by DR. GEORGE F.W.
HAENLEIN
Extension Dairy Specialist
University of Delaware
NEWARK, Del. - Summer heat
is here again, and it’s time to take
steps to protect milking cows from
its effects.
Without your help they will
suffer in a number of ways which
can also have economic con
sequences. Cows can’t tell you
when and if they suffer. They
simply give less milk with a
drastically lower milkfat per
centage, don’t come into estrus,
don’t show estrus and don’t con
ceive.
What can you do to prevent the
harmful effects of heat stress on
your milk herd?
Short of installing air con-
HOWTO MILK
AKUBOIA.
A Kubola tractor can do
a whole herd of chores on a
dairy farm.
J/ —-rq‘fl- , | r
Out in the hayfield, it
can plow, till, mow and bale.
Apply fertilizer or pesticide.
Help repair an old fence.
Back in the barnyard, it
can haul feed from the silo
to the trough at mealtime.
Then clean out the corrals.
In fact, it can do almost
everything except milk the
cows. Because it’s loaded
with hardworking features.
Some come standard. A
To Come In And See The Full Line
Of Kubota Tractors & Implements
Reduce Summer Heat to Increase Profits
ditioners - which would be ideal
but probably aren’t an economical
solution these days for most dairy
farmers in this region - you can do
quite a few things, starting with
exercising common sense.
Physiologists have shown that
the comfort zone for Holsteins is
between 35 degrees and 70 degrees
F. So on days when the tem
perature is above 70 degrees, you
can expert problems with your
cows - especially the high milking
ones.
In the presence of high humidity,
the effects of summer heat can be
even more severe, because the
cows make thermoregulatory
adjustments in their physiology,
nutrition .and behavior to over
come hypothermia. These ad
justments are somewhat easier to
Your Kubota Dealer Invites You
liquid-cooled diesel engine.
A bevel gear system on every
4WD tractor. Plus a neatly
designed operator platform.
Or choose a model with
more advanced features. For
example, a 5-cylinder direct
injection diesel engine. It’s
fuel-efficient. It runs more
smoothly than a 4-cylinder
engine. And more quietly.
That can help reduce both
operator fatigue and noise
related stress on the cows.
Of course, any Kubota
make in a breeze.
The windchill factor, so feared in
winter, is a great benefactor in
summer. By installing strong fans
you can artificially create extra
wind to cool their backs, especially
if you spray them with water first.
One common behavior ad
justment of cows to heat stress is
daytime lethargy, which reflects
their reduced metabolic activity.
This also means less feed intake
and less sexual interest, which are
alleviated in part by shifting ac
tivity to cooler night hours.
Cows require frequent drinks of
clean, cool water to combat
daytime heat stress. Have water
bowls nearby, providing at least
one for every 20 cows to take care
of the timid ones. Unfortunately,
green algae grow fast in the bowls
tractor works hardest with
implements also designed
and built by Kubota.The
quick-attach front loader on
the L4ISODT you see here
is a perfect example.
A Kubota dealer can show
you all of our tractors. You
have more than 15 different
choices from 23.5 hp to 85
PTO hp. One should be just
about custom-made for
your needs.
So start imagining all the
chores a Kubota could do
around your place .There’s
really only one thing it won’t
do. Head for the bam before
the work is done.
UKUBOTH
Nothing like it on earth:
on summer days, which makes the
water taste different, causing it to
be less atractive unless they’re
suffering badly from thirst. So you
need to clean out the bowls several
times each week to keep water
palatable.
The same goes for water tanks.
Some farmers keep goldfish in
their tanks to reduce algae growth
and feed contamination! It really
works, and the cows don’t seem to
mind.
To support high milk production,
cows must eat large amounts of
heat-producing feed.
Fibrous and protein feeds
produce even more heat, but these
are essential in the diet to avoid
low milkfat tests and body weight
loss.
When cows eat more con
centrates and less forages to
Lancaster Farming, Saturday, July 5,1956-A23
reduce heat stress from digestion,
they suffer an acute potassium
shortage. Potassium goes into the
milk daily and must be replenished
mainly from silages and hays or
whole cottonseed. Grain com and
other copimon grains and by
products in the concentrate ration
(except for soybean meal) cannot
supply this potassium in sufficient
amounts.
Like humans, cows also sweat.
But where we lose sodium, they
lose potassium, which further
aggravates the shortage.
Current potassium recom
mendations for dairy cattle are 0.8
percent of the total daily feed in
take. Research in Texas and
Florida shows great benefits in
improved feed intake when this
level is doubled for milking cows
during hot weather.
CALL
YOUR LOCAL
KUBOTA DEALER
PENNSYLVANIA
Alburtis
CANNSBILCO
215-966-3733
Avondale
THOMAS POWER
EQUIP.
215-268-2181
Biglerville
O.C. RICE, INC.
717-677-8135
Bloomsburg
TRACTOR PARTS CO.
717-784-0250
Carlisle
PETERMAN FARM
EQUIP., INC.
717-249-5338
Chambersburg
STOUFFER BROS., INC.
717-263-8424
Dallas
PENN STATE SEED CO.
717-675-8585
Dayton
DAYTON EQUIPMENT
COMPANY
412-783-6990
Dover
STRALEY FARM
SUPPLY, INC.
717-292-2631 -4443
Honesdale
MARSHALL
MACHINERY, INC.
717-729-7117
Jersey Shore
THOMAS L. DUNLAP
717-398-1391
Lebanon
KELLER BROS.
TRACTOR CO.
717-949-6501
Lititz
KELLER BROS.
TRACTOR CO.
717-626-2121
New Park -
itewartstowi
MS REQUIP., INC.
717-993-2511
lewtown Square
NIEMEYER SERVICE
CENTER
215-356-2672
North Huntingdon
LASPINA EQUIPMENT
412-864-5147
Reynoldsville
McGARVEY EQUIP. CO.
814-653-9637
Spring Mills
RISHEL S SALES &
SERVICE
814-422-8826 -
238-7788
Wellsboro
BENEDICT'S FORD
TRACTOR
717-724-2839
Westchester
M.S. YEARSLEY
ISONS
215-696-2990
MARYLAND
Chestertown
Wl COOPER I
SON INC.
301-778-3464
Hagerstown
ARNETTS GARAGE
301-733-0515
Rising Sun
AG IND. EQUIP.
GO. INC.
301-658-5568
Upper Marlboro
GATEWAY FORD
TRACTOR, INC.
301-627-6400
NEW JERSEY
Andover
ANDOVER TRACTOR
I EQUIP. INC.
201-786-5525
Elmer
ROORKS FARM
SUPPLY INC.
609-358-3100
Fairfield
CALDWELL TRACTOR
S EQUIP. INC.
201-227-6772
Flemmgton
PONIATOWSKI BROS.
EQUIP. CO.
201-782-3514
Hamesport
MATERIAL HANDLING
SYSTEMS
609-267-6100
Hammonton
RODIO TRACTOR
SALES, INC.
609-561-0141