FIFTY-FIRST ANNUAL CONVENTION 125 



COWS are shown in cuts that clearly indicate the type and 

 character of the animals and their condition after several 

 years of the feeding, care and production described. 



Eleven records on as many cows for a period of six years are 

 reported in this installment of ''Most Milk Per Acre." In the six 

 years these cows went through all the experiences that are usually 

 encountered on the dairy farm. They averaged a better production 

 than is shown by the best one-fourth of cows in Illinois and remained 

 in good condition when fed mainly on corn silage and alfalfa hay. 



The eleven cows pictured in these articles were in the 

 herd for nearly the entire six years of the demonstration, 

 nine of them remaining in the herd at the close. The heav- 

 iest producers became somewhat thin after milking heavily 

 for a few months. This was especially true the year that 

 they were maintained on corn silage and alfalfa hay with- 

 out grain, but all the cows, with one exception on two dif- 

 ferent years, were in excellent condition at every freshen- 

 ing time — showing how well they were maintained on these 

 feeds for so long a period. 



Comparatively little trouble was experienced from sick- 

 ness or disease during the six years. One cow died and it 

 was thought at the time that her trouble might be impac- 

 tion of the rumen from such a large amount of rough feed. 

 A post mortem held by the universiay veterinarian showed 

 that she had not suffered from impaction but had died from 

 heart trouble which had nothing to do with the manner in 

 which she was fed. 



How the Cows Produced. 



The average production per year of each of the 11 cows 

 and their order according to the production of fat is given 

 in the accompanying table. The milk of these cows was 

 weighed at every milking for the six years. The several 

 pages of these figures in the university records show all the 

 ups and downs of production of each individual. They also 

 show the high and low periods of each cow, the length of 

 time dry, and the years that she was in the herd. Only the 



