Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1916-07-11
Common Milk Co,u
May Be Made High
Producing Animal
Special to Times Republican.

Special to Times Republican.
Ames, July 11.-Any herd of common
milk cows in Iowa can be built up into
producing, good-paying herd in
the co,,rse of@a few years thru proper
methods of feeding and management
and the use of a pure bred sire.
Scientific proof of that fact is now
available as the preliminary results of
the famous Arkansas cow experiment
at the Iowa State College dairy farm,
which the dairy world has been watch
ing with interest ever since it was
started in 1907. 1t has been common
ly accepted, of course, for a long time
that better feeding, care and breeding
would build up herd, but the expert
ment at Ames furnished the first thor
ough proof, and that has been made
available in a new bulletin, No. 165,
written by H. H. kildee and A. c..
McCandlish.
The significance Of the facts now
scientifically established became clear
when it is recalled that the overwhelm-
ing number Of Iowa's milk cows are
common cows and that the average
butter fat production per animal in the
state is little more than $50 pounds 4
year. The experiment points the way
to increasing that average yield to $50
pounds or more within five to ten
years time. Such an increase would
add not less than s40,000000 to the
annual agricultural production Of the
state.
When Prof. H. G. Van Pelt who be-
ovnorirpont caarchad tha conn
try to find the most typical scrub cows
in existence. he found them in Ark
ansas, in an isolated section where, as
far as he could determine, no pure
bred bulls had ever been used. They
were all inferior, small, with limited
capacity and probably had never had
enough of the right kind Of feed in
their lives. Fourteen animals were
bought and sorry looking lot they
were when they arrived at Ames, in
the summer of 1907.
These scrubs were given at once the
same care, feed ana shelter as the pure
BIRD cattle of the college herd. The
cows and heifers were crossed with
pure bred bulls and their offspring in
turn crossed. After eight years, the
herd now numbers thirty animals and
data from three generations is avail
able, complete records Of feeds, costs,
and production having been kept
While the experiment will not be
closed for number of years, results
already show what care, feed and
crossing with pure bred sires will do
With the Holstein grades, the first
generation from the scrubs showed an
average increase of 81 per cent in milk
production and Al per cent of butter
fat. One Guernsey grade, sired by the
bull which is now at the head OF the
college herd, produced over 101 per
cent more milk and 107 per cent more
butter fat than her scrub dam. Like
wise an increase over her dam in milk
production has been shown in the one
first generation Jersey grade that has
freshened to date.
The original scrub COWS responded
to good care and feed and gave up to
their fourth lactation period" SO per
cent more milk and 81 per cent more
fat than in the, first period There is
no data as to what they produced lin
Arkansas. Since the fourth period
there has been falling off, due nor
mally to old age, believe the college
men.
The experiment will be continued for
a number Of years more until IS much
data as possible is secured from the
various crosses.