The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1901-03-01
DRYING UP THE COWS
EFFECT OF POORLY BALANCED RIA
TON ON MILK FLOW.

Many Dairymen Pay Too Little At
tention to This Important Matter.
Food Must Possess Sufficient Guam
tity Of Protein.
The claim is frequently made By
dairymen that certain feeds dry up
the COWS, or if not dry them up make
a very decided reduction in the amount
of milk produced, says f. G. Short in
The National Stockman and Farmer.
1t may be that there is Il certain
amount of truth in such claims, and we
cannot deny that such results may be
possible, simply because the effect, me-
dicinal we call it, of different varieties
of feeds on the udder is not by any
means known, and until such knovl-
edge is acquired by experiment or 9th
erwise it is best not to give a decided
no to the question.
But in the meantime it is possible
that there may be another reason for
the SO called drying up Of the milk
flow. Among other feeds sorghum fod-
der or hay has this reputation, and it's
results are seen particularly in such
states as Kansas, where second growth
sorghum forms q common pasturage
during the fall months.
Unfortunately the larger number of
dairymen pay but little or no attention
to the question of balanced rations Or
to the amount of the several classes of
nutrients fed to their cows. To many
Of them the amount to be fed is decided
by bulk, without regard to it's compo-
sition. while the successful dairyman
knows that the composition of food
rather than its bulk is what decides it's
value
We may accept it as a fact decided
beyond question that thousand pound
cow requires Z pound Of protein to
keep her machinery in order, keep heat
and life in her body and enable her to
do further work in the preparation Of
milk when the proper material is sup
piled. This L pound Of protein is first
and foremost. Now suppose that COW
is turned into field of second growth
sorghum, can she get enough nutri-
ment from it to both support herself
and at the same time keep up the flow
Of milk?
According to the analysis green sor-
ghum contains digestible nutrients per
hundred pounds as follows: Protein, 6
per cent; carbohydrates, 1872 per cent;
fat, 4 per cent. 1t follows that if the
COW is made to depend on such pasture
alone she will have to eat about 116
pounds of green sorghum to obtain suf
ficient protein for maintenance. and if
she wishes to obtain the necessary ex-
ira pound Of protein for milk produc
ton an added 1914 pounds Of the green
sorghum must be eaten and digested.
Remember that the above figures are
based on matured sorghum and that
the young second growth would con-
tain still smaller per cents of nutrients,
making it still harder for the cow to
obtain sufficient nutriment from the
feed supplied. This process of reason
ing can be applied to all feeds.
Any dairyman can judge whether his
animals are able to eat and digest such
quantities of green fodder and whether
such conditions may not cause all the
so called drying up power that has
been attributed to sorghum. It seems
to narrow down to a simple want of
sufficient quantities Of nutrients, and
the sorghum fodder alone does not sup
ply them.
OF course it may be claimed that no
dairyman would depend on second
growth sorghum alone for his cow feed.
Perhaps that is so, but so long as it is
not uncommon for dairymen to turn
their COWS into frost bitten stalkfelds,
there to pick up living without other
feeds, it is not supposing too much to
credit them with the same habit with
other feeds, especially when they are
apparently a much better feed than
can be found in a stalkfeld.