Rensselaer Union and Jasper Republican, Volume 8, Number 28, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 30 March 1876 — petting Milch Cows. [ARTICLE]

petting Milch Cows.

If you want a cow to be gentle she must he treated gently. If you don’t want her to kick over the milk-pail you must never kick her. If you want her to give down her milk, you must never hurt her udder teats by handling them harshly. The Country Gentleman says: “A milch cow should he quiet and contented, Bhe will have to be petted and made much of. Certain it is that where a single cow is petted and well taken care of there Will be a great increase in the milk over her former yield. I have known quite a number of such cases. I never knew one that did not show this improvement. Treat each of the members of the herd like the OEe taken from it, and kept as a single cow, and the whole herd will be improved. My expedience has revealed to me the fact that our native cows, which form the staple of our dairies, are capable of great improvement, probably because they came of good blood originally when brought over, although they have been abused or permitted to run down. It needs only good treatment to bring them up to a good point. This Is my experience. Kind treatment is one of the principal sources of profit in securing a dairy herd. There are cows—the Ayrshires—that give more milk, and the Jerseys, that have more cream; but for profit, on the w'hole, the common native, so far as the writer’s experience goes, surpasses them both, only, however, when the treatment is discriminative and thorough. Then the advantage with the whole herd will be similar to that of tliecow separated from it. But pains arc seldom taken, and the principle is not sufficiently understood to enable every one to succeed as well as lie may desire.”