A STUDY OF RATIONS FED TO MILCH COWS. LY 
A SLUDY OF RATIONS FED TO MILCH COWS IN 
CONNECTICUT. a ee 
RHPORTHD BY W. O. ATWATER AND C. S. PHELPS. 
a eG 
Dairying is a very important industry in Connecticut. 
According to the statistics of the census of 1890%* in only two 
States, New York and Iowa, are there more cows per square 
mile. The milk product of our herds, when valued at 2% cents 
per quart, is equal to nearly five and one-half millions of dol- 
lars, while the butter, estimated at 20 cents per pound, would 
have a value of over two millions of dollars. Investigations of 
dairy problems constitute an important part of the work of the 
Station. Much of this work has been of a cooperative nature; 
the experiments being carried out upon the farms of some of 
our more progressive dairymen. ‘The interest taken in this 
work by our dairymen in general has been very encouraging, 
and the inquiries for information received by the Station regard- 
ing feeding and other dairy matters are increasing year by year. 
The study of rations fed to milch cows on dairy farms in this 
State, which was begun in the winter of 1892-93, has been 
repeated each winter since. Detailed descriptions of the work 
of the first four winters have been given in the Station publi- 
cations.t| The results of the fifth winter’s work (1896-97) are 
here reported. 
Each herd was selected after a personal inspection, or after 
sufficient correspondence to satisfy ourselves of its fitness for 
the proposed tests, and a representative of the- Station was 
present during the whole period of each test and personally 
attended to the details of the experiment, such as weighing the 
feeding stuffs, and taking samples for analyses, and weighing, 
sampling and determining the butter-fat in the milk. ‘This 
work was faithfully performed by Mr. E. B. Fitts, Assistant 
in Farm Experiments at the Station. ‘ 

* See especially U. S. Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Animal Industry Bulle- 
tin No. 11, om Statistics of the Dairy. 
+ Reports of this Station for 1893, pp. 69-115; 1894, pp. 26-56; 1895, pp. 40-76; and 1896, 
pp. 41-76. Bulletin 13 of this Station. Reports of the Connecticut Board of Agricul- 
ture, 1893, pp. 182-199; and 1894, pp. 131-146. 
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