ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XXXVI, Issue 3, 20 March 1928, Page 218

ANSWERS TO INQUIRIES.

IN order to ensure reply to questions, correspondents must give their name and address, not necessarily for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith. Letters should be addressed to the Editor. HORSE WITH STRINGHALT K. T. Te Poi I have a three-year-old unbroken gelding that has stringhalt. It was noticed after he had been driven over a dozen miles on a hot day. He did a good bit of galloping around, and became very hot. Do you think this was the cause of the stringhalt, or, as was suggested to me, could it have been caused by castration (performed over a year ago) ? Can anything be done for stringhalt ? The Live-stock Division : , • . ' The cause of stringhalt is obscure ; therefore it is impossible to say whether or not the galloping mentioned brought on the trouble, although it is quite likely that the excessive exertion hastened the symptoms, the actual cause of the disease being latent in the horse previous to the incident related. Castration is not considered to be a cause of stringhalt, as this ailment affects old horses more frequently than it does young animals. Regarding the treatment of stringhalt, operations of almost every conceivable nature have been tried on the leg in the hope of securing recovery, blit the veterinary surgeon cannot be reasonably certain of effecting a cure in any case. In these circumstances we would advise you to turn your horse out for a spell of, say, three months, the animal having youth in his favour.

" FAIRY RINGS ” IN LAWNS. J. W. N., Gisborne :- ■ ' Can you advise me what treatment should be applied to "fairy rings ” appearing in a tennis-lawn ? The number of rings has increased since last year, when only one or two were noticed. The Horticulture Division : To destroy fairy rings ” the ground should be thoroughly soaked with sulphate of iron in the proportion of i lb. to x| gallons of water. This treatment should be repeated twice at intervals of a fortnight, with the solution at half the previous strength. The fungus never grows twice in the same place ; it spreads outward all the time. Therefore the soil chiefly to be treated is a ring beyond where the fungus is now growing, and where so far no fungus has been seen. Where the fungus has previously grown it leaves a mat of mycelium in the soil. This for a time renders the soil almost impervious to water, and the grass is starved and dies out. After a time the mycelium dies, the soil is left enriched with nitrogen, and, permeability being again restored, the grass grows stronger than before infection. The sulphate-of-iron treatment will disfigure the grass, but it soon recovers.

FOOT TROUBLE IN DAIRY COWS. F.W.G., Kihikihi Will you please advise me on the following matter : Several of my dairy cows, notably those which milk fairly heavily and are of mature age, have developed a tenderness in their feet, more especially the hind feet. The hoof in each case is cracked and ragged-looking, too long in the toe, and inclined to flatness instead of 'the usual slope from the coronet. The farm is mainly high land, in no way waterlogged in winter, and the ground not hard or baked even in dry weather. The pasture is well top-dressed, mainly with superphosphate, and the stock have the usual rock-salt lick. Lately I have given the dairy cows access to boxes containing bonemeal and coarse salt. The Live-stock Division :—■ In many instances, unless the feet of dairy cows are kept regularly dressed and trimmed, especially the hind feet, they will grow long at the toe and begin

to crack. The weight of the animal with long feet is thrown back on the heels ; therefore tenderness and lameness will result. A good instrument to use for cutting the feet is a blacksmith’s hoof-cutters. The instrument resembles the pincers used by blacksmiths, but has one edge thick and blunt. After using this the hoof rasp may be used to trim and round off the horn. A tenon saw may also be used, but this is awkward to handle and not so satisfactory. The growth and quality of the horn are also influenced by the general health of the animal. Whether this is caused by a deficiency, malnutrition, or any other disease (for instance, digestive disorders), steps to rectify should be taken, and the regular trimming of the feet is of great importance. The nature of the ground the animals have to walk on is also a fruitful source of trouble.

DETAILS OF WALK-THROUGH MILKING-SHED. “ Aussie," Hastings : I intend to build new cow-bails on the walk-through plan. •In the Department’s Bulletin No. 87 the width of bail is given at 2 ft. 3 in. As I cover my cows in the winter (I milk all the year around) the width mentioned seems too fine for removing and replacing the covers, and I should like an opinion whether 3 ft. would be too wide and allow the cows too much room. The Dairy Division : We may- say that 2 ft. 3 in. is the usual width allowed for cow-bails in walk-through sheds. The bulge of the cow is beyond the end of the dummy barrier, and the space available should be ample for rugging. If . your cows are exceptionally large a width of 2 ft. 6 in. would probably be enough. In connection with the general plan given in the bulletin we may add that some prefer the width of the slab of concrete outside the end of the shed to be 2 ft. 6 in. instead of .5 ft., as cows are less likely to turn round on the narrower space; also that the doors open all one way. The posts of the fence round the yard are best placed on the outside.

INCIDENCE OF TWIN LAMBS. “Subscriber,” Pleasant Point —• Would you please tell me the reason why so many more twin lambs arrive at the beginning of the lambing season than later on ? If one kept more rams, and changed them at intervals, would , the ewes be likely to have more twin lambs ? The Live-stock Division: — The greatest factor which influences the incidence of twin lambs is the condition of the breeding-stock at the time of mating. Ewes which have been “ flushed ” before mating always give a greater percentage of lambs (provided the rams are in breeding-condition) than ewes ■ unflushed. The fact that a greater percentage of twins are born at the commencement of the season points to this as being the reason. Some of the single-lamb ewes may even be fortunate in having a lamb at all, owing to having been in an unflushed condition. You may be confident that twinning is not due to the ram, for if he is capable of impregnating the ewe that is all that is required ; the rest depends on the ewe.

ANT-NESTS ON BOWLING-GREEN. W. Nye, Foxton : Could vou inform me the best way to eradicate ants on a bowling-green ? Here the ants are simply spoiling the green, leaving holes where they have their nests. . Any information in regard to checking the pest will be appreciated. The Horticulture Division : The simplest way of destroying the ant-nests in your bowling-green would be to pour a small quantity of carbon bisulphide into the holes and cover them with a little soil to retain the gas evolved. The material is very volatile and inflammable, so that suitable precautions should be taken.

WINTER LICK FOR LAMBS. J.D., Okoia : I should be glad of a recipe for making a lick for lambs. We have some difficulty in carrying a big mob through the winter, and it appears to me that there is something lacking in the soil which the lambs require. I have plenty of rock salt at their disposal. The Live-stock Division : We take it that you exclude the possibility of internal parasitic infestation when you refer to difficulty in carrying the lambs through the winter. Overstocking and badly drained pastures are two of the main factors in the spread of parasitic trouble. A lick containing the following ingredients is recommended : Common salt, 40 parts ; phosphate of calcium, 20 parts ; bicarbonate of potash, 10 parts; sulphate, of iron, 3 parts. This will supply any deficiency of salts in the pasture, but by itself is not sufficient if parasites are at the bottom of the trouble. .