Cows Kept at a Loss 



E. V. Ellington, in charge of dairy production, Idaho 

 experiment station, discusses herd testing and the dairy 

 industry in that state as follows : 



While there are many high producing cows in the 

 Northwest, the average production of cows being milked 

 is low. Figures from the last census show that there 

 are in the state of Idaho approximately 80,000 cows being 

 milked that are classed as dairy cattle. 



The value of dairy products produced in the state of 

 Idaho is only $2,000,000. These figures indicate that 

 many cows are being kept at an actual loss to the farmer. 

 Records that the writer has kept on different herds over 

 the state during the past year show that 20 per cent of 

 the cows were not paying for the feed they consumed. 

 For every dollar expended for feedstuffs some animals 

 were only giving returns of 75 and 80 cents. 



The dairy cow may be compared to a machine. Raw 

 material is furnished her in the form of alfalfa, oats and 

 barley, and milk is the finished product. Milk production 

 is a question of dollars and cents and if the machine for 

 the manufacture of milk cannot be operated on an 

 economical basis then it should be disposed of. 



There is only one means whereby the profitable cow 

 may be detected with certainty from the unprofitable one, 

 and this method consists in weighing and testing the 

 milk and keeping a record of the feed consumed for the 

 entire lactation period. 



Keeping daily records of milk is a very simple and inex- 

 pensive task. All that is necessary is to have some form 



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