386 



and vein capacity, and very unprepossessing so far as quality 

 and top lines were concerned. So far as could be learned no 

 purebred bulls had ever been used in that section of the state up 

 to the time of purchase. The environment was not such as 

 would stimulate heavy milk production as the cattle received 

 little if any grain or concentrates, being forced to live on the 

 rather scanty supply of grass and hay available. 



No attention had been paid to the amount or quality of milk 

 produced or to the length of lactation periods. The principal 

 duty of the cows had been to produce enough milk for family 

 use and to raise their calves. 



The cattle reached Ames early in December, 1907, and were 

 in very thin flesh. The accompanying photographs are more 

 expressive than words in giving a true impression of the condi- 

 tion of the cattle at the time of reaching the college farm. 



PLAN OF INVESTIGATION 



The scrub cows and their calves were given the same care, feed, 

 and shelter as the purebred dairy cattle in the herd. This en- 

 vironment has remained fairly constant during the eight years 

 work. 



The milk from each cow was weighed each milking and a com- 

 posite sample taken from which the percent of fat was deter- 

 mined every seventh day. During the past two years the cows 

 have been weighed every Monday morning so that it has been 

 possible to feed what was required for milk production plus 

 body maintenance. 



The concentrates in the ration were weighed out each day to 

 each cow producing milk. Amounts of silage and hay were esti- 

 mated from occasional weighings. These feeds were charged at 

 average prices and the same prices charged for all the years. 

 The cows were credited with the butter fat at an average price 

 of thirty-one cents per pound and skimmed milk at twenty-five 

 cents per hundred. Pasture and soiling crops were charged at 

 $6.00 per acre in addition to cost of labor, seed, etc., for the latter. 

 The net returns are secured by deducting from the income for 

 butter fat and skimmed milk the cost of all feeds. No charge 

 was made for labor or shelter nor credit given for calves and 

 manure. 



Some of the cows were in calf to a scrub bull when they reached 

 the farm and one of them dropped a heifer calf which was later 

 used in the experiment. Purebred sires of the Guernsey, Hoi- 

 stein and Jersey breeds were used on these scrub cows and all 

 heifer calves grown out under the same conditions as the pure- 

 bred calves on the farm. With the establishment of an Ayrshire 

 herd, an Ayrshire bull is also beine: used on some of the cows. 



Some of the scrub cows dropped bull calves every year as 

 long as they were in the herd, thus the number of heifers for use 



