DAIRY CATTLE 



461 



The numerous tests which have been 

 made regarding the value of warming 

 water in winter indicate that there is 

 no advantage from heating the water 

 more than merely to remove the chill. 



Maintenance ration — It is practically 

 impossible to determine the relative 

 amounts of the ration which the dairy 

 cow uses in the production of milk and 

 in the maintenance of her weight. _ In 

 fact, this problem is ordinarily of little 

 practical importance, since the ration 

 must supply material, both for the main- 

 tenance of weight and for the produc- 

 tion of milk. As a rule, a decided fall- 

 ing off in the milk yield before the nor- 

 mal time for the period of lactation to 

 close is also accompanied with a de- 

 crease in weight. Conversely, rations 

 which produce the largest and most sat- 

 isfactory yields of milk are usually 

 observed to maintain the cow in good 

 condition or even to produce a slight 

 increase in weight. Occasionally, how- 

 ever, dry cows are carried over one sea- 

 son, and it then becomes desirable to 

 determine a good maintenance ration. 

 This is likewise the case during the 

 short, dry period between two periods 

 of lactation. In Kansas Otis found 

 that wheat straw with small quantities 

 of ground wheat was sufficient to carry 

 heifers through the winter in good con- 

 dition. These feed stuffs are available 

 on nearly every farm throughout that 

 section of the country, and such a ra- 

 tion can therefore be fed to heifers or 

 dry cows conveniently and at a low cost. 

 A maintenance ration of this sort need 

 not cost to exceed $1.25 a month. The 

 maintenance ration, however, need not 

 be so simple as the one just indicated. 

 All kinds of materials may be used, 

 and rations may be compounded very 

 similar to those used during the period 

 of lactation. Naturally, however, the 

 size of the ration should be smaller, and 

 less succulence is required. Thus we 

 may use as a maintenance ration for 

 cows, corn fodder, kafir corn fodder, sor- 

 ghum, alfalfa or red clover hay, prairie 

 hay and other coarse fodders, according 

 to the convenience with which they may 

 be obtained. 



Rations — Hundreds of suitable ra- 

 tions have been published covering the 

 usual conditions met with in every state 

 and territory of the union. These ra- 

 tions contain materials which may be 

 most conveniently and cheaply obtained 

 in different localities. One of the most 



valuable lists of this sort was prepared 

 by Woll, in Wisconsin. In general, for 

 obtaining the best results from dairy 

 cows it is necessary to keep the bowels 

 in a fairly loose condition. This matter 

 is easily regulated, if the effects of vari- 

 ous feeds are kept in mind. According 

 to the experience of dairymen, the fol- 

 lowing may be considered as loosening 

 feeds: Bran, soy bean meal, linseed 

 meal, gluten meal, alfalfa, clover and 

 other legumes, roots, silage and sorghum. 

 The following is a partial list of con- 

 stipating feeds : Kafir corn, corn, cot- 

 tonseed meal, rye bran, corn fodder, 

 kafir corn fodder and various grass hays, 

 including timothy. Some attention 

 must also be given in compounding ra- 

 tions to their effects upon the firmness 

 of the butter. As a rule, kafir corn and 

 cottonseed meal produce relatively hard 

 butter with a high melting point, while 

 soy bean meal, gluten meal and linseed 

 meal have a tendency to soften the but- 

 ter. 



A ration which tends to produce an 

 excessive development of body fat nat- 

 urally hinders milk production. The 

 protein in the feed is used for the repair 

 of various tissues, the formation of 

 casein in milk and the development of 

 energy. A relatively large amount of 

 protein can therefore be profitably util- 

 ized by dairy cows. The ration may well 

 be based on the ratio 1 :5 or 1 :6.5. 



As practical examples of rations for 

 dairy cows, the following may be se- 

 lected from those mentioned by Wheeler 

 in Rhode Island: 4 pounds corn meal, 

 4 pounds middlings, 2 pounds cottonseed 

 meal, 7 pounds mixed hay and 7 pounds 

 corn fodder; 3 pounds bran, 1 pound 

 each of cottonseed meal and gluten meal, 

 9 pounds corn stover, 8 pounds mixed 

 hay, 2 pounds clover hay ; 5 pounds bran, 

 2 pounds cottonseed meal, 25 pounds 

 corn silage, 8 pounds mixed hay; 4 

 pounds bran, 2 pounds each of chops and 

 gluten meal, 17V2 pounds corn fodder, 

 7!/2 pounds mixed hay; 5 pounds gluten 

 meal, 6 pounds corn and cob meal, 22V2 

 pounds corn fodder; 4 1 /2 pounds bran, 5 

 pounds corn meal, 2 1-3 pounds cotton- 

 seed meal, 4 pounds corn silage, 6 2-3 

 pounds marsh hay. 



For Mississippi, Moore suggests the 

 following rations: 20 pounds cowpea 

 hay, 6 pounds wheat bran, 3 pounds corn 

 meal ; 18 pounds Bermuda hay, 2 pounds 

 cottonseed meal, 3 pounds each wheat 

 bran and corn meal; 10 pounds cowpea 



