DAIRY CATTLE AND THE DAIRY FARM 



115 



on which advice is needed. The tester's salary and the expense of the 

 materials used are defrayed by the money paid by the farmers. 



In Table 37 are given some results obtained at a few associations in 

 different parts of the Union. 



TABLE 37. MILK AND BUTTERFAT PRODUCTION, PERCENTAGE OP FAT, COST OF 



FEED AND RANGE OF VARIATION IN PRODUCTION AND COSTS AS DETERMINED 



BY A FEW COW-TESTING ASSOCIATIONS 



1 Six did not complete test. 



2 Cost of food and labor less value of manure. 



Sheltering Cattle. Proper shelter for the cattle is important. In 

 regions experiencing little severe weather hardly more is required than a 

 simple structure giving the animals protection from inclement weather 

 and particularly against wet chilling storms, but in cold climates housing 

 is*a more serious matter for the herd is confined almost continuously 

 for 15 weeks or more. Stabling becomes a question not merely of afford- 

 ing temporary protection to the cattle but primarily of providing them a 

 home. Indeed the barn is even more than this for it is the place where 

 the business of feeding the animals, milking them and developing them is 

 carried on. So it is necessary to provide for the needs of the cattle, the 

 convenience of the laborers and such conditions that milk can be drawn 

 and handled without unduly exposing it to deteriorating influences. 

 Furthermore, the business carried on in the barn is part of the business 

 of the farm considered as a whole, consequently it should be operated in a 

 way and from a place that makes it fit in well with other farm work; the 

 location of the barn is important. 



Barn building involves the choice of the type of barn best adapted 

 to the farm and to the site. The barn should be arranged in such a way 

 as to save work and it ought to be well-lighted, warm and ventilated. 



