CATTLE 273 



Profitable and unprofitable cows. Whether a dairy 

 herd yields a profit or a loss depends first of all on the milk, 

 and butter- fat producing 'capacities of the individual cows. A 

 poor cow may require as much feed as a good one, and de- 

 mands as much labor and attention. 



It has been estimated that one-third of the dairy cows 

 in the United States are kept at an actual loss. Twice 



A champion Hereford. 



every day, therefore, there are milked some seven million 

 cows, mere "boarders," that not only return no profit, but 

 use up the profit from good cows. How many cows of this 

 kind are kept on your farm? 



Profit differences in herds. It is estimated that the 

 skim-milk, calf and manure from a dairy cow are worth 

 the cost of caring for her. This leaves the milk to bal- 

 ance against the value of the feed. The difference 



