The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1894-05-10
OUR RURAL TOPICS.
Some Practical Suggestions for Our
Agricultural Readers
DAIRY cows.


As to the modern dairy cow as an arti-
fetal creature, brought about by selection,
breeding, and feeding, it is quite necessary
that her needs should be understood if she
is not to degenerate. The best dairy cow
can be converted into beef cow in COM
paratively short time, if the proper feeding
and attention are bestowed upon her; but
it is much more difficult to make a good
dairy COW out of beef one. We have de-
velOped the dairy cow from one that had
only little more milk than she needed for
her young to one that yields large quantities
good part of the year. Herein is our profit,
and the study Of the animal must be such
as to make us acquainted with the laws of
milk-yieiding and feeding.
Given good breed and a well-selected
animal, the question Of treating her must
become of paramount importance In the
first place, the animal must be taken into
hand and developed from the day she is
born until she is sold. The calf should be
separated from the mother when it is q
day old, and the two should not be allowed
to see each other again. II allowed to asso-
cate together for few days the mother may
be completely ruined as mixer The
change from The sucking of the calf to that
OF milking with the hands will make the
mother refuse TO give down the milk in
many instances. This may soon become q
habit which the animal will not overcome
during the rest of her life. In raising the
cow or the old calf, regularity of milking
and feeding are very essential. They are,
after all, largely creatures of habit, and if
the same man milks the same cow at the
regular hour each day, she soon gets so that
she will give down the milk freely at that
time. change in the hour of feeding is
always fruitful of bad results.
In raising and developing the calf for the
dairy she should be given every chance to
show her best qualities, and gentle treat
meDt from the first will soon bea great boon.
Ii she does not produce a good supply Of
milk and is not very promising, she should
be disposed of at once. A cow that gives
125 or $50 pounds of butter a year costs
just as much to keep as one that Yields 800
pounds. The difference in the profits is lust
one-half. 1t is only business that one should
be kept and the other sold or killed Have
no deadweights on the farm. Make a
standard of yield to which every mixer
must approach pretty closely. If they do
not, they are not the cows wanted. There
are plenty of others that will yield the
standard of milk and butter, unless it is
placed too high. 1t is better to limit the
herd to 10 such high-class animals than to
keep 20 or 80 of the poorer kind Thelatter
will eat up more food and yield less profit,
while the labor will be quadrupled.
If in the butter business, apply the same
rules to this part of the dairy work It
costs no more to make good butter than to
manufacture poor stuff, and the results are
very different. Find out the best and latest
way to make the finest market butter. Then
have good system OF packing it, and try to
find the best markets. In these small ways
of conducting the business lies the whole
secret of profitable dairying.- Wisconsin, Ag-
riculturist.