THE DAIRY HERD. 23 



lars prevent your securing the best you can 

 find. It will be a good investment. 



Now that you know the butter record of each 

 cow and you have a bull from some choice 

 butter-making family, you are in position to 

 grow some heifers that will do you good. These 

 heifers should be grown on skim-milk after they 

 are from one to two weeks old. This subject 

 will be treated in the chapter on skim-milk. 

 They must be kept growing continually, as any 

 check in their growth is a cause of loss in size 

 and development of the digestive organs, and 

 consequently affects the future value of the 

 animal. 



Age to breed. I practice breeding my heif- 

 ers so that they drop their first calves at two 

 years of age. I am confident that they make 

 better cows to come in milk at two years of 

 age than later. They should be handled from 

 the time they are calves, so that they may not 

 be afraid of the person caring for them. Where 

 this is done there is very little trouble when 

 they drop their calves, but if they have not 

 been so handled and are afraid of the person 

 caring for them, and of their surroundings, they 

 suffer much from fear; and much patience will 

 be required to overcome their fear and teach 

 them to be quiet while being milked. 



Establish the milking habit. Care should 

 be exercised during their first milking period 



