Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1916-05-02
Condition Of the Dairy Cow.

A short time ago, two gentlemen en-
tered our dairy barn and asked to look
st the COWS. They examined the COWS
for few. minutes then one Of them
turned to bis companion and remarked
''Thsse cows are altogether too fat to
produce milk" Our COWS which caused
the above remark were not fat but just
in good condition. There 10 difference
between having COW or any other ami
NAL In good condition and having them
poor. Good condition is the happy me-
dunn between poor and fat. A poor
COW IL not capable of producing her
maximum production and neither IL .
fat COW. a c4,
/ have often wondered at the condi.
tion of some Of the herds which one sees
around the country. Anyone could see
that the COWS were not In condition to
produce milk and they were not produc-
ing % much milk az they should. !
used to think that the owners OF these
herds were just neglectful in their care
and feeding of the COWS but lately ]
have come to the conclusion that some
Of them are really sincere in the belief
that COW should be partly starved In
order to secure the best results. This
seems to be an idea which has been prev.
slent In some localities, but In the
more progressive dairy communities this
idea has died ont. The modern herds
man realizes that COW must be fed the
proper kind of food 40 we'll a. the right
amount and that scrimplng In the ration
makes . shrinkage In the pail.
There are altogether too many COWS
which are underfed and not q great
many COWS which are overfed. Our
cows are getting clover and alfalfa hay,
and corn silage, all that they will clean
up. They receive in addition q grain ra.
tion consisting of bran, ground oats,
corn and cob meal, gluten feed, and
cottonseed meal, fed according to the
amount and quality of milk which they
produce. Each COW 10 watched and
made to clean up her portion of feed.
II she leaves any feed, her next feed Is
decreased and then 1t is gradually IN.
creased again until she Is getting the
proper amount for her maintenance and
production. This seems q reasonable
method of feeding.
OF conrse there are some COWS, which
will put fat on their backs rather than
putting milk in the pail. But these are
not good dairy COWS and should not be
kept in the herd as they are not profit
able. There are other individual COWS
which will put 80 much milk In the pail
that It 10 almost impossible to keep them
In good condition. A good dairy COW,
fed according to the standards laid down
by the experts, will not become too
fleshy for her best production. Each In
COW should be studied and her
feeding, while based upon the standards,
should be modified to her individual de. |
mands. I believe that an animal should
be kept In good condition, no matter |
whether It be . horse, COW, sheep, or
hog. A poorly nourished animal is an
proposition.
Many feeders do not give their COWS
any grain during the time that they are
dry and just before freshening. They
think that COW should not be fed grain |
because she is not producing milk. But
isn't the cow nourishipg her young and
doesn't she need . little extra feed to
supply nourishment to her calfP / be- |
|ieve that she does. like to see cow a |
little overweight at the time that she
calves. If she gets little more feed
than she actually needs for herself and
for her calf, she will store it away for
the future. Then, when she freshens,
she will not only produce q strong,
healthy calf but she will be In condition |
TO produce her maximum flow of milk. |
AZ the strain OF the heavy production of
milk heUins Tn tall upon her. eho will
have o reserve to draw upon. This
stored up nourishment is her bank ao-
,ount. When We dry up our cows, We
.ake the grain away from them altogeth. |
Dr. and then after they are dry We start In |
feeding them q little grain. At first
hey get only . pound and then we
gradually increase the amount until they
.re getting four pounds per day at the
lime when they freshen.-L. 8. Brumm
n Hoard's Dairyman,