1868. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



39 



EXTRACTS AND REPLIES. 



AVHAT SHALL I DO FOR MY SHOTES. 



I have two very good shotes that have become 

 so weak in tlieir hind legs or the small of the back, 

 as not to be able to stand up but a few moments at 

 a time. Both taken at the same time and in same 

 way. My neighbors have some in same condition. 

 What is the cause, &c., and what the remedy? 

 Will some one please inform me through the Far- 

 mer. 8. c. F. 



Enoshurgh, Vt., Nov. 7, 1867. 



Remarks. — If you read and remember all that 

 was published in the Farmer last year, in relation 

 to pigs ti-oubled as yours are, we do not know as 

 we can help you at all. It was then stated by our 

 correspondents that young pigs or old hogs are 

 seldom or never attacked, it being confined to 

 shotes from three to ten months old, or those 

 weigliing something like, say, one hundi'ed pounds, 

 and which have been highly fed. Mr. G. Hill, of 

 Rochester, N. H., said, "on getting my two pigs 

 home last January, I thought it would be too cold 

 for them in the cellar under the barn. I therefore 

 made a pen for them in the barn and gave them 

 good feed. We soon found one of them was taken 

 with cramp or something else. I changed their 

 quarters at once, and gave the lame one a little 

 castor oil on the top of some new milk. He soon 

 came out all right. Both pigs are now equal to 

 any others of their age. They have a chance to 

 exercise by working over the manure, and I am 

 not afraid they will work any too hard. My pre- 

 scription for sick pigs is, give them work and good 

 feed — enough of both kinds — and they will come 

 out right." 



From an erroneous idea that this lameness was 

 caused by worms in the kidneys, the disease is 

 sometimes called the "kidney worm." But after 

 finding the kidneys and other organs perfectly 

 sound in animals that had been troubled in this 

 way, and after having experience in the manage- 

 ment of shotes thus diseased, Mr. Geo. Perry, of 

 Randolph, Vt., stated in a communication to the 

 Farmer, that his "impression was that it was 

 nothing more than too nutritious food and want of 

 exercise." 



Mr. Thomas J. Edge, of Londongrove, Chester 

 County, Pa., wrote to us as follows : "Our Chester 

 County sows which are kept for breeding, are us- 

 ually fed liberally and when about four or five 

 months old seem more liable to this disease than 

 rougher pigs, for they seem to have the power of 

 turning more of their food into flesh or fat." As- 

 suming the cause of the disease to be too high 

 feed, he says, "the disease is followed by its own 

 remedy ; for the lameness renders it difficult for 

 the animal to get to the trough as soon as the other 

 pigs, and of course does not (without mistaken 

 kindness,) get its usual supply of food, and in the 

 course of from seven to ten days, and often less, 

 get as well as ever, and shows no bad results from 

 the disease. The disease is not one of the kidney, 

 but seems to be an entire or partial paralysis of 

 the muscles attached to the lumbar vertebrae. As 



far as I have observed, it is invariably confined to 

 the hinder extremities, and seems to vary much in 

 intensity ; sometimes extending to both hind legs 

 and at others to but one. 



The best preventive is less food and a liberal and 

 regular supply of lime, ashes or other alkalies. I 

 have firm faith in stopping the supply of food, or 

 at least of trying this first. If this does rot pro- 

 duce the desired effect I would give one table- 

 spoonful of epsom salts and one of sulphur, mix- 

 ed with a little bran slop, every day until a free 

 passage is secured, when the salts should be dis- 

 continued, but the sulphur should still be given 

 occasionally. In extreme cases copcras may be 

 used in tablespoonful doses, once a day, for a week. 

 In either case the food should be decreased, or I 

 do not think either of the remedies will have 

 much effect." 



THE VALUE OF CORN COBS. 



The question is often asked, Does it pay to feed 

 cobs ? Opinions differ. Some contend they are 

 not only worthless but injurious. The results of 

 the experiments, at the State Reform School at 

 Westborough, published in the Farmer, October 

 26, furnishes the following facts relative to the 

 value of cobs when fed to cows. 



For the 20 days ending April 29, the average 

 amount of English hay consumed liy each cow 

 daily was 161 pounds, of cob meal 6 pounds. The 

 roots were the same as in the next trial. The cob 

 meal would be 5 pounds of corn and one of cob. 

 The average cost per day of keeping each cow was 

 for hay, roots, and meal 24 cents and 6 mills. The 

 cows lost in weight about one pound per day, 

 worth, when beef is $10 per hundred, 6 cents, which 

 should be added to the cost of keeping, making in 

 all 30 cents and 6 mills. 



During the next 20 days, the average amount of 

 hay consumed was a fraction less than 16| pounds 

 per day, and 6 pounds of Indian meal. The differ- 

 ence in the daily feed was 2 ounces of hay and one 

 pound of Indian meal instead of one pound of cobs. 

 The daily cost of roots, hay and meal per cow was 

 26 cents and 2 mills. The gain, in weight, was 

 equal to one pound per day, and 6 cents deducted 

 from 26 cents 2 mills, leaves 20 cents and 2 mills 

 as the actual cost of keeping. This shows that it 

 cost 10 cents and 4 mills per day to feed a single 

 pound of cobs, which cost should be increased by 

 the additional amount of milk obtained when the 

 feed was free from cobs. 



Another fact worthy of note may be learned 

 from these trials, viz : that the cheapest milk pro- 

 duced from winter feed was when corn stalks were 

 fed instead of English hay. This was in the trial 

 ending February 29. On such feed the cows were 

 thrifty, even gaining in flesh, though not so much 

 as in the next trial at a greater expense of feed, 

 and that English hay. So it is possible to have 

 thrifty cows and cheap milk without English hay. 



New Hampshire, Nov., 1867. F. 



BRUSSELS SPROUTS. 



In answer to "Inquirer," respecting Brussels 

 sprouts, I will give my experience. Before I came 

 to this country, when in England, I had good 

 sprouts, the nobs varying from the size of a wal- 

 nut to that of an egg and upward. The stalks 

 were from two feet to two feet six inches high, be- 

 ing set thickly with sprouts from boLiom to top. 

 They were planted on very rich, moist soil. When 

 the sprouts began to form, I broke off the larga 



