426 



Feeds and 



Measured by a single week's performance, cow No. 1 was the bet- 

 ter animal, for in that time she gave 36 per ct. more milk and slightly 

 more fat than cow No. 2. By the yearly record, however, it was 

 found that cow No. 2 gave nearly 2,000 lbs. more milk and nearly 

 100 per et. more fat than cow No. 1. Time, the scales, the Babcock 

 fat test, combined with good judgment, are all essential in determin- 

 ing the true value of dairy cows. 



690. A cow census. — Many years ago Hoard's Dairyman, by 

 means of trained representatives, began studying the returns from 

 cows on dairy farms in many states and under varying conditions. 

 Prom the great accumulation of data, the following summary by 

 Kingsley^ covers the yearly returns from 100 herds containing 1,935 

 cows, whose milk went to 8 creameries in 3 counties in northwestern 

 Illinois : 



Summary of the Hoard's Dairyman coio census in northwestern Illinois. 



Fat de- 

 livered 



to 

 cream- 

 ery 



Cost 



of 

 keep 



Gross 

 returns 



Returns 

 over cost 

 of keep 



Rec'd 

 for SI 

 invest- 

 ed in 

 feed 



Feed 

 cost of 



1 lb. 

 butter 



fat 



Average for 1 cow in— 



73 dual-purpose herds 



27 dairy-type herds 



25 best herds 



25 poorest herds 



7 silage-fed lierds 



Average for — 

 61 herds whose owners read 



dairy papers 



39 herds wliose owners did not 

 read dairy papers 



Lbs. 

 133 

 178 

 204 

 97 

 197 



168 

 110 



Dols. 

 33.27 

 31.73 

 33.07 

 33.11 

 29.00 



33.05 

 32.31 



Dols. 

 36.77 

 48.96 

 55.75 

 26.66 

 54.18 



45.96 

 30.15 



Dols. 



3.50 



17.23 



22.68 

 -6.45 

 25.18 



12.91 

 -2.16 



Dols. 

 1.10 

 1.56 

 1.73 

 0.81 

 1.89 



1.40 

 0.94 



Cts. 

 27.0 

 18.5 

 16.0 

 34.2 

 16.1 



21.0 

 30.0 



Nearly all data heretofore presented concerning cows have come 

 from the experiment stations. This table shows the conditions as they 

 exist on dairy farms in a great Western state. 



691. Annual feed requirement. — The next table condenses studies 

 covering from 1 to 6 years at 9 \\ddely separated American stations, 

 showing the yearly feed requirement of cows and their returns in 

 milk and fat. 



We learn that the pasture period ranged from 131 days in Min- 

 nesota to 191 in Missouri. At the Wisconsin Station, only 1,200 lbs. 

 of hay and less than 1 ton of concentrates were fed per cow, the 

 soilage and silage exceeding 9,000 lbs. per cow. In New Jersey the 



^ Hoard 's Dairyman, 39, p. 537. 



