CALF RAISING 187 



that will produce indigestion and scours with more certainty 

 than to feed sweet milk one day and sour the next. The 

 younger the calf, the more sensitive it is on this point. After 

 a calf is well started, it is possible to raise it on sour milk, 

 provided the milk is fed in the same condition every day, 

 but the results are not as satisfactory as with sweet milk. 

 The Kansas Experiment Station l compared buttermilk 

 with sweet milk by feeding ten calves on each. Those having 

 skim milk gained an average of 2.02 pounds per day for 126 

 days, while the group fed buttermilk averaged 1.79 pounds per 

 day. The latter group had less trouble from indigestion 

 than those fed sweet milk. 



The Creamery and the Skim Milk Calf. The whole milk 

 creamery has been the cause of much trouble in calf raising, 

 on account of sour milk. Where the milk is hauled several 

 miles in the hot sun, warmed to the proper temperature for 

 separating, and then sent home at just the right temperature 

 to sour most rapidly, it results in the milk being sour much 

 of the time when received by the owners, especially during 

 the hot weather. This has often been one common reason for 

 poor success in raising calves, even where the creamery system 

 is fairly well developed. Fortunately, a means has been 

 devised to remedy this trouble to a great extent. Within 

 recent years most of the creameries sterilize the skim milk 

 as the process is generally called, although it does not really 

 sterilize the milk before sending it back from the factory. 

 This consists in heating it to at least 180 F., by using 

 steam in most cases from the engine exhaust. The hot milk 

 is put into cans, and taken home without cooling. This 

 scalding checks the scouring, and such milk should remain 



1 Bulletin No. 126. 



