MANAGEMENT OF DAIRY CATTLE 89 



the habit. Striking a cow that kicks makes her worse. 

 In cjise the cow's teats are sore, use vaseline, or in severe 

 cases, use a milking tube, until the injury can be healed. If 

 the cow is afraid handle her gently. In some cases gentle 

 measures will not work. Some old cows that have got 

 into the habit cannot be cured. Such animals should be 

 tied during milking. This is best done by using a rather 

 heavy strap with a buckle and a loop. The strap is put 

 around one leg above the hock and the end drawn through 

 the loop. The strap is then put around the other leg and 

 buckled so the two legs are held close together. The cow 

 soon learns to stand quietly as long as the strap is in place. 

 74 Self-sucking Cows. This habit is not very common 

 but it is difficult to break up when once it is acquired. Oc- 

 casionally one cow will suck another one. If an ordinary 

 cow contracts the habit, the best plan is to dispose of her. 

 A fairly effective treatment seems to be to put a bull ring in 

 the cow's nose and hang- a second ring from the first. The 

 second ring can generally be taken off after a time. 



75. How Long Should a Cow be Dry? Practically all 

 experienced dairymen agree that cows should be dry for a 

 period before freshening. A cow will produce more milk 

 if allowed six weeks to recuperate, than she will if milked 

 continuously. Heavy milk production is a severe tax upon 

 an animal. A cow that has not been dry for a short time 

 will start at a considerably lower level of milk production 

 than will one that has had a chance to rest. Under ordinary 

 conditions six weeks is sufficient, but if a cow is in a thin 

 condition it is better to make the period longer. 



76. Drying up a Cow. The most common method of 

 drying a cow is to lengthen the interval between milkings, by 

 at first omitting one milking each day. After a few days 



