RAISING AND FATTENING BEEP CALVES IN ALABAMA. 6 



year, before losing any of their normal summer weight, they averaged 

 perhaps 800 pomids in weight. It will be seen later that these small 

 cows raised calves which attained an average weight of 560 pounds 

 by the time they were 12 months old. The Kernachan cows averaged 

 about 830 pounds in weight at the end of the winter, but the calves 

 from these larger cows were undersized, due largely, perhaps, to 

 the presence of the cattle tick. As a result of the use of good bulls, 

 the calves obtained from these grade cows were, as a rule, good ones. 

 They were in the first place much larger than the average calves 

 of the State, and in the second place measured up much more closely 

 to the ideal beef conformation than calves obtained frOm native 

 cows. 



MANAGEMENT OF THE HERD. 



The cows were bred so as to have the calves dropped dxuing the 

 spring months. During the summer months the animals, both 

 young and old, grazed upon a moderately good pasture; no feed 

 except salt was given in addition to the pasture. During these 

 pasture months the cows ate nothing but pasture grasses while 

 the calves had the cows' milk in addition to the grasses. The 

 main pasture was made up principally of Japan clover and broom 

 sedge, which had come naturally after the dealing of the land. 

 This large pasture consisted of approximately 1,000 acres, but a 

 very large part was covered with trees; under these trees the ground 

 was bare. ■ A small adjoining pasture of approximately 30 acres had 

 been partly set to Bermuda, but this was used only occasionally 

 for some calves. These permanent pastures afforded the animals 

 reasonably good grazing for about six months of the year. 



When the pastures became exhausted in the late fall the calves 

 were weaned, the males castrated, and the cows and calves placed 

 in separate fields and fed and managed differently. The cows were 

 placed in the old corn and cotton fields, thus being fed the rough 

 feeds of the farm along with small amounts of cottonseed cake. The 

 calves were prepared for the winter fattening period. The fol- 

 lowing short statements give a brief history of the management 

 of the cows and the lives of the calves from January 1, 1911, to 

 April 1, 1912: 



(1) The calves were born during the months of January, February, March, and 

 April in 1911. The majority were born in March and April. At this time the cows 

 were running in a field of 640 acres which had a small growth of cane; a part of this 

 field consisted of old corn and cotton fields. 



(2) The cows ate nothing except the cane and what roughage they secured from 

 the old com and cotton fields until January 23. By this time the rough field feeds 

 had been pretty well consumed, consequently a small daily feed of cottonseed cake 

 was introduced to supplement the range. The feeding of cottonseed cake was con- 

 tinued until April 14. On this date the cows and calves were all turned into the large 



