278 THE GUERNSEY BREED 



ducer. They are valuable not so much on account of the 

 nutriments they contain as on account of their good effect on 

 the digestive tract and as an aid in maintaining a keen appe- 

 tite. In the absence of roots fresh beet pulp or dried pulp 

 may be substituted. The latter should be soaked with water 

 for 12 hours before feeding. 



Should the cow show a too rapid loss of flesh, finely 

 ground corn meal may be substituted for part of the grain 

 allowance (the amount to be determined by the condition of 

 the cow), to which may be added up to three pints daily of 

 molasses. 



In planning the grain ration, the recognized feeding- 

 standards are to be used merely as a guide, which is all that 

 is claimed for them. Especially in the case of the large pro- 

 ducers, a ration conforming to a certain feeding standard may 

 be well suited to the requirements of one cow and be utterly 

 unsuited to another of a different temperament. The feeder 

 can determine only by experience the grain mixture on which 

 the individual cow will yield the maximum results at the pail. 



Having a variety of grains at his disposal, the feeder's 

 problem of determining the best grain mixture for each cow 

 is greatly simplified, and the chances of the cow's tiring of 

 her feed are greatly reduced. 



Prices and availability of foodstuffs vary to such an ex- 

 tent in different parts of the country that it is useless to sug- 

 gest here any certain grain mixture. Good grain mixtures 

 may be composed from so many different foodstuffs and in 

 such a variety of proportions that it makes but little differ- 

 ence what grains are used so long as bulkiness, comparative 

 freedom from indigestible fiber, and palatability are secured in 

 the ration. The matter of palatability is important since upon 

 it depends the amount which the cow will eat with a relish. 



The milk flow can be materially increased by wetting the 

 feed. 



In securing the best results it is very important that par- 

 ticular attention be paid to keeping up a heavy and persistent 

 milk flow. Nothing can be fed that will influence the percent- 

 age of fat in the milk, and it is only by securing a large milk 

 production that great records can be made. 



For the successful making of a large record quite as much 

 depends upon the man who milks the cow as upon the man 

 who feeds her. By proper manipulation of the udder the skill- 

 ful milker can induce the cow to produce the last ounce of 

 milk of which she is capable and also to maintain a persistent 



