DAIRY COWS

Wairarapa Times-Age, 23 April 1940, Page 9

DAIRY COWS

SOME FEEDING POINTS | — r MORE PRODUCTION GAINED. SUPPLEMENTARY RATION IN WINTER. The feeding of dairy cows is the subject of an agricultural bulletin prepared by the Canterbury Agricultural College, Lincoln, and published by the Canterbury Chamber of Commerce. The bulletin states that the breeding of a high producing herd requires that all cows should, be well fed. disease free, tested for butterfat, and that only heifers out of high-producing cows should be brought into the herd. The. best bulls are those which are not only out of high-producing cows, but which have proved themselves to be herd improvers. i.e., they have produced heifers giving a higher yield than their mothers did as two-year-olds. The use of such bulls will, with certainty, raise the butterfat average of the herd. The importance of the bull will be appreciated when it is realised that the bull produces many calves in the year, whereas each cow produces only one calf.

While not easy, it is possible to obtain a herd'practically clear of disease. This demands periodical testing of all cows for tuberculosis and for contagious abortion, and the removal of all reacting cows. A clean herd thus obtained may be kept clean by isolation from other herds. ADEQUATE FEEDING ESSENTIAL. In successful dairy production adequate feeding is all-important and is the principal subject of this bulletin. The amount of feed a dairy eow requires depends on a number of factors. Cl) The size of the animal. Larger animals require more than smaller ones. (.2) The amount, the animal produces. A cow producing six gallons a day will require more feed than one producing three gallons or one which is dry. (3) The stage of pregnancy. An incalf dairy cow needs extra feed io build up her calf. The requirement for the foetal calf rises considerably over the last three months before calving occurs. (4) The weather. During the months from September to April no extra requirement is needed to allow for vagaries of the weather. However, in the winter and early spring extra food is required by dairy cows owing to frosty weather, cold winds and storms. (5) The growth of the cow herself. Etxra feed is required for any weight increase the cow may make. This applies mainly to heifers, but also to all heavy milking cows whose condition must be built up during their dry period. KINDS OF SEED. Grass is by far the most important feed; its production, however, varies throughout the year. Excess grass shut up in late September or early October and cut for hay or silage early in December forms the bulk winter feed supply for dairy cows. Special hay crops may also be

grown, such as lucerne. Italian ryegrass and red clover, oats and vetches and ( oats alone. First-quality hay in quantity is the greatest factor in adequate ■ winter feeding. Inferior hay has little more feeding value than straw and the ; cow which obtains her fill of this class : of feedstuff alone does not get enough nutriment. She has to keep her own body going, build the calf inside her, put on some condition as a preparation for next milking season and maintain her temperature in winter. A straw stack or two in the paddock is, however, valuable for the animals to shelter round and pick at occasionally. The result of feeding an inferior hay and straw is that cows calve in low condition and are frequently lousy. With no reserves to call on for their first milk flush, they put meat on their own bodies instead of milk in the bucket, as returns from dozens of farms have shown. Instead of coming to peak production six weeks after calving these cows, if they calve at the normal spring period, fail to reach top production until December. SILAGE AND ROOTS. The use of silage as a winter feed is an established practice in the North Island, but is not yet general in the South. Silage is comparable to roots and is fed as a supplement to hay and not as a substitute. A stack of silage has the additional advantage of keeping for a number of years. . Ton for ton, silage is superior in feeding value tc roots, and in districts where the weather is unsettled the first cut of hay can with advantage be made into silage. Silage is an excellent provision for summer dry period. Roots, particularly soft turnips, have frequently failed in recent years, but where they can be grown successfully

they are useful in supprementing hay during the winter shortage. Swedes and mangolds are considerably better in feeding value than turnips. Mangolds should be made to mature by i:ulling and leaving for one month prior to feeding and it is not advisable to feed much over 801 b. per cow per day. as cows become mangold sick. Kale and chou moellier are higher in food value than roots, but usually yield less per acre. Chou moellier is being grown to an increasing extent on dairy farms, where it is fed as an addition to hay and roots. It is valuable i ot only for its nutriment, but also for the attractive colour it imparts to the milk when little grass is available.

OUT-OF-SEASON GRASS. It is possible to provide feed during periods of normal shortage by the production of cut-of-season grass. This can be produced by either growing special grass crops or autumn top-dressing and closing up the pasture until early spring. In lite South Island, especially in districts where autumn droughts are to be feared, lop-dressing should be done in February and the pasture closed in March. Although this method produces satisfactory August feed, larger quantities of better feed will be produced by growing special crops such as Italian ryegrass. Italian rye- . grass and rod clover, oats alone, or oats 1 end vetches. These should be all February sown and if carefully handled produce a large bulk of out-of-season I feed in winter and early spring. Ital- ) l ian ryegrass and red clover is the best,

and a .mixture of oats and vetches :s superior to oats alone. The growmg of these special crops is an essential feature of most of the high-producing dairy farms in the South Island. Most farm-produced concentrated feeding stuffs have about .be same feeding value, but eacn rias its own peculiarity. Crushed oats are safe, highly nutritious and usually cheap. Lucerne meal is being widely and successfully used. Meatmeal is a cheap source of protein and can be used at the rate of 11b per clay as soon as the cows become used to it. Crushed peas are another excellent protein-rich feed. Bran has only a moderate feed value, but is highly esteemed owing to its laxative action.

FEEDING IN WINTER.

Cows are usually dried off during May and it is from then on that dairycow feeding is most important and most frequently neglected. The popular conception is that the cow is dry and needs little teed, but she is still a producer. During part of May. all of June and July and most of August, the cow must build her calf, and as every good cow milks off her own body during the fish of production, she must also restore her own body tissues. Moreover she must contend with severe weatnei conditions.

To bring her through the winter in good condition a dairy’ cow requires the equivalent of 20 to 251 b. hay. 40 to 501 b of mangolds, and a few stalks ol chou moellier daily, and a quarter-acre of green feed for winter anv .spring shortage. Hay’ requires i<> oe fed m the early’ spring at the rate ot 10 to 15lb a day. The total requirements per cow arc: For winter and early’ spring: Ij to 1A tons hay per cow. 2i to 3 tons of mangolds per cow. a little chou moullier per cow. acre of green feed per cow . For summer feed (some seasons only): A ton of silage per cow or l-l()1h acre of green feed per cow. The requirements for 10 cows producing 3501 b of butterlat are. approximately: (> acres average meadow hay. '. acre mangolds. acre chou moellier, 2 acres green feed. 1 acre <5 tons) silage. Low producing cows may be fed less than these amounts, especially in mild climates. Cases are known, however, where herds of large Friesian cows producing over 4001 b. of butterfat ate being fed with profit. 1■; tons ol hay per cow. in addition to lull provision of mangolds, chou moellier and .green feed.