CARE OF A DAIRY HERD.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLI, Issue XLI, 9 July 1921, Page 2

CARE OF A DAIRY HERD.

[ [Paper read by Mr. Geo. Ford (Govern--5 , ment Stock "Inspector) befoih. the Otakeho Branch of the Farmers' . i Union.] | The care a dairy herd is'b'f Wore I importance than is usually thought of tby owners. In,lots of cases dairymen x fail to realise the close connection be~tween good feeding and care and good [ results.^ It is no use getting a dairy [ herd to a high state of perfection by t the judicious selection of sires arid the eliminating of-..unprofitable- cows by 3 testing, if one is not prepared to'take . care of a, herd and give the cows good ; attention. -. .'•'•>'.-.' "'-so: t'-y ! There are many points to be cbn- , sidered. in the care of a dairy herd I In the first place good feed and 'good . water are essential. High bred and low . ted is a bad combination, and there is ; no doubt that many a herd with only . ordinary cows has done better, a s far [as returns are concerned, through . i judicious feeding and care, than better j bred herds which have,not been properly ! fed and cared for: , • • i From all experiments arid experience . it has been proved that. ordinary pas(ture is-riot all that is required=W_reep j dairy cows in the best condition for milking, even in summer when the pasI ture.is at its best.. Some fodder to , supplement the pasture i s required , more especially in the spring, laic sumi me9> ¥? d autumn. Where the best results have been had the pasture has been supplemented all the year round •by toddeiv crops of some description I am not going to advise what crops , should be grown, as that depends on 1 locality, climatic?, conditions, and! the i Position of each individual farmer. | What I dp say is that by supplemetitino- ! pasture feeding better results will be j got, and will more than repay the" trouble,, no matter, what the Jherd is land, as efficiency- in a)l things id the ;j battle cry at present, it is only by improving our herd and pastures'that an increased supply of dairy prodncrcanbe attained. In the provision of winter teed the dairy farmer is up against a chancy problem through a bad season, or, perchance pests or root diseases of one sort or another. It has been computed that to keep a dairy cow in the off season sixty pounds ot roots and ten pounds of hay a'dav are required, besides what grass she can picic up in pasturing. Where oows are ted in the paddocks one can only | guess at -what each cow gets; but to keep a cow for four months—say May June, July, and August-it will "take |- at least three tons of roots and half a ton. of hay. ■ There is no doubt that on farm« that • have been allowed to go back the"crop s grown have not the same feeding value ,as crops raised on land which has always been kept in good heart, and, though there may be a large bulk of stuit the feeding value is not there compared with the we'i-cared for farm Ln dairy farming there is a drain on the pastures, every year, in the ..loss -of phosphates etc., wfcich go away in the milk, and this loss must be made good by judicious manuring and cultivation. Professor Black pointed .'this out many years ago in reference to the loss the country would 'sustain through the export of mutton and- dairy proCows when dry must be well cared 1 tor. and should, come in in good condyon and have a plentiful supply of teed after crdvirig, and the milk supply must not be checked for want of ' feed; for-if it is, the supply can never be brought up again that season. l_iere i s a close connection between tood and stomach derangements in (Continued on page' 3).

(Continued Irom page 2).

dairy cattle, and* when food of an inferior quality is fed, stomach derangements soon follow. Musty grass hay, rusty oaten hay, blighted turnip tops, withered mangold tops, second growth of mangel tops, are all inclined to derange the alimentary track. Prevention of trouble is the watchword, and the small percentage of recoveries is nothing to the loss that could be prevented in this respect of careful attention regarding feed.

A good clean water supply is essential to keep animals in good health. Good feed, good water, shelter, e'ean yards, g'pocL crossings over creeks, and careful handling would prevent a lot of the trouble we meet with in dairy herds every year.

Feed has an effect on milk, and a good deal of taint in milk is caused through defective feed, and in the spring especially -this is very evident, as. can be experienced when standing in a cowshed on a close, 'warm-''.night.

The deprivation of water.^causes trouble, as ruminants do not.chew the cud so well when deprived of water; .hence we have impaction" of the stomach, more especially the "first and third stomachs. This is very well illustrated when we have a dry season and the pastures ' become dry and . fibry, . also when cows are"-fed:pp.a (ivy. hay ration and nothing in the shape of succulent food added to balance the ration. (Note: Salt required, in paddocks.) It is something like a. motor car standing still with the engine running, with a good supply of petrol, but no lubricant in the cylinders; there is. soon a case ] oi .:seizing through lack. of.lubrication."

Gastric troubles account, for a largei number of cases of .failure in the milk supply, and, as milk production is the sheet anchor,of Taranaki at-present, anything thai.tends to lower the production should be avoided. Of course change in weather conditions affects the milk supply; but that is one of the, things over which we have litt.e con- i trol in a district-where the herds live outside all the year round, though a good dea] more could be done in the sharje of hedges and plantations for the protection of stock during stormy weather.

(Note: The skin of .cattle in good health has a nice feel and slack when grasped.) As already said, the prevention of trouble is the point to be aimed at, and two-thirds of the troubles of dairy cows are of dietetic origin. I may mention that when a cow seems partially blown after feeding, and going .about eating twigs off the hedges while other cattle are eating good gniss, the chances are there is something wrong in the stomach. This does not apply to stick and boii^ chewing, which is far too common and should not be seen on a properly farmed dairy farm. In that case a dose of opening medicine, followed by tonics,, is necessary. In giving opening medicine to a cattle beast, the best results are got by giving small doses repeated at intervals, and plenty of warm water.

There is no doubt o'yer-feeding of concentrated foods in some ca_.es has had a . disastrous ' effect through overgorging. In these sorts of cases the quickest .act"rig purgative" that can be got must be used.

Failure of cows'to. get in calf.—This is a rather, serious matter for a 'dairy, farmer when he finds cows coming hack to the bull. From my'experience I am inclined to tlie opinion- that an old hull in the herd is a bad proposition— ■this where a number of cows are to be served. Last year several, cases .came under my notice where old hulls were used. The first ten or fifteen cows served held, and all served after that came back, one here and there holding. Now, in all these cases where a young bull was procured, the cows got in calf •without any trouble, and it woidd seem that, where there is a large herd, the plan yis to use young biilis. The matter is quite different where a pedigree hercTis concerned, as an old bull might and would do where a dozen cows or so are concerned. My advice in the case of a bull is to either b#eed lvm or purchase a calf sr.d re?ir 'him. and t. en it anything doss <_o wrong you have th*. satisfaction of knowing you have- not been saddled with someone's cast-olf and possibly disease-affected animal. Of course, if the farmer will not take the trouble to rear a bull, and will buy at the yards, he must take his chance of being bit "now and aga: n. To get the best results, the bull' should not run with the cows. Tb my mind getting cows in calf is one of the most desirable things in dairy farming, and the loss from this is more serious than any udder troubles that may come along. Of course, all the trouble of oows not getting in calf is not in all cases the fault of the bull. In a ease where there has been trouble the previous year 1 would advise washing cows out immediately after calving, using some mild disinfectant.

There is a point I wish, to emphasise m connection with the feeding of cows coming to the calving. For a fortnight before calving the cow should be put on green succulent feed, and, if this cannot be done, then a good dose of opening medicine should be given. I may tell you that post parturient constipation is the cause of more deaths among cows than farmers realise. The cows will linger on from three to twelve days, and -then drop dead. They will cleanse all right and milk fairly well, and the owne> thinks everything is all right and wonders what could have happened to cause the cow's death; and. where nothing but a hay diet has been provided before calving, the trouble is fairly prevalent. lam in favour of giving the drench twenty-four hours before calving, as, by doing this, you have the bowels functioning before parturition takes place. I know- some people prefer to give the drench after calving, but I prefer before. In a case of a cow being seedy after calving, give a quart of strong coffee and sugar] to which a tablespoonful of ground ginger is added.

Chapped and sore teats.—These should be bathed with warm water and baking soda, a teaspoonful of soda to the pint of water, then well dried and a\ mixture of tincture of iodine and glycerine, equal parts, applied, or Friar's Balsam and glycerine in equal parts.

. Swollen udders.—To be bathed well with warm water, dried carefully, the swollen .part well massaged and some stimulating liniment well rubbed in. All teats of the udder to be stripped three times a day.

In reference to cows slipping calves, the trend of opinion is that a good deal of the trouble can lie prevented by care and attention, and here again feed is considered a factor—hay from cocksfoot where ergot has developed; also feeding on pastures where along creek sides and, hedges, where cocksfoot and fescue have been, allowed to seed in summer, and where the ergot has fallen down among the rough grass at the bottom, and cattle picking up the ergot when feed becomes short.

In this I have touched on the care of a herd and given you my opinion a? the result of experience and observation, and what I hope is that it will lead to a good discussion. Any point I have not made plain I will "do mv best to clear up. and also anything- I can tell you in the shape of advice for prevention of troub.e and what remedies you are likely to have at hand that can be used. Let us have a fair open discussion, and I hope it will be for the

benefit of all concerned. During the discussion, in which all present took part, the speaker pointed out that a lot of feed was different in mineral contents, and all authorities were of opinion that a lot of stock trouble was caused through this deficiency. It was also pointed out that I the opinion of authorities had changed ' during the last two years in regard to abortion, and shortly the Department of Agriculture would have a new article m the Journal bringing the matter right up to date".