The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1901-05-31

MAY WIPE OUT PROFITS OF MORE
VALUABLE ANIMALS.


| Opinions of Experts From the Vari-
Gus Experimental Stations - Cows
EIust Make Two Hundred Pounds of
Butter a Year to Pay.
| In these days of close competition it
| is very necessary for dairyman to
know the producing nSaure of each in
| dividual of his herd, says d. w. May
| in American Agriculturist. An unprof-
| table COW, while causing a loss, may
! wipe out the profits Of a more valuable
| animal. Some results Of the herd rec
| ords at various experiment stations
may prove of value to the butter maker
| by pointing out errors to be guarded
| against.
At the Ohio station experiments on
| the production OF milk show that with
| the same food and under the same
treatment one cow may transform into
! butter an amount of fat equivalent to
all that is found in the food. Another
may supplement this with fat previous
| ly stored up ia the body, and still an
other may convert into butter other
| constituents of the food than it's fat,
while others may divert the fat of the
| food into formation of body fat rath-
er than butter.
The Connecticut station at StOrrS adj
vises farmers to make a close study Of
! the individual COWS of their herds and
| to reject the Improbable ones. The
value of COWS can be easily and cheap
| ~ studied by the use Of the Babcock
milk test together with daily weigh
ings of the milk The Pennsylvania
! station suggests applying the feed test
A to each animal, as we'll as the butter
! test, and wedding out those animals
that do not make a satisfactory return
| for the food consumed.
The Cornell station found that in gen
eral the COWS consuming the &nOst food
| produced both milk and fat at the low
| est rate The Minnesota station states
that the best cows, the annual butter
| product of which exceeded 40 per cent
| of the live weight, were small or medi-
| UNI in size, although good ones were
| found among the larger COWS. At the
| Vermont station usually the COWS Civ
| ing the most milk ana butter made it
most cheaply, and those giving the least
milk or butter made 1T at the greatest
| cost. AS a general rule the COWS max
| ing the most butter were the most eco
nomical producers. The larger cows
| which ranked we'll in gross amounts of
| butter graded lower in most cases in
economy OF production, while the small
| er COWS which stood near the head liz
amount of butter made did not lose
| rank in the maGte1' Of cheap manufac-
| ture.
The Indiana station calls attention to
| the Importance of, the selection of cows
| in relation tie the mammary gland.
| While constitutional vigor and digest
i've capacity should always receive first
consideration, the breeder of dairy cat
tie cannot afford to breed inferior I'D
ders any more than can breeder of
trotters afford to breed slow gated ami
mails.
| At the New Jersey station the best
cow paid for her feed and $46.64 in adj
dition to Skfmmilk and manure, while
$5.S4 represents the pay received for
the poorest COW. There is but little
profit derived from a COW that does
not produce 200 pounds Of butter per
| year, and selection of animals for the
! butter dairy is necessary. The Mime
J sofa station found that the average an
! nual cost Of keeping dairy COW is !$38.
! A herd Of ocGws bred on dairy lines we'll
/ fed and carefully handled, will produce
on an average G, 400 pounds of milk per
year at a cost of 81 cents per 100
! pounds and 1912 cents per pound for
butter fat. They will produce ON an
] average 300 pounds Of butter fat per
/ year, which is equivalent to 800 pounds
! of butter per COW. The average cost of
/ pound of butter will be 1912 cents.
! The Ohio station states that when
! fed ration composed Of about one
| fifth to One7faurth grains and the re-
| mainder coarse foods Of good quality
! our COWS and those Of several other
! stations have produced an average Of
about 22 pounds Of butter fat to each
100 pounds of dry matter in the food
besides making a small gain in live
| weight. In general when this rate Of
! production Of butter fat has been ex-