INDIVIDUALITY IN DAIRY COWS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3517, 9 August 1921, Page 10

INDIVIDUALITY IN DAIRY COWS.

Heavy milk production and economical production is largely a matter of individuality—that is, some cows have the power ; to make nee economically of much larger quantities of feed than others. There is, for instance, not a great deal of difference between cows in the amount of feed required for maintenance. Above this amount the feed is used either for the production of milk or body fat. Inferior dairy cows tend to use the extra food for body lat, ami are therefore unprofitable, whereas cows of pronounced dairy tendencies can hardly be forced to take on fat during the milking ; per.od. Herein lies the need for skill in i feeding. If two animals require nearly equal amounts of feed for maintenance, economical feeding consists in giving each just as much more as they will turn into millc. It. is obviously poor economy to j withhold from the cow, after furnishing her with enough to keep her alive, all tho additional food she will eat without taking on fat, since all of it is used for milk production. This is a common mistake on the average farm. Individuality is instanced by two cows which were bred so that they calved only a week apart, and kept under conditions which made a comparison of their performance most reliable. They were fed rations of the same composition, and the amount of feed eaten by each wis .-.g. ! [ They were kept at uniform weights, and their production was recorded . • ..oil as the composition of the milk. The amount of feed required for maintenance was also recorded, as well as the percentage of feed digested by each. It was found that the better cow produced 85221 b of milk during tho year and 4691 b of fat. The inferior cow of the two produced 31881 b of milk and 1691 b of fat. Each required practically the s m:c quantity of food for maintenance, and each digested equal percent-

ages of the feed consumed. The better cow, however, consumed much larger amounts of feed, so that the percentage required for maintenance was only 35 per cent., while the inferior animal required 55.3 per cent, of her feed to keep her alive. In fact, the better cow ate 2.64 times as much as the poorer cow and produced 2.77 timee as much butter-fat. It will be seen, therefore, that each cow made equally good use of her feed, but the better cow was a more efficient milking machine, and was, in consequence, able to utilise a greater quantity of feed above maintenance than the poorer cow. Her capacity w T as greater—about three times as great as that of the poorer cow. The poor cow did not pay for her feed, while the good cow was a very profitable produeer. A very prominent dairy authority says that high-producing dairy cows secerte milk because they have in their bodies a strong stimulation to produce milk. They have keen appetites to replace the nutrients required for the manufacture of milk and consume large amounts of feed. He points out that, as intimated above, “the consumption of the heavy ration is the result and not the cause of the heavy milk production.'’ To prove this point he quotes an experiment in which a mature cow was fed liberally while dry and calved in more than moderate flc-li. After calving she was fed only enough to maintain her body, having nothing extra for milk production. This was kept up for 39 days and the animal lost 1151 b in weight, but was producing only lib of milk per day less than in the beginning, although she could hardly get up without assistance. She had in the meantime produced more than 901 b of milk solids from her own body.

Conformation and external appearance are indications of dairy quality, and a study of milk records and breeding will help in estimating the probable production of an individual. Some dairymen look for large udders, but the quality of an udder is not always indicated by its size. It usually happens that heavy-producing cows have large udders, but it also happens that poor producers often have large, fleshy udders. In the one case the udder is large and contains only a small percentage of framework tissue, most of the tissue being for milk secretion. In the other case the milk secreting tissue is present to a lesser extent, but size is created by much udder framework, which is of no use for milk secretion. —Tanner's Advocate (Canada). THE HORSE: FOODS AND FEEDING. Many valuable hints on the feeding of farm horses are contained in a bulletin which has been issued by the Utah Agricultural College Experiment Station. Among other things, it is pointed out that the horse’s digestive organs do net handle bulky rations economically. The horse has a wide appetite, although for practical reasons the ration of one horse seldom contains a great variety of feeds. Lucerne hay, fed intelligently, is the best hay for work horses. Timothy ha.y is somewhat safer for a careless feeder, though it has a lower nutritive value. Oats are the standard grain for horses, but bran and shorts have been found eua-1 in value pound for pound when fed to work horses. When feeding lucerne hay, however, it is necessary, as a safeguard to the health of the horse, to limit- the amount- fed. Most of the hay should be fed at night, and most of the grain at the neon feed. Horses should be watered frequently, although care should be exercised in watering them when they are very warm and tired, especially if through work. As long as horses are at work feeding should not differ from the feeding during the summer. Horses idle during the wdnter, however, should be fed on cheap, rough feeds. Horses should be prevented from “bolting” their grain. It is a wise plan to give a bran mash the night before holidays, and cut down the feed when the animals are at rest. Regularity is important, and sudden changes in the ration should be avoided. Salt in small amounts is required at frequent intervals, and a convenient method of supplying this is to keep a lump or block of rock salt in the manger a-t all times. The horse is the most sensitive- animal on the farm to dusty, mouldy, or spoiled feeds of any kind. Proper Balance Necessary.— Mon frequently wonder why their team sweat so easily the first hour after noon (continues the bulletin). The cause often is to be found in the noon meal. A contented horse standing munching hay while he rests is music to the ears of most men, and the thought of him standing there with nothing but his feed of grain would not be especially pleasing. On the contrary, however, this is the best preparation which earn he given for the afternoon work. A full stomach makes deep breathing difficult, and when tho breathing is thus cut short a horse soon warms up and loses efficiency. On the other hand the feed of grain usually will supply energy enough in small bulk for the afternoon work, and the horse renews his work with no handicap. On the question when and when not to water horses, the publication says it is not an uncommon eight to see a man get down from the seat of his machine and go to the water bag several times during the half-day, without even a thought, of bringing a bucketful of water to his horses, and he has been riding while they have been doing the work. Some men strongly recommend watering horses before feeding; others afterwards ; while still others "water between the hay and the grain feeds. This, no doubt, is largely a matter of habit. A horse can easily become accustomed to receiving his water and food in a certain order, and he may not even want water at other times during his meal. After a system has been worked out it should b© followed closely, for farm animals are creatures of regular habits when conditions will permit, Rome men object to watering after feeding grain for fear the water will wash the grain out- of the stomach. Under normal conditions this probably is not likely to occur, and even if it does happen to some extent it wd! not be especially detrimental as a small amount of grain will be fully digested without any long stay in tho stomach. The humane thing to do seems to be to give the horse an opportunity to drink before and after eating. Rome caution is necessary in allowing horses access to much water when they are extremely warm. So long as they continue working after the drink there seems to be little danger. Even when going into the stall, if they are accustomed to their drink n.s they come out of tho harness very little difficulty will be experienced. Feed Value of Straw.— The amount of unmarketable feed and by-products which can be fed at little

expense to horses on tho average farm is limited. Straw is probably the most generally available cf such feeds. If used intelligently it can be made to go a" long way towards keeping mature idle horses. Straw from headed grain has a higher feeding value than long straw. Oat straw is more desirable than straw from the other grains, dtraw from bearded grains sometimes sets up an irritation in tho mouth and other tissues, which gives trouble. Straw alone is not a- satisfactory feed for horses, because it does not move along the digestive tract very rapidly. This constipating effect results in impaction of the large intestine, and death in many cases follows. The danger from this and other digestive disturbances is so. great that one can hardly afford the risk involved in. feeding valuable horses on straw alone. A small addition of some feed having laxative pronertics overcomes this danger. Wheat ~ bran usually is as widely available as straw, it is mildly a laxative, and would help to overcome the dangers resulting from feeding straw alone. In addition to the a ; x V’ ve . properties the bran supplies protein which is present in straw in only small amounts. The two foods, therefore, supplement each other well, four or five pounds ot bran m addition to the straw will be goo A. k^suranee against digestive troubles, and wi.l keep the animals in better condition than straw alone. ** —Bolting Feed.— Horses as well as humans acquire badeating. habits. One which is common to u n. e , atm ? to ° Hay is seldom . lofted by houses, but grain sometimes is. Horses that havo developed this habit are more subject t-o colic because of the improper digestion of their feed. Under these conditions a considerable amount of the grain is lost in the drocnings. There arc two methods about equally effective whe.rebv. a horse can be prevented from bolting” bis grain. One is to put several clean, snaooFh a. little larger than an egg in his feed box. and then spread tho grain out well. Nosing the rocks around wmlo hunting for the grain prevents him takmg the grain too hurriedly. The other method is to spread the grain rather thinly on a large smooth surface, such as a barn , or , T 5 * 8 . is not so easy a-s the other, but it is just as effective, because considerable time is required to get much into the month, and the chewing process continues all the time. Bad teeth'may be the cause of a, horse not properlv chewing his feed If this is the case, grain will appear m the droppings just as when he holts his feed. A sore or decayed or aching tooth mav prevent effective chewing. Another ft equent cause, especially in older horses, is the way the teeth wear. In the process of wear sharp corners which cut. either the tongue or the cheek are produced, and these make eating very unpleasant, If the teeth are inspected a competent veterinarian should be- requested to attend to them. GISBORNE HOSPITAL FARM. Our North Island correspondent, in his communication published on July 12, in referring to tho report of an Investigation Committee into the position and prospects of the farm, evidently concluded that from the statements made by the committee and some members of the Hospital Board that the farm had turned out* to be a white elephant. Bui, like most questions, it appears there is another side to it. The members of the Investigating Committee were principally sheep farmers in a- big- way, and appear not to have realised the potentialities of dairying-. The other side was brought out forcibly at a meeting of the Hospital Board on July 21, when Mr M'Cliskie, who was the chief advocate for the farm when a member, and had been continued as chairman of the Farm Committee and chief advisor when he ceased to be a member, appeared before the board, and in a lengthy address replied to and refuted most of the statements in the committee report and critieed several of the statements by members. One member stated that they would require to make £l2 per acre out of the farm to make it pay, and that he regarded as an impossibility. So far from this being the case Mr M'Cliskie was able to show from the books of the beard that the farm was returning £2O per acre from milk and milk products alone, pigs and other side lines being- extra. So far from the farm being a failure Mr M'Cliskie said that if ho had the property tie would not rest satisfied until it produced £3O per acre per annum. This, of course, could not he accomplished in six, or even twelve months. Mr M'Cliskic’s convincing address and the figures he ad<•n extra man to the farm and to appoint an extra man to tre farm and to appoint a eofVunittee to go into the question of procuring a lorry, and meantime to carry out improvements suggested. The place is evidently capable of being grctlv improved, end it! the matter of providing milk for the hospital has proved invaluable. AGRICULTURAL AMO PASTORAL MEWS. Information has been received by the Minister cf Agriculture (the Hon. W. Nos worthy) from the High Commissioner that as a result of representations made by him a decree has been passed by tho Belgian Government authorising the importation into Belgium of New Zealand beef without the necessity of leaving adherent any of the internal organs (says a Wellington Press Association message). Mutton and lamb have for some years been admitted into Belgium without this special condition, and it is satisfactory to note that beef may also be admitted. The decree, however, requ rcs each quarter to be legibly stamped so that the country of origin can be ascertained without difficulty. A cable has been sent to the High Commissioner asking- if it. will be possible to arrange with the Belgian authorities that an inspection tag attached to each quarter as used at present will be accepted in lieu of a stamp actually impressed on the meat, A Press Association message from Wellington says that an offer has been received from England for the dominion’s output of cheese, the price being ll|d per lb, which is an advance of id per lb on the highest price paid by the Imperial Government. An offer has also been received for the, butter output till the end of October, the price being 2s Id per lb. Our Auckland correspondent wires that expert opinion in the city on Tuesday considers that suppliers of butter are likely to hold off contracts for a while. Despite the tempting offers received from England for

tile dominion’s output cf cheese at £ll 3s 8d f.0.b., and butter at 2s Id per pound, it is anticipated that higher offers than, this. will be received. .Suppliers prefer to consign their butter Homo instead of selling the output. Andrew Howe, speaking at the Wvndham A and IP. Society’s social reunion (reports the I armor), said when the Wyndham Dairy Taetory lust opened its doors to receivo milk tho speaker was the second 6iipplter to arrive with a milk cart. The suppliers received, 4d a gallon that year, and tliou^*lit that they were in for a good thing; but the following season all they received was m the vicinity of 2d a gallon; and for several succeeding years the price did not exceed 3d. He had also recollections of hoggets topped off in September and October realising only 3s 10d, and two-tooth wethers 3s 7d. . Mr Alfred Horne, in a like strain of reminiscence, stated that one year while settled in North Canterbury, he had had to dispose of 7000 bushels of wheat at Is 10d a bushel; and on another occasion, 33 years ago, ho sold bis wool at while this year he had realised fully a halfpenny better. It was stated by Air \\. At. Ringleton (chief dairy inspector) at the Farmers’ Conference that- there were 900,000 dairy cows in New Zealand, and only a comparatively small number of them had been tested. A Wanganui farmer mentioned recently that he had just- received advice regarding the disposal of his wool clip, a small lot by the way. This year’s cheque amounted to £59. while tho same quantity before the slump brought £3OO. This is a good example of the decline in wool values. At the annual meeting of the Win ton A. and P. Association, over which Dr Gow (president) presided, there was a large and representative attendance. In moving the adoption of the report and balance sheet Dr Gow said that while the financial position was not quite so satisfactory as in previous years, there was a substantial margin of assets over liabilities. Mr R. Hamilton was elected patron and Dr Gow was unanimously re-eleetcd president, with Air W. Blackie as vice-president and Mr A. Hamilton, M.P., as auditor. Vacancies on the committee were filled by the election of Messrs H. Carswell, A. ID. Calder, J. Keith, E. Tob-in, C. M. Lindsay. W. Kennedy, It. M'Doug ill, A. S. Al‘Naught, It. J. Anderson, P. Blyih, W. Norman, D. MacDonald, J. G. Man son, H. Stewart-, R. S. Smith, and J. S. Brass. It was decided to take steps to obtain an additional 40 acres for the experimental farm. The charge for admission to the annual show was fixed at Is fid for non-members and 6d for primary school children. At the monthly meeting of the committee of the Gore A. and P. Association, Mr D. Y. Dickie being in the chair, it was resolved by 15 votes to five that the fees for auctioneers’ licenses should bo shared by the council and the borough of Gore. The secretary of the Clydesdale Horse Society notified that as Air James Patrick, who had been awarded first prize at the recent show, had been already awarded a medal at- the Taieri Show. Mr J. A. Jenkins, who came next, would receive the society’s medal, which would be forwarded in due course. Messrs R. Grant, jun. (Balfour). Dr T.illie (Gore), V. Wayte (Otamite), W. F. Kingdon (Gore), and R. Baxter (Waimumu) were elected members. The Clydevale branch of the Farmers’ Union held a meeting on the 30th lilt., and set up a special committee to deal with present and future workers’ awards. The secretary was instructed to write asking the Balchitha branch to call a conference at Ba'elutha of all South Otago branches and Tapanui Sub-executive to discuss the mill workers’ award and proposed farm labourers’ award ; also as t-o the advisability of having the Dunedin office and secretary established separate from other business. Tt was decided to give the support of the branch in the endeavour to have a live stock weighbridge installed at Burnside saleyards. The resignation of Air D. Murray was accepted with regret. THE RABBIT PEST. At the monthly meeting- of the committee of the Clutha branch of the New Zealand Farmers’ Union, Mr T. Johnston being in the chair, the secretary of the Otago Provincial Council forwarded a copy of the following letter received from lion. W. Noeworthy (Alinister of Agriculture) re the rabbit pest: —“During my recent visit to Otago Central I stated that I would be prepared to have an amendment made to clause 2 of the Rabbit Nuisance Act, so that it could not be said there was anything un-British or unfair with the law in connection with prosecutions instituted by the department for failing to destroy rabbits. At the same time, however, I made it perfectly clear that in any such amendment I would retain to myself the right through my departmental officers to have sufficient power to deal with those people who failed to take diligent and satisfactory steps to cope with tho nuisance. In other words. I intend to so amend the law to enable a person to produce evidence in connection with his defence, but at the. same time I am not going to leave any loophole for farmers to simply ‘play’ with the question, as has been tho case* in a great number of instances in the past. With reference to the matter of fines which- have been inflicted in coiuit-i tion with recent prosecutions I also stated that the question of whether any rebate should be made or not was one for the consideration of my colleague, the Hon Munster of Justice, n-s well as Cabinet ns a whoV and that 1 was not in b position In make any definite statement on t-he subject further than I was prepared to have tins euestion gone into very thoroughly. far as threats by the bench are concerned of course. I cannot be blamed for that, and it is not for me to criticise the administration of the law. ’ EXPORT OF CLYDESDALES. Mr Hunter, the lion, secretary of tho Clydesdale Horse Society of New Zealand, writes: —In a recent- letter from the secretary of the Commonwealth (llydesdalo Horse Society we have been advised that they have decided that export certificates will in future bo issued on application for horses that are being expo;ted from Australia, and will bo insisted upon in eases where animals imported to Australia from other countries are submitted for registration. This is on the, same line as the regulations in force in Britain. Canada, America, and New Zealand. Those who export Clydesdales to or import them from Australia will, therefore, be wise to make, t-hem-t,elves acquainted with and attend to the regulations to avoid disappointment.