338 THE FEEDING OF ANIMALS 



It is simply necessary that the grain ration shall con- 

 tain protein in sufficient quantity and proportion, and 

 shall be made up of a variety of materials, better not 

 less than three kinds, all of which should be palatable 

 and exert no deleterious influence upon the milk or its 

 products. There are few grain products that cannot be 

 used successfully in grain mixtures, even though they 

 are undesirable when fed alone. 



THE RELATION OF FOOD TO THE COMPOSITION AND 

 QUALITY OF MILK 



The character of milk is believed by many to be inti- 

 mately related to the kind and quantity of food from 

 which it is produced, i. e., that a dairyman who is pos- 

 sessed of sufficient knowledge may, by variations in the 

 rations, cause material changes in the composition of 

 the milk of his herd. This is equivalent to believing that 

 thin milk or rich milk, milk rich in fats and poor in casein 

 or the reverse, may be obtained at the will of the feeder. 

 Such a view in its extreme form is very far from the 

 truth. While below a certain limit for each cow the quan- 

 tity of milk is mostly determined by the ration, other 

 factors, such as breed, individuality, and period of lac- 

 tation, are much more potent than the food in fixing 

 its composition. 



In discussing this topic, it must be confessed, first 

 of all, that the experiments touching its several phases 

 have not furnished information satisfactorily definite 

 and conclusive in all respects. The testimony arrived at 

 is more or less confusing and contradictory. There are 

 several directions in which it has been necessary to look 

 for the effect of food upon milk: (1) Effect upon composi- 



