260 



FEEDS AND FEEDING, ABRIDGED 



from 10 to 12 lbs. of expensive concentrates daily to secure a reason- 

 able flow of milk. 



Cows should be fed individually. — Even when fed liberally, cows 

 of marked dairy temperament rarely lay on flesh when in full flow 



of milk, provided their ration is 

 well balanced. But cows of ordi- 

 nary capacity may easily be over- 

 fed, in which case they lay on fat 

 instead of increasing their milk 

 production. Since even in well- 

 bred and well-selected herds the 

 different cows vary widely in pro- 

 ductive ability, to secure the most 

 profit they must be fed as individ- 

 uals, instead of giving both high 

 and low producers the same ration. 

 It is not necessary, however, to 

 compute a balanced ration for each 

 animal. All that is needed is to 

 determine what amounts and pro- 

 portions of roughages and concen- 

 trates should be used to make the 

 most economical ration that meets 

 the requirements for the average 

 cows in the herd, after the man- 

 ner shown in Chapters VII and 

 VIII. For example, the ration on 

 Page 110 meets the average require- 

 ments for cows producing 30 lbs. 

 of 3.5 per ct. milk daily. In feed- 

 ing the herd, each cow should be given all the roughage she will eat, 

 which will usually be about 2 lbs. of dry roughage daily per 100 lbs. 

 live weight, or 1 lb. of dry roughage and 3 lbs. of silage. Then the 

 amount of concentrates for each cow may be determined from one of 

 the following rules : 



1. Feed 1 lb. of concentrates per day for each pound of butter fat the cow 

 produces per week, or 



2. Feed 1 lb. of concentrates per day for each 3 to 4 lbs. of milk, depending 

 on its richness, or 



3. Feed as much as the cow will pay for at the ruling prices for feeds and 

 products, increasing the allowance gradually until she fails to respond by an 

 increase in production which will cover the increase in cost. 



Fig. 74. — The milk scales and the 

 Babcock test enable the dairyman to 

 weed out the unprofitable cows and 

 to feed his good cows individually 

 in proportion to their production. 

 (From Wisconsin Station.) 



