78 



THE GEKESEE FARMER. 



BKEEDING AND KEARINQ FAKM STOCK. 



Eds. Genesee Faemek : — The art of rearing and 

 breeding farm-stock is of vast importance to the 

 farmers of the State of New York, as every man 

 w-ill admit. Yet, so far as I have been able to 

 learn from the writings of farmers on the subject, 

 or the manner of their keeping, as liaving fallen 

 under my own observation and of those with whom 

 1 am ac(}uainted, there does not seem to be that 

 uniformity in the matter that anew beginner might 

 expect. With your permission, I will give you 

 some of my experiences, and also some of my 

 observations from the practices of others, in the 

 feeding of farm stock ; providing, always, that 

 there shall be enough of instruction in what I shall 

 say to be of some service to the novice in the art, 

 (if not, you will please consign this to the grate.) 

 Those who are veterans in the business, I shall not 

 attempt to instruct; but may, perhaps, call them 

 out with something that will instruct us all. As it 

 is now the reign of winter, I shall talk of winter 

 management in this ; giving some of my experience 

 in winter feeding, different varieties of food, and 

 n'anner of giving it, with the result. 



Oc'casionally (as the present time is acknowl- 

 edged to be), there comes a year of scarcity of hay, 

 in which imany are interested in knowing what will 

 keep their stock through the winter in good con- 

 dition, the most economically ; or with the least 

 expense consistent with the welfare of the stock 

 for the time being, and also for the future. That 

 the wintering of stock on the least tliat Avill keep 

 them alive, from the time they come to the barn 

 till they are again turned to pasture, as many do, is 

 poor economy, I most firmly believe, and hope to 

 ■oooviace all who will take time to read this paper. 

 I suppose my friend John Johnston would say that 

 stock ■ehoidd -grow as fat in winter as in summer, 

 iud I shaM ttot dispute him on that point, as I more 

 than half i^elaeve the same thing myself. " How 

 can it be daaef it may be* asked. In most of the 

 writings that I have read, it is said that corn-meal 

 is not good tbod for milch 'COws ; that it has a ten- 

 dency to dry them up^ is too heating, and causes 

 tliem to lay on fat instead of giving milk. Such 

 persons prefer brao, shorts and buckwheat bran, to 

 pieal, etc. It is said by some writers, that farmers 

 Biust not feed grain., as that is too expensive, etc. ; 

 nko, that, at the present time, all straw, stalks, and 

 e\^an buckwheat straw, must be fed to stock — and 

 thait, .too, as I suppose, without the addition of meal, 

 etc. ; .all of which I consider errors in theory and 

 practice. We will now see how my experience 

 agrees with the foregoing. It is now seven years 

 -since I learned that corn-meal (without the cob), if 

 not the best, was among the best articles of food 

 for cows giving milk. I then sold my milk daily 

 to men in the milk business. I fed from two to 

 eight .quarts per day, and the higher the feed the 

 more isnilk. I then learned that it made no percep- 

 tible difference whether given dry or wet, cooked 

 or uncooked, in the yield of milk or condition of 

 the oowB. Therefore, I have adopted the plan of 

 cutting all cornstalks, straw and hay (if not of first 

 quality), and giving each cow or fattening animal 

 such an allowance as they will readily eat up clean, 

 with a feed of meal, consisting of corn and oats, or 

 buckwheat, screenings of wheat, etc., or all together; 

 the basis -being corn. The cut feed is put into the 



manger dry, and the meal sprinkled over it while 

 the animals are in the yard. Experience having 

 taught me that it is unnecessary to wet the mixture, 

 I have never tried the steaming process, but think 

 favorably of it. I think I shall try it, and cer- 

 tainly siiall not condemn it until I do so, or have 

 some proof that it is useless labor. 



In the foregoing, I have given my experience . 

 and the result, in regard to milch cows. I will 

 now give some experiments in regard to growing 

 stock. In the fall of 1858, I had seven animals, a 

 little over two years old, in fine running order for 

 animals at that age. They were fed in the manner 

 related in the case of the cows, with an average of 

 three quarts of meal each per day, for from four to 

 five months; gaining about three hundred lbs. each, 

 from December 1st, when the feeding commenced, 

 till sold. One heifer, sold at two years and nine 

 months, gained two hundred and ninety-six lbs. in 

 a little over four months. As I have scales, there 

 was no guess-work in the matter. They were sold 

 for $5 per cwt., weighed on the farm. Now, expe- 

 rience taught me in this case, that they paid, well 

 for their keeping the last winter of their lives. 



Such being the facts in my farming oper.ition<!, 

 why cast about for straw, or something clieuptr, 

 on which to winter stock, for the sake of selling 

 more grain, when it pays better to feed it to stock 

 on the farm, than to sell it in the market, and have 

 much of it made into intoxicating drinks, to the 

 detriment of our fellow men. 



Now, let vs take a different view of the case last 

 related. Suppose a farmer has a half dozen head 

 of steers or heifers, at two years old past, worth 

 $20 per head — as was the case in this vicinity in 

 the fall of 1858 and in 1859. They are wintered 

 cheaply, — that is, on straw, stalks, and, perhaps, 

 poor hay, or even good hay — without any regard ' 

 to condition in the spring, and, instead of gaining 

 three hundred lbs. each, they loose nearly, or, in 

 some cases, quite that amount of flesh. That will . 

 make them from four hundred to six hundred lbs. 

 different in weight; when probably the poor onea ; 

 have had as much hay, straw and stalks as the fat ' 

 ones, but no meal. They will then run until fall, 

 and have been sold for from $50 to $65 per pair in 

 this vicinity, averaging about $55. Now, with the 

 meal mentioned in the experiment related, and 

 with a good stable and proper care, the sales were 

 from $51.50 to $66.50 per head, and sold in April; 

 thus saving the summer's keeping, and doubling 

 the price. 



Brother farmers, let us consult together and find 

 out the best way. Then let the fortunate man, 

 when he has found it, by long trial and actual 

 experiment, give the result to new beginners anil , 

 others less fortunate. By doing so, you will be , 

 conferring a lasting benefit on the world. 



I am aware, Messrs. Editors, that the subject is ' 

 not exhausted ; but if some one may be stirred up 

 to make some experiments for the benefit of the 

 community, by reading the foregoing, or commu- 

 nicate experiments already made, that shall enlighten 

 the farmer on the subject, which is of such great 

 importance to the country, then the writer of this , 

 will have accomplished his desires. 



Rirme, N. Y. ■'ONATHAN TALCOTT. 



We shall be glad to hej^r more from our esteemed 

 correspondent on this subject. eds. 



