No. 4.] ECONOMICAL MILK PRODUCTION. 101 



Under the term maintenance is included the feed necessary 

 to maintain the animal's body. In case of animals producing 

 4,500 pounds of milk, about 60 per cent of the feed is used to 

 support the body and about 40 per cent is used for producing 

 milk. With the animal that produces 9,000 pounds of milk a 

 year, the condition is reversed. While she uses the same 

 amount of feed for maintenance, she uses 25 per cent more 

 feed than the first, which it will easily be seen gives her twice 

 as much feed available for milk production. This table 

 shows that in general one cow using 25 per cent more feed 

 than another may produce twice as much milk. The economy 

 in the high-producing cow lies in her ability to use a larger 

 amount of feed after enough has been provided for the main- 

 tenance of the animal. 



This is the simple but entire explanation of the difference in 

 economy of producing milk by different cows. It is not 

 difference in digestion of food, or that one has a power to get 

 something out of her ration that another cannot. 



How TO GET THE EFFICIENT CoW. 



It would be interesting, and it might be profitable, if limi- 

 tation of time did not prevent, to consider in some detail as to 

 how the high-producing cow is to be secured. Time will be 

 taken to discuss only one or two points and those only briefly. 

 The first is that in order to secure profitable cows for the dairy 

 herd, the dairyman must raise them himself, I am fully aware 

 of the situation in regard to the expense of raising a calf where 

 the whole milk is sold, but at the same time there is absolutely 

 no other way for a farmer to improve the quality of his herd. 

 There are herds in my State that have been maintained for 

 tw^enty years or more entirely by purchase, and these herds 



