68 STORRS AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION.: 
FEEDING DRY FEEDS AT MILKING TIME. 
The custom of feeding cows just before or during milking 
time isa common one. Many farmers claim that the cows will 
stand more quietly and give their milk down better if they are 
eating while being milked. The experience of many dairymen, 
however, shows this to be a mistaken idea. The man who has 
once adopted the plan of milking before any feeding is done 
seldom if ever cares to go back to the old method of having the 
cows eating while being milked. The average cow seems to 
be unable to divide her attention satisfactorily between two 

Fic. 20. Barn in which the experiments recorded in this bulletin were made, 
The stables are located along the south side of the main barn 
where the small windows are seen. 
operations and the result is that either she pays most of her 
attention to eating or else she payg more attention to the man 
who is milking her and is, therefore, unable to eat quietly and 
becomes annoyed and nervous because she cannot. ‘There are 
but few cows which will not stand more quietly during the 
milking process if they have nothing else to attract their atten- 
tion. . If the cow is standing quietly she sees the milker when 
he approaches and steps in beside her. She also gives down 
her milk more freely than when she is attempting to eat at the 

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