I generally manage to have the cow come in about the first of September;
by that means the six weeks time she is allowed to go dry, occurs during
the warmest portion of the summer, viz., in July and August, when,
with the facilities the person who keeps but one cow possesses, it is
difficult to make good butter. This is also the season when butter most
generally sells the lowest.
The calf is taught to drink after it is a week or ten days old, and fed
on a porridge made from skim-milk and wheat middlings, or shorts; by
the time it is six weeks or two months old it will be well fattened,
and can be sold to the butcher for veal, at a good price, for at that
season of the year veal is scarce and in demand. The cow being in full
flow of milk all winter, when butter is most always high, will pay a good
profit for her feed and care. A couple of weeks prior to the time the
calf should be born, I make a box stall on the barn floor, and permit the
cow to run loose in it until the calf is taken away to learn to drink.
During this time she should have a good bed of leaves, and the stall be
cleaned each night and morning. So far at such times I have experienced
no difficulty, or trouble; should any occur, it is better to apply to
an experienced person, than to try and “doctor” her yourself. After the
calf is born, I feed the cow on warm slops a day or two, permitting the
calf to suck until the swelling has gone from her bag, and it has assumed
its natural condition. Then, as before stated, teach it to drink, which
can easily be done by inserting the finger in its mouth, and putting its
head in the dish, cautiously withdrawing the finger a few times, and in a
short time you will have no difficulty, as it will help itself.
In conclusion, I can say I have tried to state just how our cow is
managed and kept. I presume there can be improvements made on our system.
I shall be glad to take advantage of the experience of others, at any and
all times. No record is kept of the milk obtained, or of the butter made.
We know we always have plenty for the family’s use, and considerable to
spare. Bread and milk furnish the children half their food a portion of
the time. Pure milk and plenty of fresh fruits, in abundance, we consider
afford one of the principal reasons why our family is so healthy, and we
have so few doctor’s bills to pay.
From our acre and a half, all the food has been grown for both cow and
horse, except the three dollars expended for straw. The “sugar meal”
given the cow has not cost five dollars during the past year. It is safe
to say, that one half, and probably more, of the clover, corn fodder,
green rye, etc., has been fed to the horse. Consequently the keeping of
the cow can all be credited to the small area of about three-fourths of
an acre of land, in addition to an outlay of not exceeding seven dollars
for meal, bran, and straw. This land, about one half of it, has also
produced, in addition, full crops for the use of the family, or market,
while the sour milk and buttermilk have largely assisted in making six
hundred pounds of pork. The calf, at less than two months of age, was
sold for eight dollars, which more than paid for the extra feed bought
for the cow. The family which has never kept a cow can hardly realize
the satisfaction and benefits derived from such a source. Children,
whose appetites are often capricious, will almost always relish a cup of
cool milk. Cream, for our coffee at breakfast, is much enjoyed by all,
but realized by few, and what can be more delicious than a nice dish of
strawberries smothered in rich yellow cream. When we consider the small
expense, the little trouble and care, contrasted with the great benefits
derived, it is, so to speak, surprising that any family should rest
satisfied without possessing a cow.
[Illustration: Fig. 2.—THE AYRSHIRE COW “OLD CREAMER.”]