Rocky Ford enterprise., 1913-03-21
LIVESTOCK ON THE FARM
Continued from First Page

eantaloupe fields with feed Of oats at
night during the first winter. After the
colt is one year old he may be pastured
on alfalfa and will continue to grow to
maturity without gram. He may be finish
ed for the market on alfalfa hay and beet
tops and should be fat and slick, fit for
any market. The value Of the colt at
maturity depends largely on the breed and
the individual type of animal. The draft
horse is usually acknowledged as the most
useful and the most profitable for the
farmer to raise. He should be large, of
good form. clean of limb. with good
straight action and a gentle disposition
and will sell readily whether broken to
harness or not.
All the draft breeds are good. The in
dividual type is really more important
than the breed although some breeds
furnish more good individuals than
others. However once breed is select
ed it should be strictly adhered to and
cross breading should be avoided. BY
adhering to certain blood lines you will
soon be producing high grade uniform
draft animals Of some particular breed.
Nothing but pure bred sires with quality
should be used. We are now producing
yearlines that weigh up 900 lbs. and two
year olds up to 1900 lbs. on alfalfa, beet
tops and little oats which will compare
favorably with any section of the United
States.
Next in Importance comes the dairy
COW and no farm should be without one
or more. Every farmer should at least
keep two good dairy COWS and as many
more as he can properly feed and care
for. Under favorable conditions and with
ordinary care farm dairy COW should
produce two pounds of butter per day.
Certain it is that good dairy COW will
pay more on the investment than any
other farm animal and the feed all goes
back to the soil. Corn chop and alfalfa
hay forms an ideal ration for a dairy cow
and this may be supplemented by waste
products of the farm such as alfalfa
pasture. beet tops. eantaloupe. etc. during
the fall and winter season. Beet pulp is
also Of much value and fed extensively by
some dairymen. Select your dairy COW
from one of the leading milk breeds and
If she does not make good send her to the
butcher and persevers in this until you
have COWS that pay you profit. We can
well afford to raise our heifer calves but
all others should be vealed at the proper
age.
Many farmers have been disappointed
in the hog business on our farms but the
cause Is usually too many hogs and too
little feed. II we regulate the number Of
hogs we keep by our available feed
supply we will usually succeed whether
on large or small scale. II you feed a
hog but half the amount he will consume
you practically lose large per cent of
your feed. He should not be allowed to
grow hungry and il fed proper and suf-
ficient food from start to finish he will
usually return profit to the feeder. To
yield profit hog should show gain of
not less than one pound per day from
birth until seven months Of age.
Sheep feeding has usually been con-
Quoted by large feeders and the average
farmer has not taken favorably to it.
This is probably due to the expense in
building the pens, the water plant, the
wide range Of prices paid for range lambs
and the uncertainty of prices for the
finished product. II there is money in
the industry for the large transient feeder,
who buys all his feed. hires all his labor
and gets no benefit from the manure, it
does seem that the sheep feeding industry
should be profitable to the average farm
er.
ln conclusion. let each OF US decide to
keep some live stock on our farms. Keep
the kind that are best adapted to your
farm conditions and that you are capable
of taking care of profitably. BY so doing
you will increase your income and i'm
prove your credit by having something to
sell every month in the year. You will be
building up your lands by the application
of farm manures and your balance at the
end of each year will include the most
valuable of all farm assets, soil fertility,
The MiIkman's Lament
Dedicated to Fatty" Allen and sung
by "Watercheck" Collins to the tune of
The Girl | Left Behind Me-" in the vaude-
vile of the otero Agricultural Club:
I'm lonesome since crossed the ditch.
And DER street and alley.
I'm pcddIing milk that Is very rich
The best milk in the valley;
But now I'm bound for the downtown bunch
Kind Heaven. may favor find me.
And bring me safely back again.
To the cows I've left behind me.
feed my COWS alfalfa bright,
Corn-chop and beet tops. too. sir.
And that's "A ration balanced right,
milk and cream producer;
But the cooks, they use the water-spout,
And that does always grind me,
And the babies cry for the milk they love.
From the cows I've left behi nd me.
My kids come prancing down the street.
There's not room on the sidewalk.
They're fed on milk and cream to beat
The grocer's canned up sde-talk.
But the city plugs eat butterine.
Their money fails to fnd me.
And the children starve for the want of cream
From the COWS I've left behind me.