LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

Southland Times, Issue 21850, 29 October 1932, Page 12

LIVE STOCK AND THE FARM

ON THE LAND NOTES FOR THE MONTH. (By Working Fanner. If the Victorian fanners who are to visit Southland about the New Year could see it now they would be so much taken with the greenness everywhere that they would scarcely have any inclination to look at our stock. Grass may be short in places but it is seldom that such a bright green is so universal. This is-no doubt due to the absence of storms and frosts during the past two months, although last Sunday night’s frost caused much more damage than enough. Potatoes were the first to show the effects but pastures and fruit trees also suffered much damage. On one paddock where a draught horse had taken a walk while the frost was on the grass every footmark can be traced, through the grass being blackened like potato tops. Plums which had set well and had reached the size of small birds eggs were all blackened and ruined. However, now that the corner is turned, it is well to have something to check our exuberance, since it is stated that “joy kills more than sorrow.” It is seemingly strange, since the corner is turned, that the Northern freezing companies are so reticent in stating the opening price for fat lambs. Reports from London state that the woolsales closed firm and active. with good all round competition but when it is all boiled down, prices have advanced on an average, about £d. per lb. When it is realized that a rise of three pence a pound would not have brought the price up to the cost of production there is not much cause for jubilation but as Paddy says “Bad luck is better than no luck at all.”

Dairy produce is the one bright ray at present and in view of reports of food riots, strikes, and unemployment those factories which have sold at 6d and a little over would seem to have done the wise thing. Heifer calves should still be getting good food and attention, a check in the early stages takes a lot of catching up. When feeding on new milk one is not so likely to err on the score of over feeding but when they are put on to skim milk and there is plenty and to spare over feeding is as likely to cause trouble as under feeding. Distended stomachs bring on indigestion and scours and previous gains are quickly lost.

Dry sheep get dirty very quickly at this time and a run over with a pair of daggers will save loss of wool and make for a cleaner board at shearing time. A certain amount of shearing has already been done and a mob of shorn ewes running with their lambs was noticed in one paddock. If there is a certainty of a few find days it may be advisable to shear ewes but a storm coming on top of shearing puts the milk off the ewe very quickly. If it is intended to shear the ewe before weaning time it should be done early in November while the milk flow is strong and the ewes and lambs should be taken into the shed in small lots so that .they may be got back to their pasture as soon as possible. Some farmers are very successful with early shearing but the majority prefer to get as many lambs as possible away to the works, then shear the ewes and put the balance of the lambs on to feed.

In deciding when to shear the ewe it is wiser to consider the lamb than the date of the wool sale. Care of The Horse. With the advent of motor lorries farm horses are not used for road work to nearly the same extent as they were a few years ago. The cost of shoeing a waggon team will go a long way to paying for the haulage by lorry of the requirements of the farm. One advantage of the old method was that the horses feet got a periodical trim, while under present conditions they are liable to be neglected. A horse which is being worked with long feet is labouring under a great disadvantage and though it may not be intentional on the part of the driver it is a form of cruelty to animals. Long toes and low heels throw a heavy strain on the back tendons of the legs causing the pasterns to knuckle and in some cases making a perfectly sound horse appear to be a cripple. Neglected hoofs also tend to form sand cracks and if these are not attended to in time they cause a lot of trouble. Where the sand crack is not bad it can be treated by keeping the hoof trimmed neatly so that there are no projecting corners to aggravate the trouble but when the crack reaches to the top of the hoof and causes lameness the average farmer is safer to take the horse to a capable blacksmith for treatment. If a horse develops lameness through a bruised foot or a prick there is usually a gathering inside the hoof and this should have immediate attention as otherwise it is likely to break out at the top of the hoof and form what is known as a quitter. If this happens a veterinary surgeon should be called in. When the horse becomes lame and a gathering is suspected the sole of the foot should be scraped clean with a farriers knife and the hoof tapped lightly with a hammer to locate the trouble. There is usually some indication, between the sole of the foot and the wall of the hoof such as a dark spot, as to the seat of the trouble. By using a sharp knife and paring away the hoof this dark vein will usually lead to the gathering and when the matter has been let out and a clear opening made to allow of drainage some iodoform mixed with vaseline may be put in and the hole loosely filled with gause or a piece of binder twine. A shoe may be lightly tacked on to keep this in place and as a rule there is no further trouble. In every case whether quitter or fester drainage must be through the sole of the foot to effect a cure. In treating a quitter, where professional aid is not available, provide a vent in the sole of the foot and then insert corrosive sublimate where the gathering has broken out at the top of the hoof. Never poultice for a gathering foot until the matter has been released through the sole of the foot because in responding to the drawing action of the poultice the matter will naturally break through the softest part and that is at the top of the hoof. Every farmer who uses a team should have a pair of hoof cutters, a rasp and

a farriers knife, and then half an hour on a wet day will keep the horses feet in fit condition to carry them at'their work. The curry comb and brush should be used freely at this time while the horses are casting their coats and spare horses should not be allowed to go day after day with the cover on especially when the day is hot. The itch caused by the old hair makes them rub against trees and fences and the cover has to stand more than its makers intended. When the cover is removed the horse can roll and in this way gets rid of its surplus hair but a combinatioil of grooming and rolling is much better. High Production. From the New Zealand Dairyman “Mr W. Young’s herd (Otahuti) of 57 cows (including 20 2yr. heifers and 2 strippers) averaged 403.58 lbs. fat in 278 days for last season, as compared wiih the highest return for the New Zealand Herd Testing Association, of 407.39 lbs. fat in 320 days. It will be seen that Mr Young’s record, being for a 42 day shorter period, is considerably the better.” Last year although the latter half of the milking season was ideal as regards climatic and feed conditions the first half was anything but good owing to boisterous winds and drought conditions prevailing and it is usually during the first half of the lactations that records are made. Watered Milk. A milk vendor was prosecuted in England for having adulterated his milK by adding water. It was claimed by the prosecution that the milk had been submitted to the freezing test which proved beyond doubt whether water had been added. It was stated that genuine milk as given by the cow always had a freezing point temperature lower than minus .530 deg. C., no matter how poor its constitution; whereas if its freezing point temperature was higher than minus ,530 deg. C., it had been adulterated by the addition of water and according to the actual freezing point temperature recorded the exact amount of added water could be determined. It is claimed by some dairymen that the addition of half a bucket of cold water to a can of evenings milk improves the keeping quality of the milk and does not reduce the test. Cheese makers on the other hand, would prefer that the water be left in the well as watered milk has its drawbacks from their point of view. It is scarcely fair that the supplier with the elastic conscience should profit at the expense of the company and if a hint were dropped that the freezing test was to be applied and action taken against offenders the intake at some factories would probably go down a little. Prevention and Treatment of Mammitis. The Department of Agriculture offers the following advice:—

(1) Practise rigid cleanliness in all things. Pay particular attention to milking machines and teat cups. (2) See that the machines are (a) running at the proper pressure and not too high and (b) that they are not left on too long. (3) All cows known or suspected to have anything wrong with the udder must be milked last by hand. (4) Never strip an affected quarter on the ground—always into a receptacle containing disinfectant. The early detection of mammitis cases is of the utmost importance, both from the preventative and curative points of view. This is best done by taking a strip or two of the fore milk from each quarter before putting the machines on. Take these strips into a bucket the top of which is covered by a fine wire gauze. Any small clots in the fore milk are then immediately detected, and a cow whose milk contains them must be regarded as a case of mammitis and treated accordingly. Treatment. (1) Stripping.—The important feature of treatment is frequent stripping. This reduces the invading army of germs, ahd also removes the tissue damaging substances which they produce; moreover, by keeping the affected quarter as empty of milk as possible, the germs will be deprived of much of their food supply. Stripping should be done at frequent intervals—the oftener the better. Even if it could be done every two hours it would not be too often—in fact it would be very advantageous. (2) Massage.—This should be done thoroughly but gently, from above downwards towards the teat. Do it after stripping. Olive oil or some simple, harmless lubricant must be used to prevent chafing the skin when massaging. When this is done, again strip out the milk that massaging has brought into the milk cistern. (3) Fomentation.—This is particularly helpful in acute cases in the early stages. It is best done by applying a flannel wrung out in hot water, Keeping the flannel not throughout. riot less than half an hour should be spent in doing this. Afterwards rub in some olive-oil to ward off the effects of cofd after the fomentation. Avoid turning the cow out if the weather is bad or there is no sheltered place to put her in. Foment thrice daily while the quarter is hot and swollen. A few years ago a large number of herds in .Southland were innoculated with an anti-mammitis vaccine by a representative of the Hamilton vaccine people and several herds known to the writer either had a lot of fuck afterwards or else the vaccine did good work. Cows which contracted nard quarters responded much more readily to treatment and losses were infrequent. The Department of Agriculture have never given their blessing to vaccine treatment, goodness knows why, but any treatment costing 2/- or 3/- per cow which will give ix) per cent, or any per cent immunity irom a dread scourge like mammitis, is a good investment. It is not a bad idea before treating a cow for mammitis to give her a good dose of physic. A pound of salts and treacle or a packet of Sykes drench seems to make them respond much more readily to massage etc. One or two affected cows in a herd are a lot of trouble but when there are a dozen or so it is beyond a joke and to avoid this, care should be taken to destroy any cloths used as these are great germ carriers in fact some dairy-

men taboo the use of washing cloths in the shed for this reason, and splash water on the udders with the hands. Southland Roads. Adverse criticism of our roads is sometimes indulged in, but when one looks back over the improvements effected during the past 20 years it is little short of wonderful. The Dacre road was a corker and many a motorist who had succeeded in getting through, debated within himself whether it would not be advisable to rail his car for part of the return journey. Very few of the main roads through Morton Mains were gravelled and the state of these roads through grain carting and traction engine damage made them impassable for motor cars except during an extended dry spell. On parts of what is now the Winton-Gore main highway where it was unsafe to'travel a horse and gig faster than at a walking pace, motorists —particularly on race days—-doing less than sixty miles per hour are liable to be accused of loitering. Roads have been widened,/ sharp bends cut off and grades reduced all over Southland and still there is a clamour for more improvements. Motorists claim because they contribute a certain amount in petrol tax that these things must be but it is time that a halt was called and some of the revenue used to wipe off part of the accumulated debt. ■ Art Unions. That the deputation from the local Aero Club which waited on the Hon. Adam Hamilton recently, received a patient hearing and a promise of further consideration is a sign of the times and worthy of note. These clubs are usually looked upon as being composed of wealthy members and if help is given to those who might be expected to help themselves there is no valid reason why this art union may not be the forerunner of many others in aid of those who by force of circumstances are not so fortunately situated. Take county councils for instance, which have large amounts in outstanding rates, the collecting of which in extreme cases would involve taking over . the land. The councils have wisely decided to postpone, in the meantime, any works which are not of an imperatively urgent nature rather than harass by legal action those who are already at their wits end to keep going. The profits from an art union would prove a blessing in this case to the councils, the motor association and many more. A monster art union could be arranged in aid of the unemployed and this could perhaps be coupled with the Kingston Queenstown road which would be killing two birds with one stone. In fact we would make the Irish Sweep Stake and Tatts look small. Irish Cattle Trade. Irish Free State cattle dealers have i been discussing the possibility of an export trade in cattle to France. The freight from Cork to Brest is 11/- per head compared with 18/- to Liverpool. It is estimated that a continuation of r the tariff war with England will cost ■ the Irish farmers £16,000,000 if it con- ‘ tinues for a year. J Dutch Cheese. 1 Large quantities of Govda cheese are t imported into Britain from Holland. t This cheese is made from half-skim- t med and half whole milk and is sell- t ing at 1/2 to 1/4 per lb. New Zealand t standardized cheese must have been made by a wrong process. ‘ — ' WONDER COW i I RECORD OF MELBA XV. i c At his meetings held in Southland J some few weeks ago Mr C. M. Hume, . federation supervisor of herd-testing, • referred to the record of 13161 b of but- 1 terfat produced by Melba XV. Whilst in Wellington last week he obtained t the complete records for this wonder £ cow. They are as follows: — |

NATIVE GUMPTION THE OLD MAORI WAHINE AND THE SEPARATOR. You have heard of Rua, the Maori prophet. Well, there was a Maori named Pirri who was something of the same type as Rua, although not quite in such a big way. He had a considerable number of followers, but found that some of them were leaving him and joining up with Rua. Pirri evolved the idea of starting oft a few of his followers with a small herd of cows and a separator in order to keep them with him and prevent their deserting his tribe and going over to Rua. I had the job of installing ten AlfaLaval separators for him. Not one of these Maoris had ever seen a separator before, and the task of explaining to them how they should be operated was, in view of their ignorance, a very difficult one, more especially as their knowledge of English was very limited. The last separator I installed was for an old Maori wahine, and when the job had been completed she had the milk from twelve cows to separate. It was quite hopeless to explain the mechanical construction of the separator, and thinking that perhaps the most important thing she should know was the speed at which the machine should be turned, I impressed on her thus: “E

rema te kau ma rema” (55 turns per minute), this being the correct speed. This was, of course, in the days before bell speed indication. She placed a watch in front of her and - instead of counting for a short while and then relying on her judgment to tell her that the speed at which she was turning was approximately right, she continued to count through the whole period of the separation, which would be about twenty minutes. When the separation was completed her first remark was “Py korry, no good tat way, give te wahine te headache.” Some few months afterwards I was in the same district and paid all the. Natives a call to ascertain how they were progressing with their separators. It so happened that this same Maori wahine was actually separating when I called on her and she had installed a most mysterious arrangement.

The separator was anchored to a white pine block sunk in the ground and standing about two feet high from the floor, as I had left it originally. She had built a small wooden bench and had attached it to the block. Across this bench she had driven in a straight line a number.of 1J inch nails leaving protruding about a quarter of an inch. On this bench there was a benzine tin cut in half and placed hard up against the row of nails. Across the top of the t:‘ - and in the centre was a straight piece of number eight fencing wire, nicks being placed on both sides of the tin to hold this wire in position so that everything was in the same position for every separation—the bench was permanent, the row of nails was permanent and the same tin was used. The old wahine was turning away at the separator and laughing to herself. The cream coming out of the spout was hitting the piece of wire dead in the centre as it flowed into the tin. I looked at the contrivance for a long time and was very anxious to try a-id fathom what it was all about, particularly as it was quite evident that the wahine was poking fun at me. I gave up the riddle eventually and asked her for the explanation. She replied as follows:— “No good tat way—you —Kotahi, e rua, e turu, e wha (one, two, three, four). In here too tick (thick),” pointing to the side of the wire closest to the separator, “over here, too tin (thin),” indicating the far side of the wire. “Hit te wire, he’s tere (there)!”

Average Age Yrs. M. test Period lbs milk lbs fat per cent. days 2 5 8844 395.07 4.5 273 3 6 13,510 587.13 4.3 273 4 8 18,131 773.30 4.3 273 21,635 954.47 4.4 365 6 5 22,597 988.17 4.4 273 29,432 1316.81 4.5 365 7 9 26,863 1292.32 4.8 273 32,522 1614.10 5.0 365