GROWTH OF HEIFERS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXI, 9 June 1927, Page 3

GROWTH OF HEIFERS

WEANING AND RATIONS

EFFECT ON DEVELOPMENT

■ The feffect of' early ivo&ning' ami 'different rations <trt the growth of-.calves in body weight, height at withers, and hoart gU'th was recently investigated by Messrs W. Mi Regan, ti.'W. Mead; and J. W. Barflctl, of the New Jersey Experiment Station. They tested three different methods of feeding.

"Group 1, which consisted of 3 Jersey, 2 llolstein, and 2 Ayrshire, calves, were weaned when from 30 to 40 days of age and placed on a ration of alfalfa meal and a grain mixture oi 4 parts of yellow . corn meal, 3 parts later 'being changed to 2 parts of old process o'il meal, 1 part of wheat bran, and 2 per cent, of salt plus a mineral mixture of raw rock phosphate and raw limestone which was mixed with the grain during part of the experiment and later selffed. Group 2, which consisted of 3 Jersey, 1 Holstein, 2 Ayrshire, and 2 'Shorthorn calves received similar rations, but the calves were weaned when 10 days old. Group 3 consisted of 6 Holstein, 3 Jersey, 2 Ayrshire, and 1 Shorthorn calves, which were fed and handled similarly to group 1, except that 10 per cent, of black-stray molasses was added to the grain and 20 per cent, to the alfalfa meal.

"The weights and measurements c». the calves were recorded to about 2 years of age for more of the animals in groups 1 and 2 but the calves in group 3 had not attained that age at the lime the report was written. The authors slate thai; though the calves were surprisingly healthy, they were thin and below the weight soon after weaning. A little scouring occurred in group 1 before reducing the-amount of oil meal, and the molasses caused some semiring in group 3. The time required to return to normal weight depended upon the extent of "the check in growth at weaning. The Holsteins recovered more rapidly than the other breeds, attaining normal weight at an average age of 200 days in group 1 as compared with .360 days for Jerseys and 760 days for Ayrshires. The skeleton measurements usually became normal at an earlier age than the liodv weights."