10 Jan., 1918.] The Pi,oad to Success in Dairy Farming. 13 



may also take up valuable time, and usually more time is lost in sucli 

 unnecessary work than would have been required to repair the fencing 

 in the first place, and the fence must eventually be put in order. Half- 

 an-hour on repairs may save hours, or even days, of work later on. 

 Crops are only safe from stock when behind secure fencing, for if cattle 

 once find they can break through a fence they do not fail to try again. 



As indispensable adjuncts to a good food supply, good water, salt, 

 and honemeal should always be within handy access of the cattle. Good 

 water near at hand makes for the comfort of the stock ; and, particularly 

 with heavy milking stock, it is very important that the cows should 

 not have to travel far for water, or hustle with others of the herd to get 

 their fill. Further, where cows have to wade through mud to reach the 

 drinking water, chapped teats and otherwise injured and dirty udders will 

 result, which makes for loss of time in the milking shed ; and if the dirt 

 gets into the milking bucket the quality of the produce will also be 

 affected. It is far more preferable to keep the cows clean than to 

 use up time and labour in washing off mud before each milking. Where 

 the udders, flanks, and tails of the milking herd are allowed to become 

 fouled with mud, dust, or other dirt, it is almost impossible to produce 

 clean good-keeping milk. 



If there is not a natural supply of salt, as in brackish water, it is 

 necessary that salt as well as honemeal should be kept where the cattle 

 can get to it frequently. The clean, white, steamed, and crushed bone 

 should be obtained for this purpose, and not the bonedust that is sold 

 for manure. Salt and honemeal have special value as aids to digestion, 

 and particularly when the pastures are dry. 



Unless a dairy-farm is very favorably situated in regard to natural 

 shelter, such as may be provided by hedges or low-branched trees, it will 

 prove an economical policy to rug or house the milking herd in the 

 colder winter weather. Rugging has an advantage over housing in that 

 the stock may be also kept comfortable outside on the grazing paddocks 

 during the day, w^hen rain or cold wind would otherwise drive them 

 to seek shelter. Rugged stock keep in better condition on a given 

 quantity of feed than those not similarly cared for, and are thus able 

 to uphold a good flow of milk during the cold months, when dairy 

 produce is highest in price. Care of the milking herd is always profit- 

 able to the farmer. 



That there is a practical necessity for reasonable cleanliness in dairy 

 u'orTc is not universally recognised by those entering into this business. 

 The majority of people are fairly careful in the general handling of food, 

 but there are some who are extremely careless in their treatment of food 

 products, whether intended either for use by themselves or by others, and 

 such dairy-farmers are a continual source of trouble to those who have 

 to retail and use their produce. The keeping quality of both milk and 

 cream is greatly impaired by contamination with any form of dirt, as 

 souring quickly ensues, and its market value is consequently reduced. 

 In either cheese-making or butter-making the factory manager looks for 

 milk or cream to reach him in as fresh, clean, and cool a state as possible, 

 so that he may have a chance to make good produce therefrom. Inferior- 

 quality milk or cream will not make into good cheese or butter, and its 

 market value is, in consequence, not the highest. The farmer who con- 

 sistently supplies milk or cream to the consumer, retailer, or 'factory 

 in a fresh, clean, and cool condition will always command a higher price 



