DAIRY FARMING.

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXV, Issue 4656, 1 February 1924, Page 4

DAIRY FARMING.

INFLUENCE OF WEATHER ON MILK YIELD.

To what extent and in what manner do weather ’ conditions affect the butterfat percentage in milk? Tho wide variations that often occur m official testing might be largely explained were the facts known regarding the relation of weather to the fat content of milk, likewise the seasonal factor might be of some importance from the standpoint of maximum production in determining the most desirable season of the year for cows to freshen. In a recent investigation involving 2760 lactation periods of animals from several dairy breeds it was noted that the tendency appear to be for the fat content to fall more or less during the summer months, but with the approach of cooler weather in the autumn it tends to rise again.

Often it has been taken for granted that the variations referred to in the above observations are not seasonal ones at all, but are the result of the tendency of milk to vary in its composition with the progress of lactation. It is a well established fact that with the advance of lactation the mi.’k produced changes materially both in butterfat content and other constituents as. well. Apparently both season and stage of lactation are influencing factors. It is clear also that under certain conditions they will oppose one another, with the result that at times the range of variation will be very great during the lactation period and at ether times the opposite will be true. What causes the richness of the mUk to vary with the change of season ? Of the several possible meteorological factors temperature appears to be the most important, THE DANGEROUS- BULL. Any bull is comparatively easy to handle when young, but a large percentage of them became ill-tempered with age. The worst of if is that this change of disposition, comesmighty sudden at times, jest when there is no preparation for emergencies, and as a result of numerous fatalities we hear the oft-repeated expression that the quiet bull is the dangerous one. The care of the bull in general has a great deal to do with its docility. Cross bulls are made cross in many cases by overfeeding and want of exercise. Some persons can blame themselves for their unruly bulls, as they seem to delight in showing their superiority ovei- the dumb brutes by abusing them. A coward has no business with a bull, as his fear will soon be discerned and the animals will be spoiled. At the slightest indication of crossness the bull should be blindfolded. He is completely undone when, he can see only-a’short distance ahead and does not know where to find, the object of his fury. Good sole leather should oe used for the blind. Fasten to the horns and around nose. VALUE OF WATER. Eighty-seven per cent, of milk is water, and the cow must have plenty of good water, and where she can get it whenever she wants it; if we do not have this we-will get poor results. A certain quality of water is required in the blood, and a certain quantity is, required for the milkThe greater yield the cow gives, the more-water she must have for eacn quart of milk and the richer the milk the more water she will need. Cows will drink ten to twenty times a day where water is always before them. Wo must have water where the cow can get it whenever she wanfs it.