CARE AND FEEDING OF DAIRY CATTLE. 55 



become affected. Present indications point to the cause being a lack of some mineral, 

 such as liine, in the feed. At any rate, the feeding of lime-water in the milk of 

 calves seems to have proved beneficial in some cases. In other instances salt and 

 sulphur have been used with apparent benefit. Some authorities claim that the 

 cause is the presence of some unknown toxic substance in the feed or water of the 

 locality. This disease is so prevalent in one or two localities as to prove a serious 

 hindrance to stock-raising. 



The treatment of goitre consists in, where possible, removing the patient to 

 some other locality. Iodine ointment or tincture of iodine should be applied to the 

 swelling. Injections of iodine solution into the substance of the gland are also 

 recommended by authorities (5 grains of iodine in 1 dram of 25-per-ceut. alcohol). 

 Potassium iodide may also be given internally in 1%-dram doses twice daily for a 

 cow, or in 20-grain doses twice daily for a calf. 



Samples of the soil and water of an affected district should be sent to the 

 Dominion Chemist, Ottawa, for analysis. The feeding of lime-water to breeding 

 stock will supply any deficiency in lime, and the feeding of ground rock phosphate 

 or of bone-meal will supply both lime and phosphorus. 



RINGWORM. 



Due to a fungus parasite in the skin, the hair comes out in circular patches in 

 this affection. Scabs form later which appear silvery gray. Remove these by wash- 

 ing with soap and water and apply strong vinegar, sulphur ointment, tincture of 

 iodine, or murcurial ointment. 



HOUSING DAIRY CATTLE. 



The dairy-barn is the kitchen in which a large part of human food is prepared. 

 It should above all things be sanitary. The public is insisting more and more on 

 clean barns and clean milk from healthy cows. Besides being sanitary, the barn 

 must be comfortable for the cows and convenient for their care. 



A sanitary barn need not be expensive. A good, convenient barn is the cheapest 

 iij the long run. Cows properly housed are more productive, and can be more 

 cheaply and conveniently cared for. Hired help is cheaper and better satisfied under 

 improved conditions. 



TYPES OF BARNS. 



The one-story barn is, of course, the most sanitary. Certified milk-barns are 

 almost all of the one-story type. It is the easiest to light and ventilate. With the 

 extra storage-room necessary, it is generally more expensive to erect. This, how- 

 ever, need not be the case in a mild climate with an unlined building. An experienced 

 barn-builder informs us that in the Chilliwack District he is building one-story barns 

 with cement floors, to hold twenty cows, for $350. 



The cost of sanitary steel stanchions and cow-stalls would be about an addi- 

 tional $8 per cow. If individual water-troughs or cups were installed, the cost 

 would be about $2.50 per cow more. 



Where it is desired to improve sanitary conditions, a one-story sanitary barn 

 can be built extending from the old one, which will then be used for feed-storage 

 and housing young stock. 



The two-story or loft barn is the one most generally used. It is well adapted 

 to the general farm. The room in the upper story for storing bulky feeds is gener- 

 ally provided cheaper than in a one-story barn with separate storage-room. The 

 two-story barn can be sanitary and well lighted and ventilated, if properly built. 



Round barns are not at all common, but they have the advantage of compactness 

 and cheap construction. To house the same number of animals a round barn requires 

 about 25 per cent, less wall to enclose it, and 30 to 40 per cent, less material, than 

 a rectangular barn. Usually the silo is built in the middle, and the cows are in a 

 single row facing inwards. 



