1896 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
843 
BALANCING THE RATION. 
WHAT G B A I N WITH ENSILAGE? 
I am not satisfied with present results from my 
cows; I am milking eight in all stages of lacta¬ 
tion. They yield 63 quarts per day, which is sold 
at retail in the city. Their present ration is 45 
pounds of corn ensilage (30 pounds per bushel), 
three pounds of hay, three pounds of malt 
sprouts, three pounds of bran, two pounds of lin¬ 
seed meal. I would feed cotton-seed meal, but 
cannot get any at present. I can purchase malt 
sprouts at $15 per ton, middlings at $13, corn 
meal at $17, bran at $13, linseed at $22, gluten 
meal, oat feed and most feeds which might be 
required. I have corn ensilage, fodder corn, oat 
hay, cut when the grain was in the milk, and 
mixed hay. I would like a ration with 30 pounds 
of ensilage for common cows in full milk, and 
also for Holsteins weighing 1,000 pounds or more. 
Also a ration for those who have been milking 
six months or more. What do you consider a 
proper day’s ration for cows that are dry, to sup¬ 
port and prepare them for the milking period ? 
Trumbull, Conn. a. l. 
Not Enough to Eat. 
If A. I/.’s cows are of good size, I 
hardly think that they are getting suffi¬ 
cient food to do their best. I should 
prefer 30 pounds of ensilage, two pounds 
of bran, two pounds of gluten meal, and 
one pound of cotton-seed meal, twice a 
day, with four or five pounds of good 
hay at noon. If short of ensilage, or 
wishing to use but 30 pounds per day, I 
should feed oat hay with a little more 
grain in the morning, otherwise the same 
ration ; for heavier cows, the same ra¬ 
tion proportionately. This ought to 
push the milk, and I believe that it will. 
For cows that have been milking six 
months or more, I should feed less of 
the gluten meal and more bran with a 
little linseed meal. The tendency at 
this time is to put on fat, and the bran 
and cotton-seed will force the milk. De¬ 
liver us from the fat milch cow 1 
We believe that it pays to feed the 
dry cow well. She is getting ready for 
an eight or 13-months hustle, and she 
needs to be in good condition for it. She 
can’t be if fed, and poorly at that, on 
bog hay and a little bran. I would sug¬ 
gest 30 pounds of ensilage, 12 pounds of 
hay, three pounds of bran and one 
pound of gluten meal per day. I would 
advise A. L. to weigh each cow’s milk 
daily. This may be quickly done with 
a double pointed spring scale. Then, 
by varying the amount of ration in 
periods of not less than one week, he 
can ascertain somewhere near what each 
cow can do. We advise every farmer to 
do his own feeding. Trust your hired 
man or men everywhere, but if yomwant 
to save money and to know your own 
herd, do your own feeding. We have 
lost not less than $100 in one winter by 
allowing a man to do the feeding of the 
bay alone. 
This is the time of the year for the 
cow to come in to get the most out of 
her, that is, soon after winter rations 
begin. She will do well until spring, 
and when pasturage comes, will pick 
up and do almost as well as a new milch 
cow. We must have them fresh at 
all times of the year, but get more out 
of the cows coming in now and during 
the next two months, h. g. Manchester. 
Connecticut. 
Throw Malt Sprouts Out. 
A. L.’s present ration is rather a wide 
one, being about one to seven. My own 
experience is that, while it is wise to 
conform to the standard ration of one 
to five, other conditions enter in. If 
the stable is not particularly warm, or 
if the cows are thin in flesh, there must 
be a large amount of heat and fat mate¬ 
rial in the food. Or if the cow is long 
in lactation, and pregnant, she needs 
more of the bone and blood material for 
the support of the calf she is carrying. 
Except these points are considered, one 
may feed a “ standard ” ration, yet be 
very far from obtaining best results. 
Another very important point is, that 
the chemists’ analysis of food, and that 
of the old cow, may widely differ. This 
I believe to be the case with A. L.’s malt 
sprouts. I have fed many tons of them ; 
but for milk^production, I have never 
been able to get anywhere near the 
chemists’ value out of them. If he will 
substitute three pounds of gluten feed 
for the malt sprouts, in his present ra¬ 
tion, he will then have one more nearly 
balanced, or about 1 to 5%, and will get 
milk in greater quantity than even the 
chemical change in the food would indi¬ 
cate. I should like to have him make 
this change first, and report results. 
I have compounded a ration from the 
foods of which he speaks, with 30 pounds 
of ensilage as a basis, as follows : 30 
pounds of ensilage, 3 pounds of mixed 
hay, 5 pounds of oat hay, 3 pounds of 
gluten feed, 3 pounds of bran and 2 
pounds of linseed meal. This will stand 
about 1 to 5 4-5. For the ordinary cows 
in full milk this ^should be sufficient. 
The 1,000-pound Holsteins, if they are 
giving a large flow, may have these in 
this proportion, with the grain increased. 
If they respond to an increase, or if 
there seem to be an insufficient amount 
of coarse feed, let him add more ensil¬ 
age, or some of the fodder corn. 
For the cows that have been milking 
six months, feed the same proportionate 
ration, but less of the grain. I always 
feed my cows as individuals, increasing 
or decreasing the amount of food to 
meet the demands of the animal. For 
the dry cows, if it were my case, and I 
had not an abundance of ensilage, I 
would feed them what they would eat, 
night and morning, of the fodder corn, 
mixed hay and oat hay in combination ; 
with from two to four quarts of bran at 
noon, with a handful of linseed meal 
added. edward van alstyne. 
A Ration Figured Out. 
The ration which A. L. is feeding, 
although well balanced, is not heavy 
enough for cows weighing from 800 to 
1,000 pounds. The organic matter is 
especially low, and the protein, fat and 
carbohydrates all fall considerably be¬ 
low the standard. The following ration 
is suggested for his common cows in full 
flow of milk : 
Ration—pounds. 
Organic matter. 
Di 
m 
a 
2 
o 
u 
gest 
itrin 
ct3 
ible 
lent. 
IB 
62 
•£ =« 
is u 
O 
43 
Nutritive ratio. 
30 corn ensilage. 
5.76 
.24 
.18 
3 36 
5 corn fodder. 
4.30 
.20 
.06 
2.69 
5 oat bay. 
4.10 
.21 
.07 
2.14 
3 malt sprouts. 
2.52 
.56 
.04 
1.31 
4 wheat middlings... 
3.38 
.49 
.12 
1.80 
2 linseed meal. 
1.70 
.57 
.14 
.6.5 
1 Chicago gluten. 
.91 
.26 
.08 
.45 
. 
Totals. 
22.67 
2.53 
.69 
12.40 
1:5.6 
If the 1,000-pound Holsteins require 
more than the ration given above, it 
may be increased to suit their needs. 
For the cows that have been milking 
six -months or more, one-half the grain 
in the above ration may be dropped. 
For the dry cows, the ensilage may be 
reduced to 20 pounds. This, with a lib¬ 
eral supply of hay and four pounds of 
bran per day, will be all they need. 
New Jersey Ex. Station, c. b. lane. 
Use Scales First of All. 
What A. L. should do is to get a scale 
for weighing his milk, hang it up in the 
stable, weigh the milk of each cow and 
note it down at each milking. Then let 
him vary his feeds, making such changes 
as others advise, or as he learns from 
reading up the subject. Let him watch 
the weights of milk, and his cows will 
quickly tell him whether he is feeding 
them better or not. No one can tell as 
well as the cows themselves whether 
they are being fed right or not. And he 
will very likely find that one ration is 
best for some cows, and another best for 
others. Possibly he will find that some 
of his cows are not paying, and cannot 
be made to pay, for their board. If he 
were making butter, it would be best to 
use the Babcock test as well as the 
scales. For dry cows, I should feed six 
pounds of bran with the ensilage and hay. 
Vermont, j. w. newton. 
A Pennsylvania Ration. 
I should recommend feeding 30 pounds 
of ensilage, three to four of hay, and 
eight pounds of Buffalo gluten feed and 
wheat bran mixed, four-sevenths Buffalo 
gluten feed and three-sevenths wheat 
bran. Buffalo gluten feed is very rich 
in crude protein, which is a milk and 
butter producer. Cows when giving a 
full flow of milk, should have all the 
food they will digest and assimilate. 
This food should contain, as nearly as 
possible, the nutritive of grass in a good 
pasture. This is the cow’s natural food, 
and it is quite difficult to fix anything 
better for her. Cows that are dry can 
have no better food than clover hay and 
ensilage to prepare them for the milking 
period. Austin Leonard. 
Pennsylvania. 
My father says Dr. Jayne’s Expectorant saved my 
life when I was a baby, and I regard it as the best 
remedy in the world for all diseases of the Throat 
and Lungs.—A. T. BOWLING. Merchant, Elvira, Ky., 
December 5, 1890. 
For Headache, take Jayne’s l’aluless Sanative 
Pills— Adv. 
Hors© Owners! Use 
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Caustic 
Balsam 
A Safe Speedy and Positive Cure 
The Safent, Bent BLISTER ever used. Takes 
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OR FIRING impossible to produce scar or blemish. 
Every bottle sold is warranted to give satisfaction 
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sent by express, charges paid, with full directions 
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THE LAWRENCE-W1LLIAMS CO., Cleveland O. 
Cows barren 3 years 
MADE TO BREED. 
Free. Moore Brothers, Albany, N. Y. 
Simplest, Cheapest and Best. 
Th ' CONVEX 
DEHORNER 
_ k A clean, noncrushing cut. 
Handsome and convincing catalogue free. 
WEBSTER & DICKINSON, Christiana.Pa. 
JERSEY 
CATTLE 
First-C/ass Dairy Stock. 
Registered CALVES, 
BULLS and COWS. 
R. P. SHANNON,] 
907 Liberty 8t., Pittsburgh, Pa. 
Farm,Edgeworth,P.F.W.&C.R.Ii 
GUERNSEYS. 
Fifty head choice Cows, Heifers 
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ELLERSLIE STOCK FARM, 
BHINECLIFF, N. X. 
INCREASE the BDTTER FAT, by using a Bull 
Calf from 
Willswood Herd 
Registered Guernsey Cattle. 
WILLS A. 8EWAUD. Budd’s Lake, N. J. 
WOODLAND FARM superior quality. ^ 
J. E. WING, Manager, Mechanicsburg, Ohio. 
^YORKSHIRES 
Excel them all for Bacon and Family 
Pork. Pigs, young Boars and Sows 
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Reg;. Poland-Clilnas, 
Borkshires & Chester Whites 
>Choice Strains; 8-weekPigs; 
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YOU 
CAN 
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BY BUYING 
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CftD CII E-thoroughbred poland- 
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TRUETYPE CHESTER WHITES £V““* 
ever asked. I am the only Breeder with enough faith 
In the quality of his stock to guarantee to refund 
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CHESHIRES FROM FOUNDATION HERD 
I have now shipped 459 times to men I have sold to 
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E. W. DAVIS, Torringford. Conn. 
Pll0cltil'OC~ 8ervlce b0lrs ’ sows bred and 
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Cheshires 
Choice broad, deep and long¬ 
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County, Peruvllle. N. Y. 
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