WINTERING THE DAIRY HERD.

Otago Witness, Issue 3556, 9 May 1922, Page 12

WINTERING THE DAIRY HERD.

When the herd makes its annual change to winter quarters and winter rations is a good time for the dairyman to try to put himself in the cow’s place and view her likes and dislikes as she does (says the Farmer’s Gazette). We rightly look upon November, with its warmth and abundance of pasture, as providing the ideal setting of the dairy cow’s existence; it is then that conditions are best balanced for her greatest, efficiency. That- which we provide her in the winter, therefore, must he to a large extent artificial. Upon how well are those ideal conditions of summer imitated and substituted depends much of the dairyman’s success in the winter months. The cow, as experimenters have found, and every good dairyman knows, is very sensitive to her feed and external conditions. As her reactions to feed and environ ment are promptly recorded in tlie amount and quality of the milk-flow, it pays her caretaker to go to some trouble and expense to. keep her in the right mood for maximum production. To what length this man goes to maintain t.he cow’s morale, incidentally, is a good measure of his worth as a dairyman. So far as -feeds are concerned, probably there is nothing that dees more to keep the dairy cow contented and in the best working trim during the stabling season than silage. To place before her twice daily a suitable amount of this succulent feed is the best available way of reminding her of the lush November pasture, while in bringing practical results at the pail they are virtually equal So long as the cow* is on paste re, her appetite need give little concern; she seems never to tire of this remarkable feed. Good silage stands quite as high in attractiveness to her palate. With the

little dry grain feeds matters are differ ent- Cows quickly tire of these, unless their appetites are kept whetted by a pleasing variety. The good feeder in the Horne Country who does not nowadays find a place in his dairy rations for either oilmeal or cottonseed meal is a rarity. This ia not because to use one or the oilier of them is necessarily the mark of a good feeder, but rather because these two bighprotein feeds hold a practically- indispensable place in feeding the milking cow. Besides their usefulness in adjusting the nation to a nicety and in increasing its palatability. the conditioning effects of these meals should not be overlooked. This applies more particularly to oilmeal, which at one time or another is pretty certain to have its place in rationing everything from the weakling calf to the oldest matron of the herd. Increasing and well-merited attention is being given the water supply of dairy animals in recent years. That the water be pure, * while important, is not enough. Dairymen have learned that the amount of water taken into' the cow’s system has a considerable relation to the amount of milk yielded. This is not “watering”'milk. The simple fact of the matter is, that when a milking cow is forced to drink ice-cold water from a pasture stream or barnyard tank, a quantity insufficient for the body processes is taken. With normal, very naturally she will not produce milk to her maximum capacity. Dairy' thought concerning the frequency with which cons should be allowed to drink also is undergoing a change For the best results with high-producing animals many of the keenest students of the cow believe she should be able to drink as much water as she wants whenever she wishes it, the total amount so consumed per day being greater than when she has access to water only once or twice each 24 hours. In this fact lies perhaps the strongest argument for , the use of stable watering equipment, which is showing a rapid increase on the best dairv farms. Good ventilation of the cow’s quarters counts heavily in enabling her to do her best. During her milking periods she works harder than any other farm animal, and so has need for all the aid that pure air, good fight, regularity, and kindness can give her. The temperature of the dairy barn in winter may have considerable range, but it should be kept between 40deg and 60deg A thermometer in the barn is the sign of the conscientious attendant. The same may be said of a dock, indicating that regularity in caring for his charges is a part of the day’s business. Whiie the dairy cow requires - a good deal of protection from the weather. , the dairyman’s efforts in that direction should not go so far as to result in insufficient outdoor exercise This is necessary to her health She should have several hours outdoors every day, except when the weather is so severe that the exposure involved would more than offset the benefits of the freedom, fresh air, and sunshine of the yard. By means of covered sheds, the hours which the animals may remain outside their stalls or stanchions may be materially increased. In such a place they may even consume a considerable part of their forage. With reference to the dairy bull the matter of exercise deserves special attention, as the maintenance of good bodily vigour is particularly important in his rase. He may well spend the greater part of every pleasant day outdoors. A good plan, where the hull’s stall can be so arranged, is to allow him the daytime.