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      MOUNT ROSARY HUSBANDRY PROJECT

Milk and its need at Mount Rosary:

Milk is an important food item for the inmates of Mount Rosary Charitable Institutions. For the T.B. patients, who are under re-habilitation at Mount Rosary wards, it supplies calcium. For the aged and the infirm, it is a liquid food very much needed to supply nutrients for the aging physique. To the inmates of the home for the destitute, it is those members along with some sisters, who take care of the dairy programme, milk is not only a nutriton and strength, but, also, a consolation for their selfless work day and night. And there is a little extra milk left over, which is given to the trainees and the young sisters who are growing and it gives a little strength for them when their calories burn because of their hard work and studies. Therefore milk is an important food item for all the inmates and sisters at Mount Rosary and daily Mount Rosary needs 85 litres of milk.

The dairy situation at Mount Rosary:

There are different varieties of dairy animals, especially the high yielding varieties like Holsteine, Jersey etc etc. Pure breed ones don't survive very long in the climatic condition and vagaries of heat of Dakshina Kannada. Therefore we have found a solution. We have updated our breed of cattle by artificial insemination of red Jersey, with good local varieties of cows. Hence we have developed cows of average yielding milk. We have not only milking cows of these varieties, but also good young calves which would be yielding milk in the near future when the aged cows dry up. We have stud bulls for insemination and have government facility both for artificial insemination and for diseases treatment from veterinary department at Moodbidri.

Milch animals:

We have 18 milch animals in the milking section at the cattle shed at Mount Rosary, And in the same area, we have the two stud bulls needed for insemination. At Arpana, we have 10 animals, which are getting ready as milch cows, when the earlier cows dry up. We have another separate cattle shed, where we have our paddy cultivation and there are six young cows over there, which are being reared as the third generation of cows, to supply milk when the aging animals dry up. Here below we give the list of the animals in the three different cattle sheds.

1. At Mount Rosary milking stable
2. At Arpana, and
3. In the stable where we have paddy cultivation. It is also called St. Joseph's.

Explanation:
--- Every animal has been given a name
--- The average age of the animal is also indicated
--- The physical condition of the animals is described to say, whether it is giving milk, or whether it is carrying and the quantity of concentrates (feed) given to feed the animal.

Feed Requirment:

There are two important feed requirements for milch animals; one is green feed and the other is concentrates. Both of these are given to our animals at the three different stables. A milch animal weighs around 200 kgs. It requires 25 kgs of green feed everyday. The green feed we give is high breed Napier grass which we grow in Mount Rosary lands all throughout the year in four acres of land. Daily four men labourers have to work in the green feed section; plant the seedlings, apply farmyard manure, dig and supply necessary soil, and do the watering of the grass after the rainy season, cut and chop the grass, to give it as feed to the cows. Daily we need to produce 800 kgs of greenfeed. These green feeds are not enough to supply the necessary nutrients for the growing calves much less for the milking cows. Therefore concentrates, especially with a stronger dose of calcium is very much needed for supplying the feed and nutrient for the milch animals.

For an animal on an average, besides the green feed, we need to give 2kgs of concentrates per day. When it is carrying half a kg more of concentrates is to be supplied. But when the cow begins to give milk, for every litre it yields, half kg of additional concentrates are given. For example, when a cow yields 10 litres of milk everyday it has to be given the following proportion of concentrates: 2kg+ 1/2kg+5kg; total 71/2 kg of concentrates per day.

In the present situation of Mount Rosary, we need to feed 38 cows ; therefore we need 72 bags of concentrates, each bag containing 60kgs of feed item. The cost of one bag of feed is Rs. 450/-. Hence every month we need an amount of Rs.32,400/- to buy the feed concentrates from the market. There is also an item of medicines needed to treat the diseases of cows promptly. On an average, we need Rs.2500/- for medicine purchases which sisters themselves, trained in dairy programme, are able to administer. Only in cases of emergency when the sisters are not able to handle, services from the veterinary doctor at Moodbidri are solicited.

Cost-Estimates of the Project:

1. Wages of four labourers to grow green feed in four acres of Mount Rosary
   Rs.80 x 4workers x 30days x 12months = 1,15,200.00
   
   
2. Cost of concentrates
   72bags x 12 months x 450 rupees per bag totals to rupees = 3,88,800.00
   
   
3. Cost of medicines
   Rs.2500/- per month for 12 months = 30,000.00
   
   TOTAL: 5,34,000.00