Warren sheaf. [volume] (Warren, Marshall County, Minn.) 1880-current, 1909-09-30
COW TESTING ASSOCIATIONS,

association was organized, January
%, 1895, in Denmark for the purpose
of Investigating and recording the
feeding, as we'll as the milk and but
ter fat yields, of the Individual COWS
in the herds.
This association has been so sue.
cessful that to-day, instead of a few
associations with a few COWS, there
are more than $50 associations with
over 10000 COWS. The average yield
per COW has been increased from
5,451 pounds of milk, averaging 3.3
per cent butter fat, to TITS pounds
of milk, averaging 3.52 per cent but
ter fat.
Minnesota dairymen need not be
ashamed to initiate in so good cause.
The average yield of the Minnesota
COW is approximately 1000 pounds
milk and 1856 pounds butter fat, while
the writer has records of several
COWS whose milk yield for the past
year was below 1000 pounds, and sew
eral that exceeded 1000 pounds. II
dairyman wishes to improve the pro-
ductiveness of his herd, there is only
one way of doing it, provided they
are properly fed and cared for name
ly; to weed out poor producers and
replace them with profitable ones.
Such COWS however, are rarely found
on the market, except at very high
prices, and the average dairyman will
find that, il he wants good COWS, he
must raise them himself. The most
economical method he can adopt, then
is to purchase sire of pronounced
dairy qualities, and raise the calves
from his best COWS, and with them,
replace the COWS that prove unprofit-
able.
But, in order to do this he must be
able to tell good COWS from poor
ones. He must know three things
about each individual First. how
much milk she will give in a year;
not in month, because she must be
fed a year. Second, he must know
the richness of the milk. Third, he
must know how much it costs to keep
the COW year.
The simplest method of obtaining
these facts, is for a few farmers in a
community with a sufficient number
OF COWS, to organize and hire com
petent man to do the testing. The
expense be paid pro rata by each man
- in proportion to the number of COWS
he owns. 1t is desirable to have d
, sufficient number Of COWS in the asso
citation, so that the expense will not
exceed $1OO to $3.50 per cow per
year. The tester visits one herd a
day. He arrives in the afternoon
sees the COWS milked, weighs the
milk, and takes a sample from each
COW. This is repeated next morn
ing He tests the milk from each
COW, and figures out the value of the
butter fat, and a suitable ration, anc
leaves these with the farmer. This
farmer then takes the tester, and his
outfit to the next farmer. He gets tt
each farm every month, so that the
farmer has monthly records. At thu
end OF the year, the tester figures VI
the Weld of milk and butter fat ant
the value of the same, the cost o
feed to maintain a COW each year
and the profit or loss on each indl
vidual in the herd, and furnishes ev
cry patron with this record.
One of the greatest values OF test
ing COWS for the first year at least
is that it gives the facts needed tt
feed intelligently. Only when COW
are in good condition and properl'
fed, can they do work up to their ca
pacity. When they have been il
good condition and we'll fed for
year, their records, as shown by tn
test, will enable one to Gull out tn
Improbable COWS. .o.,.'.t-s. = r. il !.
| Carl Ga1lmnitZ.