136 THE COMPLETE GRAZIER. BOOK i. 



fewer than thirty calves. One distinctive feature of his system is to 

 feed from an early stage with dry instead of liquid food. By this method 

 he very rarely has a case of scour, or looseness, and he has scarcely ever 

 incurred any loss. The calves are at once removed from the cow on 

 being dropped, and for the first fortnight they get, three times a-day, 

 two quarts of new milk with a little water added. Thereafter they are 

 gradually changed to a diet of skim-milk and ground linseed-meal. 

 One half-pint of the meal is scalded, and added to a quart of skim-milk. 

 This mixture is given to each calf until it is two months old, when 

 liquid food is entirely discontinued, the calves having learned to feed by 

 this time, and to do well on other food. In addition to nice sweet hay 

 and turnips, cut with a sheep-cutter, they have as much as they will 

 eat of the following mixture viz., 2 parts each of bran and bruised 

 oats, and 1 part of linseed-meal. Sometimes a little pure linseed-cake 

 is given by way of variety. A constant supply of pure water is kept in 

 their boxes. Mr. Rowell houses his calves in loose boxes, wherein 

 there is room for from six to ten calves, with ample space for exercise. 

 He finds the newly dropped ones do best along with those that are 

 older, because the latter teach the younger ones to eat at an early 

 stage. It is preferred to have the calves dropped before April if 

 practicable, and they are turned out to grass by the middle of June, 

 but the youngest ones are always taken under cover during the night. 



Mr. Henry Kuck, of Eisey, Wiltshire, adopts a plan by which he 

 uses little or no milk after the first fortnight. He thus describes 

 it : " Seven Ib. of finely-ground linseed-cake is dissolved in 2 gallons 

 of hot water, and to this is added 2 gallons of hay tea ; 7 Ib. of mixed 

 meal, consisting of equal parts of wheat, barley, oat, and bean meal, is 

 also added, with 2 gallons of water. This mixture which may be 

 described as 7 Ib. of linseed-cake ground fine, 7 Ib. of mixed meal, 2 

 gallons of hay tea, 4 gallons of hot water is given to the calves as 

 follows : 2 quarts in the morning, further diluted with 2 quarts of 

 water, and 2 quarts mixed with 2 quarts of water at night. Upon this 

 gruel the calves thrive well, and they are weaned from it at twelve 

 weeks old having cost not more than from Is. 3d. to Is. 6d. per head 

 per week." 



Mr. A. Ralston, Glamis House, reports the system pursued by the 

 most successful calf-rearers in Forfarshire to be as follows : The calves 

 for the first week or so receive three feeds of milk per day, the morn- 

 ing feed being of new milk, and the other two feeds of skim -milk, the 

 quantity given being about 6 gills per feed. As the calf grows older 

 the quantity is gradually increased. When about three weeks old, or 

 slightly before that age, the sweet milk is given up and the skim-milk 

 increased to about 9 gills per feed. A substitute for the fat in the new 

 milk is provided in the form of a mixture of ground linseed-meal, 

 oatmeal, and locust-bean meal in equal proportions; the total weight 

 of the mixture to begin with not exceeding . 1 Ib. per calf per day. 

 This is increased as the calf grows older to about 1^ Ib. The mixture 

 is either boiled or scalded with boiling water until it assumes the 

 consistency of thick gruel. It is then poured among the skim-milk 



