FEED DURING HEAVY YIELD 243 



from her own body. Up to this point and continuing, the feed 

 supplied should contain liberal quantities of protein, enough 

 to meet the protein requirement, if possible. The nutritive 

 ratio of the total ration at A B C would be about 1 : 5.0, at 

 D E F, 1 : 5.5 and at G II I, 1 : 6.0. 



As the milk flow naturally declines the proportion of protein 

 to carbohydrates should widen to reach a balanced form at as 

 early a period as possible. Care should be taken not to over- 

 feed in protein, as it is liable to bring on a rheumatic condition, 

 but so long as all the protein feed is needed and the whole ration 

 kept as cooling in nature as possible there is little or no danger 

 of " burning out." 



Later in the lactation period, when the milk-line falls the 

 value of about one pound of grain below the feed-line, the grain 

 should be cut down to agree, yet to remain a little above, to sup- 

 port the flow instead of dragging it downwards, as would be the 

 case if the feed-line fell below the milk-line. 



The competent herdsman will study carefully each cow that 

 he may provide her not simply with feed nutrients, but also in 

 the form most pleasing to the particular cow. Some cows dis- 

 like cottonseed meal, but will take linseed oil meal with zest, 

 some prefer less silage and more hay ; some crave wheat bran, or 

 some form of sugar feed or roots. Each cow has a favorite 

 without which she will not take the maximum of feed. They 

 should be studied separately and humored. 



Roots such as mangles and rutabagas have been fed for 

 many years in various parts of the world, but are only recently 

 coming to form a part of the cow's ration systematically, and 

 in the place of some grain rather than as a competitor of corn 

 silage. A field, planted to corn where corn grows even reason- 

 ably well, will produce more feed per acre, and per dollar cost 

 of growing, than if planted to roots, but either mangles or ruta- 

 bagas compete successfully with either oats or barley as milk 

 producers. Moreover, the tender succulent condition of the 

 feed in roots renders them more easily masticated and digested 

 than hay, in fact equal to good grain. Roots and potatoes may 

 then be systematically substituted for a part of the grain ration 

 called for by any cow giving milk. In practice one-half the 



