350 



CATTLB. 



tramp, especially around the sides and in the corners, if they are square. 

 More loss will occur in corners and around the sides than in other por- 

 tions of the silo. 



When full, cover the ensilage with cut straw or chaff to the extent of 

 two feet, cover with boards or rails, and leave until ready to feed. 



Certain precautions in feeding are necessary. Everybody realizes 

 that June conditions are best for milk production, and with the silo we 

 approximate the June feed, green, succulent and laxative, so we must 

 have the June climate, or in other words, don't feed your cows ensilage 

 unless your stable is warm. 



Another thing we must take into consideration, and that is, corn 

 grown as I have indicated will have too many ears to make a good ra- 

 tion for a milch cow. The nutritious ratio is about one to twelve, so 

 my practice is to go through the field and pick ofE about thirty or forty 

 bushels per acre before cutting, throwing them in heaps upon the 

 ground to feed the pigs and horses during the winter. Even then we 

 find it necessary to feed grain with ensilage, and I use bran, malt 

 sprouts, and cotton-seed meal. The grain is fed dry twice a day, on the 

 ensilage. On taking the ensilage from the silo it should always be fed 

 from the top, and not from the end. Go over the whole surface 

 at least once in forty-eight hours, or else the mass will begin to 

 mold. 



These are essentials I have found necessary to the profitable use of 

 ensilage as a stock food, and while we are learning something all the 

 time about it and its use, nevertheless, any man can follow these prin- 

 ciples, and he will make no mistake. I am often asked if I would ad- 

 vise a poor man, struggling with a debt, to put a silo. I want to say I 

 most emphatically would. It will be a good investment, and as far as 

 the rich farmer is concerned, he perhaps does not need one as much, but 

 it will prove a blessing to any dairyman." 



Blood I/Ctting in Cattle. Tie a cord firmly about the lower por- 

 tion of the neck, and the jugular vein (63 on Circulatory system in mani- 

 kin of Cow) will become distended with blood and swell out so as to be 

 easily found and tapped. When sufiicient blood has been drawn, loosen 

 the cord. 



