Avaust 6, 1906 
Words, she isin her prime, and she will 
Continue in this condition several years, 
—'nd will not be considered an old cow 
_ Until fourteen or fifteen years have passed. 
_ ~Ows with first calves—at two or three 
Years— are generally unprofitable in their 
milk yield, and one really good cow be- 
Ween seven and eight years old will pay 
4 better revenue than two that are per- 
‘rming their first year’s duties in the 
‘ry herd, and she will probably consume 
ut a little more food than the younger 
Ones, 
On Breeding. 
Those who are seeking to breed cows for 
the dairy, whether they be thoroughbreds 
°r whether they be crossbreds, should re- 
Member the adage that “like produces 
ike or the likeness of an ancestor.” See 
hat the dam of the bull you propose to 
Use has the characteristics in either milk 
_ 8\Ving or butter making, and in form and 
*ze of udder that you desire to see per- 
- Petuated in your herd, that his granddams 
"te possessed of like characteristics, and 
*o back, if possible, to at least four gene- 
_ tations. If the female ancestors be pos- 
essed of those characteristics you seek to 
- “8Ve established in your herd, then you 
May be reasonably assured that the bull 
Will, when mated properly with desirable 
; “ows, produce satisfactory offspring. ~ 
bre ose using what is known as an “ in- 
Ted” sire, that is, one in-bred toa 
-*ommon ancestor on the part of both sire 
ag dam, should bear in mind that while 
eis bull so in-bred will probably have the 
lity to fix the characteristics of the 
ymon ancestor to whom he is in-bred, 
© will as surely fix and eggerate tho un- 
“sirable features of the ancestor as he 
the desirable ones. Therefore, it is 
“Specially necessary to see that the ancestor © 
hom he is in-bred, or his descendants ~ 
to w 
through whom your bull traces to him, be 
ute Possessed of characteris 1¢s that you do 
desire to perpetuate in your cows. 
ose breeders of thoroughbred stock 
Are not financially in a position to go 
\de their own herds for desirable sires, 
uld mate the sire they have in use to 
ir best'cow. They should retain her 
Who 
Cuts 
Sho 
the 
§ Bes : 
nae Mate him with the next best cow 
the related to the dam, and so on until 
m4 Y prodace a sire which has, as female 
able tot for four generation. back, desir- 
| Ree Cows. In this way they are pretty 
x to have a bull that will produce in 
i Offsprings the sought-for qualities, 
th vided the cows to which he is bred be 
®inselyes desirable. 
nrc oa SE 
Floors and Troughs in Stables 
and Cowsheds. 
5 The best material for floors and passages 
bas "ndoubtedly concrete, and where good 
Dref 18 available it should be adopted in 
If ferace to all other classes of flooring. 
With ® passages used by the cows are laid 
int, Concrete, they should be channelled 
Squares of 8 in. or 4 in., in order to ~ 
Prey 
ent the cows slipping. If cement is 
ats, 
- inch deeper than the other. 
THE AUSTRALIAN GARDENER. 
expensive and bricks are cheap, the latter 
may be used for the stalls; but in any 
case cement or heavy stones are to be 
preferred for the heel or settle stones, as 
they are called in Scotland, If the byre 
is to be used for Jersey cows or the 
smallest sizes of Ayrshires, the stalls 
should be about 6 ft. 10 in. from the 
wall to the edge of the manure channel. 
If Ayrshire cows are to be used it should 
be about 7 ft. Zin. long, and if Short- 
horns from 7 it. 2 in. to 7 ft. 4 in. long. 
For Jerseys or Ayrshire the stall should 
be from 6 ft. to 7 ft. wide, and for Short- 
horns 7 ft. to 7} ft., according to size. If 
the heel stone is of cement, the surface 
should be chanelled, and be 6:in. above 
the bottom of the manure channel. If 
flags are easily procured they may be used 
for the walks, manure channel, and stall 
divisions. Cobble stones make the worst 
walks and channels, and should never be 
used if anything better is available, 
The manure channel should be 2 ft. 
wide, and have a fall in its length of half 
an inch for each cow, and a fall across of 
half an inch also, the side next to the 
cow’s heels being the highest, These two 
details, although trifling in themselves, 
are of immense importance as far as the 
cleanliness of the cows is concerned, The 
cows should drop their excrement at the 
side of the channel, close to their heels. 
If the channel is made as wide as sug- 
gested, it is very seldom that the manure 
will cover the whole of the floor of the 
channel. Consequently, as soon as a cow 
voids any urine, it at once ‘runs to the 
side nearest the walk and furthest from ~ 
the cows, owing to that side being half an 
As goon as 
it arrives there it at once flows off to the 
lowest part of the channel, disappearing 
in the cesspool in a minute or less from 
the time it was voided. If the manure 
channel is made narrower than 2 ft., or if _ 
the floor of it is not made with a fall from 
the cows, the manure will be certain to 
dam back the urine, and keep it standing 
and stinking for hours. In the interval, 
as soon as the cows lie down, they drop © 
their tails into the pool, and later on 
switch the liquid all over their bodies. 
Even when every precaution is adopted, 
extraneous matter will at times enter the ~ 
milk, but if the channels are badly de 
signed or ‘paved the amount become3 so 
great as to betoken extreme carelessness. 
Manure channels deeper than 4 in. at the 
cow’s heels and 6 in. at the walk, are. 
unnecessary and a danger to the cows 
when stepping over them, 
Traps should be inserted at the lowest 
point of the manure channel in order to 
intercept chaff, straws, and other solid 
matter. These with a pan almost filling 
the cesspool are to be recommended, as 
they work satisfactorily and are very easily 
cleaned. The stall divisions’ may be of 
stone, cement, iron, or wood, and little 
preference need be shown for either. Hach 
animal should have a separate trough, 
with a division at least 1 ft. wide between 
the troughs, so that no animal can eat 
out of it?s neighbor’s trough, This should 
be rigidly prevented, not only on account 
13 
of the dangers attending over-feeding, but 
as a precaution against the spread of 
tuberculosis, Every trough should be 
thoroughly glazed or enamelled white or 
brown on the inside, and the surface 
should be as smooth as glass. They 
should be smaller rather than too large, 
20 in. by 16 in. by 18 in. being quite 
sufficient. Troughs made of wood or 
gutters of brick, as is com non in some 
districts, are a great mistake. 
Importation of Pure-bred Pigs. 
The Hon. Minister of Agriculture has 
received the following communication 
from the Secretary of the National Pig- 
breeders’ Association, of Ruddington, Not- 
tingham, England :— ; 
That the Secretary informs the Minister 
of Agriculture in foreign countries that 
export certificates are issued by him, when 
demanded, for pigs sent abroad, and that 
such certificates, signed and stamped with 
the seal of the Association, constitute a 
guarantee that the animals so certified are 
pure bred, and entered, or eligible for 
entry, in the Herd Book of the Association, 
My Council decided upon taking this step 
in consequence of the fact that a large 
number of pigs have been exported is 
‘*- Large Whites” that were not pure bred, 
and therefore not eligible for the Her 
Book of this Association, j 
| K. Bechtel, 
Truss and Bandage Maker, 
59 O’Cennell-street, 
: NORTH ADELAIDE 
Trusses, Bandages, : 
Kneecaps, Leather Jackets, 
Shoulder Straps, &c., 2 
Made to Order, : 
And sent to all parts of the Commonwealth 
eeeohit Guaranteed ... 
yas 
A Trial solicited. 
F. G. Lillingston 
Electrical Engineer 
And 
Contractor 
Importer and Electroplater 4 
eecceccce 
122 GRENFELL STREET (near 
Arcade), ADELAIDE. 
