THIRTY-FIFTH ANNUAL CONVENTION. 191 



amount of raw material in the form of feed, and this raw ma- 

 terial is manufactured into milk. The same rule holds in running 

 the milk manufacturing plant as would hold in running any other 

 manufacturing plant; it is run most economically near its full 

 capacity. Every one who feeds animals should thoroughly com- 

 prehend that, first of all, the animal must use a certain proportion 

 of its food to maintain the body. This is the first requirement 

 of the animal and it is the first use to which it puts its food. 

 This we call the ration of maintenance, and it is practically a 

 fixed charge. This is, it is practically the same whether the 

 animal is being utilized for maximum production, or if the ani- 

 mal is being merely kept without producing any milk at all. 



In the case of an ordinary dairy cow, this ration of main- 

 tenance amounts to about 60 per cent of the ration that she is 

 given. In the case of a heavier producing animal, for example, 

 one producing 1 pound to l}i pounds butter fat per day, this 

 ration of maintenance amounts to about one-half the total feed 

 of the animal. It should be clear that, after going to the expense 

 of giving the animal the necessary amount to keep her alive, it is 

 the poorest economy to refuse to furnish the other 40 or 50 per 

 cent which she would utilize exclusively for milk production. On 

 the average farm this is one of the most common mistakes made. 

 The importance of liberal feeding for economical production can 

 be easily understood from the illustration on next page. 



The first illustrates the proper feeding of a heavy producing 

 cow, which is the one usually underfed. The line a — c represents 

 the total capacity of the animal for food, or a full ration. The 

 first half from a to b represents the amount of food required to 

 maintain the animal's body, or the ration of maintennace. The 

 second half, that portion from b to c, represents the proportion 

 of the food used for the production of milk. In this case there 

 is no fat being produced on the animal's body and the cow is 

 supposed to be of such dairy quality that all the feed she can eat 

 in excess of that required for maintenance is used for milk pro- 

 duction. 



The line below represents what would happen if the feed of 



