250 CALF RAISING 



first period of dry feed without milk when nearly or quite a 

 year old. The spring-dropped calf, on the other hand, con- 

 sumes its milk during the period of good pasture and at six or 

 eight months of age, when it would normally be weaned from 

 milk, finds itself confronted with winter conditions while still 

 too young to withstand them well. The calf dropped in the 

 fall is usually as large and as valuable at a year old as the spring 

 calf at a year and a half. The farmer finds more time to care for 

 the calf in winter than in summer. From the standpoint of the 

 calf as well as that of the profitableness of the cow, dairy calves 

 should be dropped during the last three months of the year. 



Removing the Calf from the Mother — One mistake often 

 made is in allowing the calf to remain too long with the mother. 

 She becomes attached to it and it becomes accustomed to her, 

 and objects to learning to drink from a pail. Experience 

 teaches that it is best to remove the calf as soon as it has been 

 cleaned off, at any rate not allowing it to suckle more than once. 

 When the cow is out of the box stall for water the calf should be 

 removed without attracting her attention, and placed in dry com- 

 fortable quarters, out of hearing of its mother, if possible. When 

 the cow returns to the stall and notices the absence of her baby 

 the wise dairyman will be on hand with a palatable mass of bran 

 mash or steamed oats, and ready to be substituted in the affections 

 of the cow for the little one that has been lost. This transfer of 

 affection is easily accomplished at that time. 



Allow the Calf to Become Hungry. — If the calf has been 

 permitted to suckle once it will not usually be sufficiently 

 hungry at the end of twelve hours to learn easily how to drink. 

 No harm whatever will come to it if twenty-four hours elapse 

 before its first meal after removal from the mother. When 

 keenly hungry it will learn very readily. From one to three 

 lessons only are then needed to teach the average calf the art 

 of drinking from the pail. 



First Feeding. — The first milk drunk by the calf from the 

 pail should be a portion of its own mother's milk, sweet, warm, 

 and clean, and not more than a quart in quantity. In teaching 

 the calf to drink the feeder should remember that the calf is a 



