FORTY-FIRST ANNUAL CONVENTION 315 



the summer the calf should have access to a pasture lot where 

 there is plenty of shade. 



Spring and Fall Calves. ^ 



The best time of the year to have the calves dropped will de- 

 pend somewhat upon the market for the product. In the cheese- 

 making district, or where the cream is sold for ice-cream makings 

 it is more profitable to have the cows freshen in the spring. 

 Where butter or cream is sold, or where milk is sold for market 

 purposes, it is better to have the cows freshen in the fall. Fall- 

 dropped calves that are to be hand-raised will usually make a bet- 

 ter growth than calves born in the spring. During the fall and 

 winter more time can be given to the care of the calf, and when 

 spring comes it is ready to make good use of the pasture, and 

 will not be any further trouble or care. In the fall, when calves 

 are housed in their winter quarters, they are strong, and on ac- 

 count of being accustomed to subsisting on coarse foods, they 

 will do well on dry feed. The spring-dropped calf is compelled 

 to subsist on dry feed after it is weaned, and will not take hold 

 so readily, thus suffering a set-back in its growth. 



Calf Scours. 



The most common disease of the young calf is indigestion, 

 or scours. Naturally the digestive system of the young calf is 

 weak and is very easily upset. The old adage, ''An ounce of pre- 

 vention is worth a pound of cure," is very applicable here. 



There are two kinds of scours that commonly affect the 

 young calf — white scours, sometimes called calf cholera, and 

 common scours, caused from indigestion. The white scours is a 

 contagious form ,and if the calf becomes affected at all it is with- 

 in a few days after birth. The germs gain entrance to the body 

 through the umbilical cord soon after birth. The remedy for this 

 disease is a preventive one, and the best way to insure against it 

 is to keep the stalls and pens clean. Stalls used for calving pur- 

 poses should be cleansed and disinfected after each calf is born. 

 Additional precaution should be taken by tying a string around 



