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Show MILK SUBSTITUTE IS EASILY MIXED Dairy experts at the United States Department of Agriculture experimental experi-mental farm at Beltsvllle, Md have worked out a enlf meal milk substitute substi-tute which Is practical, and easily mixed and which contains a greater proportion of home-grown feeds than is used In most calf meals. The department's recommended ration ra-tion is as follows: Take 50 parts finely fine-ly ground corn, 15 parts Unseed oil meal, 15 parts finely ground rolled oats, 10 parts dried blood flour, 10 parts skimmed milk powder, one-half part salt. Stir up with warm mixture at the rate of one pound of the meal mixture mix-ture to about six pounds of water. Increase In-crease gradually as the whole milk Is decreased, until at the time the cull Is 50 days old It should be getting only the gruel. At tills time 1 to 2 pounds of the meal mixed with water will constitute a day's feed. The total quantity of milk used Is about 800 pounds; If less Is fed the calves are likely to be unthrifty. The time at which calves can be put on milk substitutes alone, say department depart-ment dairymen, depends upon the same factors as In thii use of separated sepa-rated milk, namely, the breed, development, develop-ment, and vigor of the calves, etc. It Is hardly safe, as a rule, even with the most vigorous ones, to attempt to put them on milk substitutes alone within one month after birth ; and with calves below normal In vigor some milk for two months or more may be necessary to raise them. The department suggests, as a guide for feeding the above substitute to large, vigorous calves, the following schedule : First 10 days, 10 pounds of whole milk dally; second 10 days, 8 pounds of milk and 0.4 pound of meal (mixed up" In 6 times Its weight of warm water) ; third 10 days, 6 pounds milk and 0.8 pound meal ; fourth 10 days, 4 pounds milk and 1.2 pounds meal ; fifth 10 days, 2 pounds milk and 1.8 pounds meal; after 50 days, 2 pounds meal and no milk. Smaller and less vigorous calves should be fed somewhat less, and the milk feeding feed-ing should be continued a little longer. In any event, a total of 800 pounds of milk should be sufficient. Grain and roughage should be fed with milk substitutes sub-stitutes the same as with separated milk. Whole milk Is the best food for a calf; skim milk ranks second. Calves fed the substitute as stated above have been subject to no more digestive diges-tive troubles than the skim milk fed calves and the gains In weight have not been materially less. |
