Florida Agricultural Experiment Station


 OVER-CAPITALIZATION IS POSSIBLE
 It is possible to over-capitalize the dairy business, that is, to
 have too much invested in equipment, per cow. With the many
 new equipment on the market there is a tendency to provide
 too expensive buildings and equipment. The equipment should
 be as sanitary and as simple as possible. Climatic conditions in
 Florida are such that expensive barns are not necessary; the
 essential considerations are a good floor, a good roof, and the
 sides screened to keep out flies. On a small dairy farm it is easy
 to get the business over-capitalized as some of the equipment
 necessary for handling a few cows would be sufficient for more
 cows than are kept.

 QUALIFICATIONS OF A GOOD DAIRYMAN
 Dairying is a line of work that few persons are capable of
 doing right. It is doubtful if one percent of the Florida farmers
 know how to conduct a dairy successfully for profit. The man
 capable of producing milk that will meet all sanitary require-
 ments, etc., is an unusual agriculturist and is worthy of success
 in almost any profession. To be successful the dairyman must
 know how to breed animals successfully. He must also know
 how to care for and feed them to develop their capacity for milk
 production. He must have a good practical knowledge of ani-
 mals. He must be observing so that he may note anything un-
 usual when looking over his herd. He should recognize and diag-
 nose immediately any disturbance in an animal, and remove any
 factor that might cause bad milk or decrease its flow. The pro-
 ducer of milk must be acquainted with milk and know how to
 handle it.
 Those who have had experience in handling dairy cows and
 have kept records of individual cows in the herd need not be told
 that there is a wide variation in the amount of milk and butter
 produced by different individuals. It is not uncommon, in fact
 it is of common occurrence in a herd of ordinary size, that cer-
 tain animals will produce twice as much milk and butter, or
 even more, during the year as other animals of the same age, the
 same breeding, and with the same amount of feed and care. To
 be a successful dairyman advantage must be taken of this wide
 variation in production, otherwise milk and butter will not be
produced as economically as they should be.
 Altho the amount of milk produced per cow is not the only
factor to be considered in figuring the cost of production, it is.