50 THE RESULTS OF DIFFERENT MODES OF FEEDING ON 



preventive is to put a small piece of saltpetre into the milk- 

 pail which will dissolve while milking, or a small quantity of it 

 ground, put into the milk-basins, will serve the same purpose. 

 There is no feeding for milk cows equal to turnips, especially the 

 yellow varieties ; they afford a rich taste and colour to the butter 

 and cheese, and produce a larger quantity of milk than any other 

 vegetable feeding. 



Oil-cake and linseed cake are highly esteemed as food, or 

 rather an addition to the ordinary food of dairy cows. By this 

 addition considerable nutriment is thrown into the system, and 

 the quantity and quality of milk are thereby greatly improved. 

 A sufiicient quantity requires to be given to have the desired 

 effect. I have tried two and three pounds a day to each cow, 

 along with their ordinary food, but this had little or no effect 

 either on the quantity or quality of the milk ; but by increasing 

 the allowance to four pounds, a considerable difference was 

 observed, and when getting turnips the milk had not so strong 

 a flavour of them. By giving oil-cake, the secretion of milk is 

 not only greatly favoured, but also the healthy development of 

 the animal. It also produces butter and cheese of exquisite 

 flavour, and has a great richness in butter-making principles. 



Cotton-cake is also a good addition to the ordinary food when 

 given in the same proportion as oil-cake, especially when quantity 

 and not quality is desired. I have given it to a cow giving five 

 quarts of milk, which then increased to eight quarts, but the 

 quality was inferior ; which was of no consequence, as it was 

 quantity that I desired ; the cost was also much less than either 

 oil-cake or linseed-cake. 



Eape-cake is well adapted to promote the production of milk, 

 being rich in phosphates and also in oil ; but I have observed 

 that it did not add to the richness of the milk, but tended rather 

 to bring the cows into higher condition. Three pounds were 

 given per day during the winter months, and it had the effect of 

 counteracting the unpleasant flavour of the turnips to a great 

 degree ; so much so, that although the tops were often given 

 with the turnips, no unpleasant taste could be detected in the 

 butter or cheese. Piape-cake also gives to butter a closeness of 

 grain and a soft consistency even in frosty weather, which is a 

 great recommendation. 



Malt and barley are extensively used as food for cows, with a 

 view both to increase the quantity and enrich the quality of the 

 milk. When used separately, barley has been found to produce 

 more milk than malt ; but malt produced more butter, which cir- 

 cumstance tends to prove that the difference depends greatly upon 

 tlie readiness with which food can be assimilated by the animals, 

 and for this reason, when barley is used, it ought to be cooked 

 and also bruised, which will greatly aid this assimilation. The 



