Semi-weekly Bourbon news. [volume] (Paris, Bourbon County, Kentucky.) 1883-1895, 1883-08-07
Rearing Of Calves.

the rearing, and it matters less what the
| parentage is than what the rearing and
training may be. There is no difficulty
whatever in the rearing of calves in
diaries, where the skinned milk NAV
be used as food for them. In butter
diaries it is an absolute necessity to rear
! the calves, because good COWS cannot
be purchased at any reasonable price or
! for less than large advance upon their
actual cost. The skill and care expended
in rearing calves to good COWS must be
| paid for, as all skilled labor is, at high
price. But the dairyman can easily
rear young animal to a productive con-
dition at two years of age, in the best
manner. for no more that $25 or $50.
Skinned milk is sufficient food for
calves During the first four or five
days they NAV have the milk fresh from
the dam, but after that skinned milk
may be substituted gradually, until in a
week none but skinned milk is used.
1t is necessary, however, that the milk
be fed warm, and this is a specially in
dispensable point. Cold milk must be
warmed in the stomach, and the alb
straction of so much heat from this
organ necessarily weakens digestive &C
ton as well as wastes the food.
The milk should be warmed to 900
for the first two months. The food
should be given no more cOpiously than
can be digested. Three quarts at
meal is ample for the first feeding, and
two meals day are sufficient. Fat is
not required to any large extent bya
calf that is to be reared for the dairy,
and whatever fat is needed to fill out
healthful tissue will be easily furnished
by one or two per cent of it left in the
skinned milk, or by the heterogeneous
matter of the milk. Six quarts
a day lis equal to thirteen pounds.
which will furnish sufficient nourish-
ment for a growth of one and a quarter
pounds of live weight daily. 1t will not
do to suppose that if ten pounds of milk
produce one pound of live weight
twenty pounds will produce twice as
much. We cannot figure in that way
in feeding animals of any kind. Oyer
feeding produces indigestion, loads up
the system with injurious matter, retards
growth or stops it altogether, or even
reduces the weight previously gained
Indigestion naturally results in diar-
rhea, a frequent and troublesome dis
ease in young calves, and often fatal
one. But it is easily escaped by avoid
ing the cause of it, which is generally
overlooking.
The feeding must be regular, and
| when this word is used it is meant in its
most exact and fullest sense as regards
quantity, quality, condition of food and
time of feeding. Regularity, in fact, is
the most indispensable element of sue
cess in the dairy, and it should be as
complete and perfect in every way as
the motions of nature. 1t is one of the
first of natural laws, and the greatest ad-
vantage we can gain over nature in the
domestication of our animals is in
avoiding those irregularities which in
wild condition are caused by accidents
of weather and season. Its practice in
| the dairy insureS health and thrift in
the animals, especially in the young
growing ones.
Cleanliness is also indispensable, for
the food must be clean and sweet to
avoid disturbance of the digestion and
nutrition. Fortunately, in the modern
improved dairy appliances we have per-
fectmeans of securing purity and sweet
ness in the skinned milk, and this is as
necessary for the rearing of young calves
as for the manufacture of choice butter
Warm, and comfortable lodgings, too,
are closely allied to feeding; indeed,
/ they are indirectly part of the feeding,
for if to maintain the animal best under
exposure to cold, which wastes it, we
are compelled to increase the food, we
| overtaX the weak digestive powers Of
the young calf, and at once produce
disorder and disease. Exposure to cold
will, of itself, produce diarrhea, which
is perhaps the only ailment in calves
that we need to guard against.
! After calf is one month old the feed
may be gradually increased week by
( week up to four quarts at q meal, and
at two months old little mixed ground
oats and corn may be given in the hand
/ until the calf will take an ounce or SO
| daily from feed-box. 1t will then be-
gin to pick some fine hay or clover Gf
/ it is Winter calf or eat grass in the
( Spring or Summer. For the latter it is
| best to furnish handful of cut grass or
clover, rather than to turn the calf into
the field until it is four months old. In
the gradual increase of food the
iirst sign of excess is the appearance of
diarrhea, which is easily stopped by the
immediate reduction of the food and
the substitution of a quart of milk
fresh from the COW given twice a day.
In treating diarrhea astringent drugs
only make matters worse. A warm,
demulcent drink is the best medicine,
and well boiled oatmeal cruel. with an
equal part of sweetened gum water (gum
arabic dissolved in.water,) given in very
NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. will usually re-
store the calf at once. The best medi-
cine, when this is found necessary, is cas-
tor oil in dose of one ounce, repeated, if
needed, in doses reduced one-half each
time, until only teaspoonful is given
twice day. This will cure the worst
cases of diarrhea. If stimulent is de-
sired, few drops of tincture of ginger
and as much infusion of Peruvian bark
in sweetened water-One-half pint-will
De found useful. AS rule the necessi-
ty for medicine indicates neglect or mis-
take in the feeding or management, and
dairy may be carried on under reg
liar system of good management for
my length of time and indefinitely,