138 VETEEINAEY HYGIENE 



Later, as the grass becomes available their stomachs 

 should be prepared for it, as sudden changes in diet are to 

 be avoided. At three months of age ground oil-cake, and 

 crushed oats and bran in the form of a mash, may be given, 

 and by the time the calf has settled to this diet and is 

 thriving, the milk or milk substitute may be stopped, say 

 at four months old. From now the animal, if strong, may 

 remain permanently on a dry diet. 



This purely artificial method of rearing calves is the 

 outcome of practical experience, the cow is a milk-making 

 machine, anything which reduces the supply is financially 

 a loss. The above method of rearing calves is to avoid as 

 far as possible reducing the secretion of milk, and practical 

 experience warrants the custom. It does not apply to 

 pedigree stock, the calves of which are brought up under 

 natural conditions. 



There are many milk substitutes : — 



Hay -tea and linseed - mucilage ; linseed-mucilage and 

 skim-milk ; skim-milk, linseed-cake, and treacle ; wheat 

 flour and skim-milk ; hay-tea and skim-milk ; gruel (bean 

 or oatmeal) and butter-milk; oatmeal, linseed, and skim- 

 milk. 



In all cases these substitutes are prepared by thorough 

 cooking, and given to the calves at blood-heat ; this is a 

 most important point to attend to. It will be observed how 

 prominently skim-milk figures in these milk substitutes. 



The most successful milk substitute is obtained from 

 separated milk, by which no delay occurs in removing the 

 fat, the cream being replaced by linseed, and the whole 

 given at body-heat. Milk treated as above is only deficient 

 in fat, which is replaced by the linseed, the other solids 

 practically remain unaffected. 



There appears a consensus of opinion that at least one 

 form of diarrhcea from which the calf suffers, (not ' White 

 Scour ') is due to the milk substitutes being given at vary- 

 ing temperatures, or to their imperfect preparation, or to 

 acidity in the mixture caused by dirty vessels setting up 

 fermentation. 



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