BY GEORGE G. DUFFEE, MOBILE, ALA.
For several years I had been experimenting on a small scale in soiling cattle. My area of land, however, was exceedingly limited, being only a portion of the kitchen garden of a city residence, but my success was, even in this small way, so satisfactory, that I determined at some future day to try it on a more extensive scale. My reading and experience convinced me, that in our favored southern climate, a half acre of land, intelligently cultivated, would produce a supply of food amply sufficient to support one cow through the year, and circumstances favoring, I determined to try the experiment. In April, 1876, I became owner of a lot two hundred and fifty feet long by one hundred and twenty wide in the rear of my premises—the greater portion having been used as a grass plot for a horse. I immediately began by fencing off a portion one hundred and twenty feet by two hundred, running a wagon-way eight feet wide down the center, which, with the space occupied by the stable (say twenty by thirty feet), left nearly twenty-two thousand feet, or within a fraction of half an acre, for actual cultivation. The land was a sandy loam, covered with a thick sod of Bermuda and other grasses. Years before it had been cultivated as a market garden, but latterly given up to grass; it sloped to the south sufficiently to favor good drainage. In and around the stable was a goodly lot of manure, which, during April, was spread upon the land—some forty cart loads. On April twentieth the land was thoroughly plowed with a two-horse turning-plow, and harrowed until finely pulverized. On May first, I planted one half of the land in Southern field corn, in drills two feet apart, with the grains about one inch apart. The rows were lengthwise, to render after cultivation more convenient. On May fourth, sugar corn was put in one half of the remainder, planting at the same distance as the larger variety. May sixth, the remaining fourth was sown heavily with German or “Golden” Millet, in drills twelve inches apart. Seasonable showers, followed by warm sunny days, soon produced a vigorous and rapid growth. On May fifteenth, a Thomas’ harrow was run over the first planted corn, and six days later over the second planting, and over the millet. On May thirtieth, the corn was plowed, followed by a good hoeing. A fortnight later, a second and last hoeing was given. The millet was also hoed twice, after which the growth effectually shaded the ground, and thus prevented the growth of weeds. In the meantime I had repaired the stable, and had a large door cut into the side next to the original lot, and made a stall for our pet Jersey cow. The floor was cypress, three inches thick, and sloped slightly from the manger. By actual measurement of the space occupied by the cow—giving just room for her hind feet to clear the same, a trough, eight inches deep, and fifteen wide, was made to receive the urine and droppings. The stall was four and one half feet wide, the sides coming only half the length of the cow, and just her hight. The manger extended entirely across the stall, was twelve inches wide at the bottom, and eighteen at the top, and twelve deep, the bottom being twelve inches above the floor. The fastening consisted of a five-eighths iron rod, passing from one side of the stall to the other, along the center of the manger, and one inch from it. On this rod was a ring, to which was attached a short chain that ended in a snap-catch, to attach to a ring fastened to the head-stall—the head-stall being made of good, broad leather. Usually, in turning the cow out in the morning, the head-stall was unbuckled and left in the stable; to fasten again was but a moment’s work. By this arrangement the cow had full liberty to move her head, without any possibility of getting fastened by the halter. The bottom of this manger was made of slats, one half inch apart, so that no dirt could collect. For feeding wet messes, there was a box made to fit one end of the manger, which could be removed to be washed without trouble. With plenty of sawdust, costing only the hauling, perfect comfort and perfect cleanliness were matters of course.
Attached to the stable was a lot fifty by fifty feet, where, in pleasant weather, the cow was turned, but free to go in and out of her stall at pleasure. In this lot was a trough, connected with the pump, where a supply of clean and fresh water was always kept. Daily this trough was emptied and thoroughly cleaned. A cow may eat dirty feed occasionally, but see to it that the water she drinks is pure. Unless this is attended to her milk is unfit for human food.
The manure trough being supplied with sawdust, the urine, as well as the droppings, were saved and removed daily to a covered shed located in one corner of the lot, where it was kept moist, and worked over occasionally. Our Jersey was due with her second calf about June twentieth, but was still giving milk in April and May. Her feed from May first to June fifteenth, was the run of a common pasture, with a mess twice daily of wheat bran and corn meal, with hay. On June first she was dried up for a brief resting spell. June fifteenth we began cutting the sugar corn, now waist high. This was run through a cutter (making cuts three-quarters of an inch), and fed to her three times a day, first sprinkling two quarts of wheat bran over the corn, and continuing the hay feed twice a day. At the same time she was taken from the pasture, not to go on again until this experiment was finished. June twenty-second her udder was so distended, it was deemed prudent to relieve it by milking. This was done twice a day for three days. Here, at the South, there is a foolish prejudice against doing this, the belief being strong among the ignorant classes that it will cause the death of the coming calf. In some instances I have found it necessary to relieve the udder daily for a week before calving; I never knew any evil to result. At dawn June twenty-fifth there was a fine heifer calf beside her. As soon as convenient the cow was thoroughly milked, and a bucket of water, with one quart each of corn meal and wheat bran stirred in, and a pinch of salt, was given her, and nothing else except water for twenty-four hours. At evening she was again milked to the last drop, and the calf left with her during the night. Next morning a small feed of three quarts of wheat bran, and one quart of corn meal, made pretty wet, was given her, and her udder again thoroughly emptied. After milking, a small feed of hay was given, and a pail of water placed near. The calf was separated from her, but within sight. At mid-day the calf was allowed to take her fill, and afterwards the udder stripped. At evening, as the cow seemed to be free from any indications of fever, or inflamed bag, she was given a full mess of corn meal, wheat bran, cotton-seed meal, and hay. Her calf took her supper, and the udder was again stripped; that night the calf was taken from her, never to suck again, as fresh milk in a city was too valuable to feed to even a registered Jersey. Having, in years past, lost several very fine cows from over-feeding and under-milking, at calving time, I cannot urge too strongly what Col. Geo. E. Waring calls “high starvation” at this critical period in a cow’s life. If a cow has been decently cared for up to the day of calving, she needs nothing but rest, quiet, and a light mash,—warm in cold weather—for twenty-four hours, and then but light feeding for two or three days. But be sure to empty her udder completely at least twice every twenty-four hours, and if the cow is a deep milker, then three times; with this treatment, the feed can be gradually increased to all that she will eat up clean.
TEACHING THE CALF TO DRINK.
It is a very easy matter to teach a calf to drink milk, when one has seen the thing done. Next morning this calf was impatient for her mess of warm milk, so, after milking her dam, I took a shallow pan, and putting two quarts of milk into it proceeded to give the first lesson in a calf’s life, of doing without a mother. The process is very simple; you merely wet the first and second fingers of the left hand with milk, and place them in the calf’s mouth, to give her a taste of what is in store. Repeat this a few times, then gradually draw the pan near her mouth with the right hand, using your left as above. When the calf permits your two fingers to enter her mouth, raise the pan so that your left hand will be immersed, and the calf, by suction, will draw the milk up between the fingers. At mid-day, another mess of milk, and a second lesson was given; at evening a third. Next morning the process was repeated, but in this instance she did not need the fingers to guide her to what was good for her; she readily accepted the situation, and stuck her pretty nose into the warm milk, which rapidly disappeared to where it would do the most good. But with milk worth ten cents per quart, and cream seven times as much, it did not “pay” to use six quarts daily of rich Jersey milk in this way, so, after a fortnight’s supply of the raw material, the feed was gradually changed to sweet skim-milk for two weeks, and then substituting hay-tea, the milk ration was cut down to two quarts daily. Beginning with a tablespoonful of cotton-seed meal, thoroughly mixed with the feed, the quantity was increased in ten days to one pint daily. At one month old, she was gradually taught to eat bran by stirring it into her food.
The preparation of hay-tea is very simple. Nice hay is run through a cutter, and taking an ordinary two-gallon pailful, boiling water is poured upon it; it is then covered and allowed to steep for twelve hours. This makes a most excellent food, and calves thrive upon it. The most stylish and vigorous calf I ever saw, was raised upon hay-tea, with bran and cotton-seed meal as here described. I enter thus fully into the best manner of raising a calf without its mother, for the especial benefit of my southern readers, where the thriftless habit of allowing the calf to suck its dam, oftentimes until a year old, so generally prevails. In this instance the little heifer got along nicely until two months old, when an aggravated attack of scours set in, but by timely doses of laudanum in a mess of warm gruel, poured down her throat twice a day, for three days, a cure was effected. In ordinary cases of scours, a change to dry food will correct it, but it is well to watch and not to permit the disease to become seated. A few years ago, a very valuable young Jersey heifer, received from the vicinity of Philadelphia, was taken in this way, while undergoing the usual course of acclimation incident to northern cattle brought south, and the simpler treatment proving of no effect, I gave injections twice a day of rice-water and laudanum, besides drenching her with corn-gruel and laudanum. This was kept up for ten days; we carried her safely through, and her present value amply compensates for the time and trouble expended.
FOOD OF THE COW.
But let us return to the cow. On the morning of June twenty-ninth, we began giving her a fair feed of green corn, adding to it wheat bran, and cotton-seed meal. July second we fed her all the corn stalks she would eat, continuing to add bran and cotton meal, giving four quarts of the former and two of the latter; and this was her daily food, including the German Millet, treated in the same way, until September. The green food was given three times a day, but the bran and cotton meal added only morning and night. Occasionally a day’s supply was cut early in the morning, and allowed to wilt before feeding, but in this, as well as in many other matters, my man-of-all-work did as circumstances permitted. His various duties about the place gave him but little time to reduce to an exact system the care and feed of a cow. She had a good stable, and plenty to eat, received daily a good brushing, and was treated kindly. Yet, she was our servant (and a most faithful one she was), and we were not her’s, or slaves to any arbitrary clock-work regularity. She was fed and milked at regular intervals, but beyond this it was not always convenient to have regular hours at her stable. We did not keep her as an exhibition of a model cow in a model stable, and to exemplify a model system of care and keep. Like thousands all over the land, we kept her simply for the profit she yielded, in the way of milk and butter. It has often struck me, in reading the many suggestions and hints about how to keep a cow, to be found in some agricultural and live-stock journals, that were they all carried into practical operation, it would take the entire time of two able-bodied men to attend one animal—one to be always on hand during the day, the other to serve at night. Now common sense is a good thing, even when applied to the management of cows, and my experience convinces me that the average man wishes only to know the cheapest and easiest way to have an abundant supply of rich, wholesome, and clean milk, and with pride enough in the possession of a good cow to furnish a good shelter and comfortable quarters. Beyond these, breeders of fancy and high-priced stock may go to any extreme, and find a paying business in doing so, but the village or city owner of one or two cows, kept solely for his own use, can not afford to indulge in any of this “upper-tendom” style of cow life; it won’t pay him. As a row of corn was cut and fed, the land was plowed, manured, and more corn (common field) drilled in thick, so that the ground for the whole summer presented the appearance of an experimental corn field, with corn at every stage of its growth.