230 DISEASES OF ANIMALS. 



cause less flow to the lacteal secretions; and the rich- 

 ness of the carrot, as to causing too high condition, can 

 be counteracted, if necessary, by moderate keeping in 

 other food. 



Wheat bran, or shorts, is a very good light laxative 

 food, and may be given without fostering too high, or 

 tending much to milk. Some straw, of a pure quality, 

 may be given, when the cow is becoming too fleshy 

 on hay. When at grass, if she is becoming fat, put 

 her into a pasture where the feed is not very luxuriant. 

 But give tolerably good keep. 



It is better for cows to calve without a very full udder ; 

 yet with precaution, and especially when they calve in 

 summer, amidst full feed, their udders become distended 

 almost to bursting before calving. In such cases, the 

 cow should be milked, and she should be pretty well fed, 

 m order to sustain this unusual draught and her young 

 at the same time ; but the food should be diy, and such 

 as does not produce much milk. Be careful and not 

 produce costiveness by too much dry food, but give 

 shorts, &c. 



MILKING COWS BEFORE CALVING. 



Sometimes, from high feeding, or from rich pasturage, 

 heifers and cows have their udders so distended with 

 milk before calving, that there is much pain and great 

 danger of matter forming in them, and causing them to 

 break. Therefore, it sometimes becomes necessary to 

 milk them before calving. When running in luxuriant 

 pastures, and they calve in summer, it is often necessary 

 to milk them a few days, and occasionally a week or 

 ten days, before calving. Sometimes it has become 

 necessary to milk a cow regularly two or three weeks 

 before calving, and no injury seemed to result from it. 



It is stated in the "Tennessee Agriculturist," that a 

 Durham heifer was affected in this way previous to her 

 having the first calf. It commenced nearly three months 

 before calving, and it gradually increased for about two 

 months, when the udder was enormously swollen and 

 inflamed. She was then milked, and gave sixteen ot 



