St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1883-05-12
A Chapter on Cows.

Farmers strive to raise or buy the
best of cows. Probably not one in live
hundred will make, on flush pasture,
ten pounds of butter a week; and three
hundred pounds of cheese in six months,
or one hundred pounds Of butter for
the same time, is more than the aver
aoe. / had large, rough COW that
made twelve pounds of butter a week
and held on well to her milk; she was
very well marked, according to the
French rule, and huge feeder. A
laroe. pale. white and red COW. with
LARGE neck, head and horns, made nine
mounds a week, but we did not think
her so good as COWS that made seven
pounds, and held on to their milk bet
ter. An ordinary-sized COW made nine
mounds a week, but soon shrunk IN
milk. A fine grade COW made ten
pounds. and held out well. OF cows
have seen, q small, sleek-coated COW
made ten pounds in a week; a handsome
COW made fourteen pounds-a very
busy feeder; a large, rough cow maze
seventeen pounds; a large, fat Durham.
with the best of pasture and all the feed
she could eat, was claimed to make
twenty pounds week; a large, ordl-
nary-looking cow made fourteen
pounds, but she went dry long. we
tried all the cows we ever had, here ana
in Eastern Pennsylvania. A handsome
Young COW made three pounds OF butter
in aWeek; scallawag made six pounds.
We tried three cows lately-in March.
A handsome cow made two and one
half pounds week; it took thirty-slx
pounds of her milk for one of butter.
A white COW, with thick neck and large
horns, also made two and one-half
pounds; it took twenty-six pounds OF her
milk for one of butter-these were far
row COWS. A broad and fresh COW made
ten pounds in six. days. So it would
seem best to buy and raise COWS that
would make good beeves and try them,
retaining only the good mixers. A
good time to buy a COW is four or i've
months previous to her calying. Sit
down and milk her; note the quantity
and quality of the milk; get some OF the
milk and see what cream rises.
From forty years experience with
cows; from all I could learn from
others; from seeing most of the remark
able cows I could hear of, it seems
thus about them: A COW should have
good constitution; to have this she
can t be too broad on the back, and full
back of the forelegs; then the broader
over the loins and to the tail the better,
and as straight down behind as you can
get: in short, COW that will make a
good beef, for this is what she comes to.
| Then, if YOU can have the head and
neck smaller, milk-veins large, horn
small and green, and be well marked
in the escutcheon, and sleek-coated, all
the better; but these latter points are
not essential to a good cow, as expert
ence has abundantly proved. Cows in
their native condition give but little
milk, and only for a few months in the
year. But with domestic cows, trained
from young heifers to give most milk,
and to hold on; bred from the best milk
ers, and stimulated through life to give
the most milk; why those that make the
best use of what they use, in accumulat-
ing flesh, should be most profitable,
when that propensity is diverted to pro-
ducing milk. But only experience can
test a COW. To have COWS come up to
be MIXED, give them a little salt each
time; keep them hungry for it. Have
well-bedded and very open stables in
| summer. Fasten the cows in their
stalls by light rail fastened behind
| them. We have straw around our cows
and close to their backs. Keep them as
close as possible in cold weather; and
/ well ventilatas5! as possible. in warm
weather; we leave them in in winter ex-
cept when they go to water. Our cows
without grain, are as fat in spring as II
! fall, and we milk them until six weeks
of calving Cor. N. 7. Tribune.