202 THE SCIENTIFIC FEEDING OF ANIMALS 



In the selection of feeding stuffs, palatability and agreeability should 

 always be sought and the efifect on the taste and other properties of milk 

 and butter kept in mind. The feeder is cautioned against the use of 

 moldy or otherwise spoiled feeding stuffs, silage, soiling crops, etc., and 

 against excessive rations of beets of any kind, beet leaves, cabbage stems, 

 potatoes, distillery waste and pulps, fresh or ensilaged pulps, lupines 

 with bitter principles not properly removed, leek, chamomile, corn cockle 

 seed in bran, rapeseed cake (above 1 pound per head per day), etc. 

 Long-continued consumption of watery feeding stuffs produces watery 

 milk. The feeding to excess of common beets, beet leaves, beet pulp, 

 potatoes, vetches, peas and beans, palmseed cake, cocoanut cake, cotton- 

 seed cake or meal, straw, overripe grass and hay, or the latter mixed 

 with sour grasses, makes hard butter. The opposite effect, or "greasy" 

 butter, results from excessive feeding of ground oats or corn, rice feed 

 meal, and rape seed, sesame seed and sunflower seed cake or meal, and 

 wheat bran. Good grass and clover, carrots, oats and rice feed meal are 

 correctives for palatability. As already stated, palmseed cake and cocoa- 

 nut and cottonseed cake have a tendency to make the butter hard, while 

 rapeseed cake, ground corn and rice feed meal have the opposite effect. 



For pregnant coivs the daily ration of digestible albumen should be 

 increased during the 5^ months preceding parturition. The increase 

 should amount to from 1^ to 3 ounces (average 2 ounces) per day per 

 1,000 pounds live weight. The amount of straw should be reduced dur- 

 ing this period, or withdrawn completely and replaced with hay (10 

 pounds per 1,000 pounds live weight). Heating, bloating and consti- 

 pating feeding stuffs like ground legume seeds, rank clover and wet green 

 forage, as well as frosted or frozen, fungus infected, musty or soiled feed 

 of any kind, should be avoided. Green forage, especially good pasture, 

 and good hay, oats, crushed barley, bran, and linseed, palmseed, cocoa- 

 nut and peanut cake or meal, dry beet pulp, dry distillers' slop and dry 

 brewers' grains, as well as beets and potatoes, are indicated for pregnant 

 cows. 



Rations for dry cows per 1,000 pounds live weight should contain 0.74 

 pounds of digestible albumen and 6 pounds starch value. In many in- 

 stances this low ration is reduced to from y^ to 1 pound one month be- 

 fore calving. It is said that the danger from milk fever can in this way 

 be much reduced. Immediately after calving it is customary in many 

 places to administer a warm gruel or bran mash. For a few days imme- 

 diately following calving light, easily digestible feed is advisable on ac- 

 count of the relaxed condition of the abdominal muscles. 



As already discussed in detail on page 156 etc., an abundant supply of 

 mineral matter is necessary for all milk-producing animals. This ap- 



