The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1914-06-18
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BY H. L. BLANCHARD,
Assistant Superintendent, Washington
State Experiment Station.
THE best bunch of grade heifer fall
calves that the writer ever saw
were fed and cared for under the d.
rection of girl about IA years of age.
A part Of the girls compensation was
to be her choice Of one of the calves
At the age of six months. One condi-
tion Of the agreement was that there
should be no sickness among the calves
caused by mistakes in feeding or care.
Tho girl won and secured the calf, which
she sold fer $50.
These calves were never neglected,
and were kept under clean and sani-
tary conditions They were fed reg
ularly, especial care being taken not to
over feed, so they were kept thrifty, in
creasing in weight every day. While
feeding, the calves were fastened in
calf stanchions, and at the end Of six
months the girl knew just the amount
Of feed-milk, hay, gr-in, ETC.. that
each one had eaten. The feed cost was
about $1,000 per calf and the labor
averaged about six minutes per day per
calf-less than 20 hours labor per calf
for the six months. All Of the feeds
were raised on the farm, excepting a
few pounds Of faxseed meal, and sack
Of shorts that was fed while teaching
the calves to eat grain.
Raise Well Born Calves
Only the well-born calves should be
raised for dairy purposes. Premature
births ought to be discarded. Such
calves very rarely develop into profit
able cows. They are usually lacking il
nerve force, vigor and stamina. The
calf worth raising will have no less
than four teeth completely cut through
the gums 1t birth and should have foul
teats of reasonable size and placed
widely apart. 1t is desirable that thu
heifer develop large and we'll shapet
udder, which properly placed teats pro
mise.
The calf intended for the dairy shoult
be well cared for and at no time ne
elected. 1t i not much Of trick t.
: raise c;lf that will develop into
producer Of 5000 to 1900 pounds o
milk or $50 to 200 pounds of butter fla
per year, provided the parent stool
were good cows.
Such low producers may result fron
improper practices in feeding, thereb,
causing digestive disorders, limiting tn
calf's ration to skim milk alone afte
t. first week, feeding in dirty pals
confning the calf to wet and un
sanitary stall, and weaving the cal
from the skim milk and turning t
grass at about three months of age, t
rustic a very large part Of IS livin
until its first calf is born.
succumbs to Neglect.
Yet many farmers persist in raisin
their calv along the lines indicate
above and at the same time know yer
well that any other 1arm crop so nj
elected would not he worth harvesting
The calf succumbs to neglect and mi
takes just as surely and permanently
do the other crops Of the farm. Wit
the other crops, however, one can co
rect his mistake the following year an
thus considerably reduce his loss, bl
with the calf years elapse before tt
loss becomes evident, and many yea
more will be needed to repair the dan
age done. 1t is therefore equally In
portant that the feeding and care
/ calf from birth if not before Dirt
be proper and right, as it is that tt
breeding shall have been right. Tho
cows that are making money for the
owners today were not greatly neglec
cd and allowed to shift for themselv
as calves.
To be profitable to tho dairy farm
the COW must produce from 5,5oo
5000 pounds Of milk that shall conta