190 DOMESTIC ANIMALS, DAIRYING, ETC. 



oats and barley are good ; for roughage, bright clover or alfalfa hay 

 with corn silage to give succulence and variety. The aim should be 

 to keep the calf in a healthy, thrifty and growing condition. Under 

 proper treatment the calf should continue to grow until four to six 

 years old. 



Every effort should be made to develop a large stomach and 

 consequently large capacity; build muscle and good bone, but do 

 not allow it to get too fat. The good dairy cow must handle large 

 amounts of feeds. This she should learn to do while young. For 

 this purpose roughage exercises the digestive apparatus more than 

 concentrates. There are some who think that with a good quality of 

 clover or alfalfa with corn silage or roots for succulence, no grain 

 is necessary from the time the calf is weaned from skim milk until 

 she drops her first calf. There are others, however, and probably 

 these include the larger number of our progressive dairymen, who 

 think a little grain should be given daily to keep her stomach ac- 

 customed to handling grain. 



Size depends much upon heredity but even more upon liberal 

 and judicious feeding. It is impossible to starve good dairy quali- 

 ties into a growing heifer but many a promising heifer has been 

 starved into a poor cow. 



The Herdsman's Responsibility. After all that has been said 

 and done, the calf will not be properly raised, unless its feed and care 

 have been directed by intelligence on the part of the herdsman. Calf 

 feeding requires skill and good common sense. The art of calf rear- 

 ing cannot be taught out of books, bulletins and papers. There must 

 be brains and intelligent interest to properly accommodate the calf 

 to its feed and environment. There are no hard and fast rules that 

 can be laid down. The intelligence that the herdsman puts into his 

 calf feeding will have a great influence upon the future cow. There 

 are great possibilities in the production of good cows but these are 

 seldom, if ever seen, appreciated or attained except by an intelligent, 

 thoughtful feeder. The ear marks of an intelligent feeder are seen 

 in his herd. The calves are thrifty, active, with bright eyes, smooth 

 glossy coats, always hungry, and playful and lusty. (Wis. B. 192.) 



Age at Which to Breed. The heifers fed only 2 pounds of 

 grain per day during the winter of 1908-1909 were not as large as 

 they should have been for their age, when they were turned out to 

 pasture in the spring. This was a considerable loss to the herd as 

 it necessitated waiting much longer before breeding them, than 

 would have been necessary had they been larger. The loss was one 

 of time as well as of feed. We were compelled to do without the milk 

 they should have been producing, as well as to feed them for another 

 six months, at a cost approximating $20.00. Heifers should be well 

 enough grown to drop their first claves when from 24 to 27 months 

 old. The objection is made that heifers bred too young will be 

 dwarfed in size, and that, if the policy is continued, the race will de- 

 teriorate. This is not necessarily true. The heifers can be so fed 

 and cared for as to be large enough and vigorous enough to keep up 

 the vitality of the race, even if they come into milk at two years old. 



