232 



PRODUCTIVE FEEDING OF FARM ANIMALS 



The normal decrease in the flow of milk in well-managed dairy 

 herds is about 5 per cent a month during the second to seventh 

 month of the lactation period, about 10 to 12 per cent during the 

 eighth and ninth months, and 20 per cent for the tenth and subse- 

 quent months. 



Condition. — The physical condition of a cow will influence the 

 quality and amount of her milk secretion. A dairy cow in good 

 flesh will give more milk and of richer quality than cows in poor 

 condition. Where cows in a fleshy body condition are placed on 

 official tests shortly after parturition their milk may contain 1 to 2 

 per cent fat above normal during the first 2 to 3 weeks, as has been 

 shown by Eckles and the author ; 5 cows in good flesh directly after 

 parturition will also produce milk of a higher fat content through- 

 out the lactation period than cows that are thin and poor at the 

 beginning of the lactation. 



Frequency of Milking. — Under otherwise similar conditions, 

 the shorter the interval between milkings, the less milk is obtained 

 and the higher are the percentages of solids and butter fat con- 

 tained therein. Where the interval between milkings is nearly 

 equal, the differences in quality will, as a rule, be small. If the 

 cows are milked three times a day, the noon milking is richest and 

 the morning milking generally lowest in butter fat, while the 

 amount of milk is least at noon and heaviest in the morning. 



Excitement. — A feverish condition is generally accompanied 



"Mo. Bui. 100; Wis. Kept. 19, p. 117; 20, p. 114; Storrs (Conn.) 

 Bui. 94 



