100 THE MANAGliMEKT AND FliKUING 01" CATTLE 



occur it shows very clearl}' that they Iiave not been man- 

 aged properly during the breaking-in process. It may 

 be affirmed with safety that when heifers are broken 

 properly they will not become confirmed in the habit of 

 kicking while being milked. 



Should they become confirmed in this habit two 

 methods of management are open. One is to restrain 

 them so that they cannot harm the milker. Another is 

 to correct the habit by kind treatment. Two methods 

 of restraint have been resorted to. The first is tying 

 the legs together with a rope before the milking begins. 

 By the second method a rope is passed around the body 

 in front of the hind ffank, and is tied when thus placed. 

 When the efifort is made to kick, this rope is drawn so 

 tight as to produce pain, so that the animal at once 

 desists in its efforts to harm the milker. The objections 

 to these methods are that they are troublesome and that 

 they will never in themselves cure the habit of kicking 

 in the heifer or the cow. Nor will a cow thus treated 

 milk so freely as when milk-giving is pleasantly concur- 

 rent with her desires: that is, when it is to her a pleas- 

 antly soothing process. The other method is to correct 

 the habit. Instances are on record where cows in milk 

 have been corrected of the kicking habit through kind- 

 ness on the part of the milkers. The weak point in the 

 achievement lies in the fact that the cow will usually 

 only behave thus with reference to the person whose 

 gentle treatment secured for him or her immunity from 

 harm. Consequently such animals are usually disposed 

 of at the close of the period of lactation, however good 

 their milking capabilities may be, and there is wisdom 

 in such a course. Life is too short to spend too much 

 of it in reforming kicking cows. 



Treatment subsequent to parturition. — For a few 

 days subsequent to the birth of her calf the heifer should 

 be fed on a moderately low diet, lest milk giving should 

 be stimulated to the extent of bringing on milk fever. 



