THE DAIRY COW 151 



perhaps to feed the calf a mixture of milk from several cows. . 

 This will avoid feeding either very rich or very poor milk to 

 any one calf. There is considerable variation in the richness 

 of milk from different cows. 



The calf should be kept in a clean box stall and well bedded. 

 This stall, or, better, a pen, should be well lighted, well venti- 

 lated, and large enough to let the calf take exercise. A number 

 of calves can be kept together, but at feeding time they should 

 be put into stanchions. These stanchions should be arranged 

 along an alley to make feeding as convenient as possible. 

 Each calf should be fed out of a separate pail so that it may 

 get its proper amount of food. Calves should be left in the 

 stanchions till their mouths become dry and the taste of milk 

 disappears. If this is not done they will be tempted to suck 

 each other, which is a bad habit. 



Milk is the normal feed for the young animal but the calf 

 should not be kept on milk alone very long. The calf soon 

 learns to nibble a little at hay and good hay should be kept 

 before it at all times. After a few weeks it will also learn to 

 eat oats and then this should be fed in addition. 



One of the main considerations in calf feeding, however, is 

 the water. Milk alone will give best results for a compara- 

 tively short time. Then water should be added. Just how 

 much water is needed is not known. This has not as yet been 

 worked out scientifically. There are several ways to feed 

 water. One way is to set water before the calf in a pail as 

 soon as it gets through with the milk. It then has the taste 

 of milk still in its mouth and will, as a rule, drink some water. 

 Another way is to mix the water and milk. The water, 

 however, should not be too cold. 



In the warm part of the year calves should be kept in a 

 pasture. But this should be well supplied with shade and 

 should furnish a variety of fresh grasses. Calves should not 

 be exposed too much to flies. A fly repellant can be used or 

 the calves can be kept in a dark barn through the day in fly 

 time. 



The amount of milk fed to calves should vary with different 

 calves. A large strong calf should be fed more than a small 

 weak one. From 8 to 12 pounds of milk a day at first is con- 



