CARE AND FEEDING OF DAIRY CATTLE. 29 



Clover and timothy % acre. 



Peas and oats 1 



Corn (after the wheat) % 



Kale ( after the rye) % 



Millet, Sudan grass, winter oats, soy-beans, and barley are also used as soiling 

 crops. Silage is just as good a food in summer as in winter. The Western Wash- 

 ington Experimental Farm uses corn ensilage for winter feeding, and the silo is 

 refilled in early summer with fall-sown oats and vetch for summer feeding. When 

 the silo is filled with corn again the feeding of green kale is commenced. 



PARTIAL SOILING. 



Few farmers are prepared to adopt complete soiling. With nearly all, however, 

 partial soiling or silage is necessary to help out the pasture. When pasture fails 

 during the heat of summer the cows must be fed succulent feed in the barn. In the 

 heat of the day they are better tied up inside the darkened barn, going to the pasture 

 at night. Not only will the cows give more milk, but the lactation period will be 

 much longer, if soiling or summer silage feeding is practised. 



FEEDING FOR MILK PRODUCTION. 



Authorities claim that the average yearly milk production per cow could be 

 increased over one-half by following better methods of feeding. 



TURNING ON PASTURE IN THE SPRING. 



No feed gives as good satisfaction to both cow and dairyman as grass, especially 

 in spring. However, in changing from dry feed to pasture, it is best to go slowly. 

 Young grass is very watery and has not much food value in proportion to its weight. 

 There is also danger of an objectionable taste appearing in the milk if the change is 

 not made gradually. 



GRAIN-FEEDING ON PASTURE. 



This pays in the case of heavy-producing cows. Besides giving more milk at 

 the time, they will continue to milk longer. A cow yielding 40 Ib. of milk on pasture 

 may get 7 Ib. of grain. Grain-feeding helps to keep up the condition and vitality 

 of the best cows, and the benefit of it is seen during the next lactation period. 



PROVIDING FOR SHORT PASTURES. 



A great loss occurs each summer, not so much on account of the heat and flies 

 as because of shortage of feed for the cows. They fall off in milk yield, and never 

 again give as much as they would have done if they had been better fed. Summer 

 soiling crops are essential to the best success in dairying. Plots of oats and peas, 

 alfalfa, clover, corn, and kale will doubly pay for themselves. Many are now using 

 silage also to help out during a dry spell in summer-time. If unused, old silage can 

 be covered by the new. These feeds are less expensive than grain. 



AMOUNT OF FEED. 



A maintenance ration is the food required to just support the animal's body 

 without producing any milk. In the case of an ordinary dairy cow the ration of 

 maintenance is from 50 to 60 per cent, of all she can eat. She then has 40 to 50 

 per cent, of her food available for milk production, if well fed. If the amount of 

 food is cut down the maintenance requirement remains the same, so that the part 

 used for milk production is lessened. This illustrates the importance of liberal 

 feeding. 



Usually heavy-producing cows are underfed and light-producing cows are over- 

 fed. A common practice is for all cows in a herd to be fed the same amount of 

 grain regardless of the milk yield of each cow. Each cow should be fed according 

 to her production. 



