The Wisconsin tobacco reporter. (Edgerton, Wis.) 1877-1950, 1903-02-27


special event. They yield milk almost
as literally as when in the fields. They
have no drying up season, as cows
in this country have in early winter.
Before dropping calf each one will
have a few weeks respite from giving
milk, and then she will enter again
with renewed impulse on the chief OBJ
ject of her existence.
What wonder that generations Of
such people should have produced q
dairy cow that can be proftably kept
even in winter and in SO doing adding
to her owners wealth through every
season of her existence! The COWS are
fed on hay and oilcake. The oilcake
ration is usually from one to four
pounds day To those that may be
milking heavily or are reduced in
strength from some other cause the ref
use skimmilk is usually fed.
Cottonseed meal is slowly coming in
to USE Indian corn meal is sometimes
fed in the scarcity of other food but it
is not generally regarded with favor.
In the quality of hay lies much of the
/, secret Of success in maintaining a lib
eral flow Of milk through the winter
months. 1t appears much like our
swale grass, very much bleached in
curing, and it does not strike an OBJ
server from this country as being nu-
tritive Or palatable. Every blade is
eaten, and the COWS always seem de-
sirous for more. There is no waste for
bedding.
The Water Question.
The Pennsylvania station found that
there was no advantage in having wa
ter constantly before the COWS in the
stable. Cows turned in the yard once
Il day made as good returns as those
having constant access to water in the
stables. Much more bedding is needed
10 keep COWS clean in pens than liz
stalls, but less labor was required to
care for the COWS loose in pens than in
stalls, and the larger amount of bed
ding would result in larger manure
pile. The milk of the COWS standing in
stalls had fewer bacteria in it than
that of COWS in pens.
EISd.1DA1ShkIass IL DsiffS.
If man goes into the private dairy
business with the intention of making
a success Of it, he should first see that
his farm has the improvements neces-
sary to carry on the business, says
George ". LOOMS in Kansas Farmer.
If he has no suitable stable, he should
build the necessary shelter The sta
bles should be warm and dry in the
winter and should be we'll ventilated
He should have wells of pure water
and ample barns for storing hay,
grain, etc. Many dairymen find that
the silo will materially add to the prof
it's of their business, for the succulent
food during the winter greatly in
creases the flow of milk. In the pri-
vate dairy the value Of the hand sep
arator can hardly be overestimated.
Under the old system Of setting about
20 per cent of the butter fat was lost,
but under the new system Of separat-
ing only one-tenth of l per cent of but
ter fat is left in the sl1immilE. Thus
we see there is a great difference be-
tween the two ways of getting the
cream, and it has been proved that
calves thrive we'll on skimmilk. In
stances are known where calves have
been fed on skimmilk and no grain and
have made remarkable gains.
Grade Up the Herd.
True dairy expansion involves the
grading up of herd not only by selec-
| ton, but also by breeding. There is no
question among intelligent stock breed
| ers but that animals which have been
bred and selected for years and even
centuries along dairy lines are much
| better adapted to the economical pro-
| duction Of dairy products than cows of
| no particular breeding. With all the
| feed and care that could be given a
| herd of common COWS has averaged
| only 270 pounds of butter per annum.
| Herds of pure blood and high grade
dairy animals are averaging as high
| as $50 to 400 pounds of butter. 1t is
| possible by securing well bred males
| and by selection to grade up a herd of
common cows to excellent producers in