THE HEART OF THE HERD— THE DOES 160 



be entirely stall fed, her corral should be as large as 

 possible, on a steep hillside if one is available, and if not 

 it should be provided with some kind of a pyramid of 

 stones or board that will give the doe a chance to climb a 

 little, and so use her muscles. 



Care of the Udder. — Housing. — To reach her best 

 production, a fresh doe should be warmly housed in damp 

 or cold weather. She must be kept well bedded on a dry 

 floor in a pen free from draughts. To permit the fresh 

 doe to lie outside, on cold or damp ground, is to invite 

 that grimmest ill that threatens the hea\y milking doe, 

 caked udder. The udder must be watched for other 

 slight ills — scratches, small cuts, and chap. The former 

 may lead to infection. When such small abrasions are 

 observed, the udder should be washed with warm water 

 and a disinfectant, and be well greased with carbolated 

 vaseline. Vaseline should be applied when a tendency 

 to chap is noticed. Absolute regularity in milking, and 

 " clean " milking, i.e., stripping out the last drop of milk 

 from the udder, are both essential to heavy production 

 well prolonged. A doe nursing her kids should be care- 

 fully stripped twice a day if she is giving more than her 

 kids consume. 



The practice of offering a milking doe very warm 

 water is also valuable in maintaining the flow of milk. 

 Goats are noted for the small amount of water that they 



