuls a day. By giving as
much water in this way as possible find
great advantage, as there is much less loss
of animal energy and heat than would be
the case if the stock took that much water
cold at the trough. Besides this the stock
is watered once day, about 10 o'clock in
the morning, and | find that their thirst is
much less than if the food was given dry
NV theory is that the COW is much benefit
ed if the moisture is supplied with the food.
There is less tax upon the digestive organs.
1t is held by eminent authorities that when
water is taken in considerable quantities
into the stomach of man or beast it must
first pass out of the stomach before diges
ton is resumed Another advantage of
thoroughly mixing the food, is that where
meal is given separately it remains in one
portion, of the stomach as a distinct mass,
and in the process of digestion the full
yalue is not obtained, while the largest pos
sble benefit results from its admixture with
the rest of the food. The COWS averaged
Al minutes at each meal, and this, too, I
deem ap advantage. If fed on dry hay or
corn much longer time would be required
for the completion of the meal If you
place the food before the COW SO prepared
that it can be consumed in Al minutes her
labor ceases until the next meal, and she