Dairying.

Otago Witness, Issue 2202, 14 May 1896, Page 14

Dairying.

The supply of milk is holding out well, but * few sharp frosts will som cub down tho graes, and farmers are cot yet generally converted to the profitable results of winter milking. Many of them, however," frill t&ke better care of their cows throngh the winter than thoy have hitherto done, and many *180 will ptovi 'c extra foddisr for the hpiglt of suramfr,' wheu grass in Canterbury frequently givea onb. The ksfc big shipment of sheese for the eeasoa leaves this week by the Kaikoura, thb Ofcago contribution coming coastwise by the Corinna. to-day. Th»-re is a good demand for butter for Sydney, snd there seems to be a prospecfi of a profitable winter for the factories that keep going The Cn«viot people have nob kopt their promissr* as to the nuoibsr of cows' milk ttuy would supply to their factor?, and in consequ^c* the working has not proved very profitable They have hal good sheep seas ms, bub will have to give more attention to c*biAp in tli* long run. The speculative element in grazing sheep fcai a strong attraction to ma»y, but a reverse generally makes th?m see the unwi»dooi of^pufcting all their egg* in one basket. The Christchurch merchaata, by the way, are very anxious for a rail*ay to Cheviot, as they find the trade slipping away to WelHugfeou, which is only natural, as that is the better market for produce Sheep and cattle of course Snd their bei-fc nairkeb in C^nt'er^ury, a gr?at part being sold on the f»rmi to the buyern for fret-zing. The report on 'he Lyfctelttin dairies has caused some cfns t t;rnntion in port, especially amongst ths ownerß effected — the majority of the public don'i; seem to care.

The action of the Duoedin Society for the Preveutioa of Cruelty to Anitnali relative to dehorning cattle h*3 been a gond deal d'scuyspd here. Tha inspector of <he Chri-t-church branch of tfco socioty, Mr K'ghiald Foster, late chief stock inspector, has boldly come out in opposition to the resolution of the Dunedin society, and he has officially at^nded some dehorningß and inspected the cattle afterwards, noting the effects, and his opinion is worth m«>re than that of sentimentaliti ; bosid's, he -is supported by professional evidence and opinion. Some of the largest owners of catfcle in Canterbury mftke it a rnle to dt-born all their grazing cattle, and are quite satisfied that, while doing no iujury to their neighbours, the cattle th'ive better »nd fatten more qui<;'<ly than those left with their weapons of offence. S^ill, the beß6 plan is to prevent the growth of the horn by the use of caustic ss soon as the button appears.

Pigs.

A naragraph quoted by the Witness from a Canterbury paper gives an imaginative account of the Bilesmere pig-t. The pigs Bent to Ot>ago were stores, not bacon pigs, end those sent from the herd of 1400 were al^o stores, and yotirg at that. The owner* of thi« h 1 ni d" not cure any of their o vn feeding, preferring t> get baconers from Ofcngo. The Leeston pigs have, aa a whole, lost their character as prime baconers. From inbreeding they have grown too abort, and are a maas of fafc quite unsuitable for the best trade. The new imporf ations of stud pigs may remedy this ; otherwise the Tamworth cross will have to be used. The census,, taken in December, when piga are most numerous, gave about 25 000 for the whole Selwyn County.

Farm horses are seilinsr well, and are scarce. A few truck-loads might fee Horses. planed in any of our farming districts.

Dehorning Cattle.