STOCK NOTES

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLI, Issue XLI, 10 September 1921, Page 10

STOCK NOTES

Supplied by the officers oi the Stock Bivision of the Department of Agriculture. The notes of last month in regard to milk fever, care of milking inach.nes, and hard, swollen quarters apply this jrionth. . .- j The present and next month .will see,, dairy farmers concerned in the selection;; ef bulls for uso during the present' season. , In connection with the selection, of a suitable sire, one cannot exercise too much caution and care. In tho case of a large herd only .youngT active, aiid virile sires should be selected and used. In the beginning of the.seaton care Jttust be taken that the fiires »re not Overworked and grained, as Most of 0»e trouble among bulb in large tbury herds happens the first few days they are^tu^ned amongst the cows. To overcome this difficulty the bull should be kept in a well fenced and secure paildock, well away from the herd v or else in a paddock surrounded by hedges high e&ough to prevent the animal seeing over. If these precautions were taken there would be less trouble with lacerated genital organs among bulls. If care was taken in - the selection of a young s!te T and the cows turned into the paddock>with the bull when in season and taken out immediately after service, it ■would go a long way to prevent the cry of some farmers about , the trouble. they, have in getting cow to hold.' Another point is thai the date of service can be accurately noted down for referenco. The long chairs at. the *end of ?ihe sheath should be clipped and the sheath irrigated at least three times a week during the season with a weak solution of some disinfectant: nt warm water. The water should have been previously boiled, and from one to two quarts should be used. - Last year an affection of the -genital passage of cows, known technically as^vagiiiitja, * was faSrly prevalent, "arid, was a factor in-, oows not holding to service of v bulls. The symptoms are. a discharge 1 from the genital passage, straddling gait, whisking of the tail, and arching of the back •during and after micturition. Oil part-ing-the lips of the passage small patches of greyifch whit© pus,-or HUvtior,- roe»v4>e seen, also small nodules appear on tho membrane of the passage. In examining cows for raginitis one must be careful, as the:trouble cau be earned by the

hands from an injected-to a clean cow, «ad% person should always cleanse the hands in a disinfectant after one cow , is' esatftined and before examining another. The infection is also carried by the bull;after serving infected.cows. - If the trouble should"' appear in a herd isolation of the affected animals as far as possible, and irrigation of the genital passage with/mild warm disinfectants should be carried out at once directly" the trouble is suspected; and the ne"axest inspector of stock should be 'com■inunicated with, at once and,.-advised what trouble is suspected. In all cases ■when commiinicatqsg with officers of the Department of-Agriculture give, as good a description as possible of symptoms of the trouble. This applies to all diseases and trouble among stocki ' There will -probably be the usual trouble of red water among- cows during the month." Prevention in the shape of . careful feeding is the best remedy. Feed- hay before turning the co*s on . green feed or. roots. Farmers are again warned to look out for redwater among hand fed calves, and directly the- first symptoms are seen change the diet' and put the calves in a fresh paddock. Where pigs have been kept in a run for any length of time new runs must be provided, as the soil becomes polluted and pig sick. In making a new "i" --■•-* a dry^ warm, well sheltered ■ selected,, and a plentiful ~ican, fresh water, provided. -u« same remarks apply to calves.