44 DAIRY FARMING 



roughage that can be produced upon most farms, is corn 

 silage. Its succulence and palatability make it an ideal 

 feed for milk production. This feed should be available 

 upon the farm the larger portion of the year. In winter 

 it takes the place of summer pasturage; during the late 

 summer and fall it is needed to supplement the shortage 

 of pasturage which usually occurs about this time. 



An average cow in full flow of milk will consume 40 

 pounds of silage daily to good advantage. This amount 

 of silage combined with 8 or 10 pounds of dry fodder or 

 hay makes a good combination of roughage for a dairy 

 cow. 



Feeding Grain. It should be remembered that silage 

 contains a large amount of water, and where this feed 

 constitutes the main part of the roughage of the ration, 

 a considerable amount of grain must be fed to supply the 

 required nutrients of a heavy milk producer. The 

 amount of concentrates to be fed is, of course, largely 

 dependent upon the amount of milk and butterfat pro- 

 .duced by the cow. 



Water. An abundance of pure water is a prime neces- 

 sity with a dairy cow. This is to be expected from the 

 fact that milk is largely composed of water. Where cows 

 have no access to flowing water, they should be watered 

 regularly morning and night; and during hot weather a 

 third watering at noon is desirable. The fact that milk is 

 composed so largely of water should emphasize the im- 

 portance of supplying only pure water. We may reason- 

 ably expect the same bad effect on the health of the cow 

 and the flavor of the milk from stale, impure water which 

 is noticeable from the feeding of stale, odoriferous feeds. 



Salt. Cows should have daily access to all the salt they 



