196 DAIRY CATTLE AND MILK PRODUCTION 



pared by the feeder at less expense. The most satisfactory 

 of the prepared calf meals seem to be those that contain a 

 certain amount of dried skim milk. 



Calf Feeders. Several calf feeders have been devised 

 and used in a small way. They are mostly made on the 

 plan of having a rubber nipple for the calf to suck, and a 

 tube of some kind to draw the milk from the pail. The 

 claim is made that it is better for the calf to drink the milk 

 slowly and mix the saliva with the milk which is done when 

 the calf takes the milk from the rubber nipple. In practice 

 it is found difficult to keep the tubes clean, and it is more 

 work to feed the calf in this way than by teaching it to 

 drink from the bucket. As to the injurious effects of rapid 

 eating, there are no data at hand on the ground either way; 

 but it is doubtful if it is of any special importance. Saliva 

 probably has very little to do with the digestion of the 

 milk, since the principal office of saliva in digestion is to 

 moisten food and convert the starches into soluble sugars, 

 and there is no starch in milk. 



Ties for Calves. Where valuable calves are raised, and 

 it is desired to take every precaution to keep them in good 

 condition, it is advisable to arrange a series of small pens so 

 each animal may be kept by itself. This not only allows each 

 animal to get the proper amount of feed, but enables the 

 feeder to observe the individual more readily and detect 

 any unusual conditions. A case of sickness may often be 

 stopped by decreasing the feed of a certain calf after observ- 

 ing an abnormal condition of the manure so slight that it 

 would not be possible to locate the affected animal in a group. 



The next best arrangement, and the most commonly used, 

 is stanchions. Where a group of calves run together, some 



