FARM AND DAIRY

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIII, Issue 278, 15 April 1911, Page 3

FARM AND DAIRY

NEWS AM) NOTIiS. Regularity is tin' rtilt' of the dairy co \r. Be sure that the calve 3 are free from licc. A dark cowshed breeds a lusty erop of germs. A weak fence is a fruitful source of trouble. Heifers of the pick of the herd, if their breeding is all right, will make better cows than their mothers were. If scour breaks out among calves they should be taken off new milk diet and lie supplied with some palf food made into porridge, and given with separated skim milk. If calves are fed with three quarts of milk a day from the bucket and are enticed to eat a little hay and cake or oatmeal they are not so liable to suffer from .scour. , There may he some luck in breeding, but it is more a matter of practical knowledge, regularity in the methods of the breeder, and close attention to all the details of the business. Six parts of oil witli one of turpentine rubbed on horses, where bot-flies are pestering the animals, is found a good preventative; carbolic oil used similarly has been found efficient. Halter-pulling is a bad track in a horse. Often it is brought about by careless usage in the stall. Never do anything that would frighten a horse in his stall. Look to it that nobody else does. Successful farming calls for continuous and careful consideration of every detail, a thorough understanding of the land farmed, and an untiring energy to improve the methods of cultivation. Habits are nearly as essential in beasts as in man. Therefore, don't let your heifers get in the habit of keeping fat; good store condition is better. There is only one type of brood sow that should be maintained on any farm, and that is the kind that may be relied upon to pay its way every year. The dairy cow brings to impoverished, half-farmed lands methods that will give larger profits and greater improvement than come from other types of farming. The greatest waste in the dairy is the waste of unscientific feeding—stuffing expensive food into cows that are unsuitable for uie production of milk. Save strength hv having the best tools you can get. An immense amount of time and strength can be wasted both indoors and out tugging along with poor tools. In going over the brood sows for the purpose of selecting the mothers for next vear's pigs, a careful selection should be iiiad'e from the present breeding group. Good quality may be contained in a small cow, and some breeders assert that it is more frequent in tlfe medium or even under-sized animals than in the larger ones. Your own plans are good, but nevpr be too big to take those that are better, no matter who passes them aloii". If we allow buyers to come into our herds and pick out the best cows how can wc ever expect to build up a profitable dairy? Jf the horse's mane is heavy and inclined to work under the collar, thin it out, because it will almost certainly cause a sore spot. A desirable type of gilt from a proven mother will make a much safer proposition than the older sow that cannot b<; relied upon. I'aimers, by the selection of high-class mare and the use of superior stallions, can materially improve the standard of their farm horses. Testing is still being carried on at Cambridge, and when final results are obtained no doubt .many a cow will be fattened for the butcher pr sent to the destructor. •A horse with a sore wither, tendei' shoulders, or girth-galls, cannot be expected to do justice to- him.self or his owner. Farmers should see that no horse Unlit : for work takes a place in the team. ■- i i A young calf i* a good deal like a' young baby in many respects particularly in its ability to digest food. It ig perhaps true that more babies and calves are killed' by over-feeding than by any other cause. For each sow make a note of the number of pigs farrowed, the strength and character of each litter, and the disposition of the sow as a mother. If she fail in one or two of these characteristics, mark her as one to be parted from, and head her for the market. Aim to have one thing about your farm a little better than ot her folk have. If it is nothing but. a little ewe lamb! let that be a lamb that people will want to see and say, "That is the best one I have seen this year!" Honest rivalry is the soul of improvement. When a calf is noticed to he ailing with the scours give one scruple of salievlic acid dissolved in y.oz, of rectified spirit of wine in a. wineglassful of linseed oil. This should be followed bv a dessertspoonful of solution of chlorinated soda and one teaspoonful of laudunum mixed together, and given a teaeupful of starch or flour gruel from every three to twelve hours. When the scour ceases give codliver oil twice daily. A Chicago paper states that experienced fruitgrowers predict that the Fraser apple-tree, growing near Walla Walla, Wash., south-west of Spokane, U.S.A.. will yield between 150 and 200 bushels of fruit thi* season, thus breaking its record of 12<ii<, boxes in 1907, the highest production from a single 'tree known anywhere in the world. The tree bore 70 boxes in 1900, 42 boxes in 190,5, and 45 boxes in 1009, More than 500 barrels of fruit have been picked from its limbs since it came into bearin"—in the spring of 1871. ° There is no better way of raising a herd of which a man will be proud—and the cost, though considerable, is not more than a well-to-do farmer can easily stand —than by buying a first-class pedigree bull and a heifer or two of the same line, selected for milking strain, and breedin>> fiom these. The mistake of crossing should lie avoided entirely. If a scheme of blood is needed, and it" will not be for some time, it may lie secured by making a deal with another breeder, who also may lie looking for a change, by the familiar process of "swopping'' oil the dead level. Cross-breeding is one of the most risky works on which the non-ex-pert may enter: for the chances aTe that when lie has discovered he has chopped from blood to blood to no purpose, he will be left with a nondescript animal of no special line and scarcely crood enough' for butchers' stock. ' " The biggest cow is not always the best animal in the dairy by a long'way. li the cow goes dry early during the f;r-t lactation period she is likely to remain a short-period cow. Do not select a hcavv. lazv cow for a •'l'eeder. Uetter trust'the lively ladies oHlie herd fur your stud stock. , 1 here will always be a good demand for lug. weighty, useful horses, and breeders will make no mistake hi raisin" them. °