Andrew Hadcock, age 7, of Gallup, N.M., for his question:

HOW MUCH MILK DOES A COW GIVE?

Each cow has a baggy organ called an udder which holds her milk. The udder hangs from the cow's body in front of the hind legs. Four separate sections hold the milk. When a cow is milked by hand, pressure makes the milk squirt out of the udder through large nipples called teats. Large dairy farms use electrically operated milking machines to draw out the milk.

Dairy cattle are among the most important farm animals we have. We drink the milk and also use it to make cheese, butter and ice cream. Five different breeds of milk cows are very widely used  in North America, although many other breeds can provide milk. The top five breeds are the Holstein Friesian, Jersey, Guernsey, Ayshire and Brown Swiss.  Cows found in America during the colonial days produced very little milk. Then with careful breeding, dairymen have been able to develop breeds of good milk producers. Scientific breeding continues today to improve the lines.  Butter fat content is important in milk production. The improvement of dairy herds has had good effects in increasing the milk's butter fat content.  In 1950, the average annual output of milk per cow was about 5,314 pounds. One gallon of milk weighs 8.6 pounds. By 1970 the average annual output of milk per cow had increased to about 10,270 pounds. Today the count is even higher.  Milk production is always measured by weight because farmers are paid for their milk by weight at creameries and receiving stations.

An average dairy cow will produce a bit over five and a half gallons of milk each day. This figures to a daily average of about 22 or 23 quarts.  Dairy cows are milked on an average of 305 days each  year. A cow will normally give milk for five or six years, although some continue to produce until they reach the age of 20 or even older.

World lifetime record yield of milk by a cow is 340,578 pounds by a Holstein in Adrian, Mich., up to April, 1975. The greatest record yield for a one year period was set in Roaring Springs, Pa., by another Holstein with 50,759 pounds for a 365 day period ending December, 1974.  Tne day record for milk production is 198 pounds from a Friesian in England in 1948.

Leading dairy cattle states and provinces start with Wisconsin where 2.5 million cows work on milk production. Next in line is Minnesota with about 1.3 million. Then follow New York, California, Quebec, Ontario, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Ohio and Iowa.

There are more Holsteins in North America than any other dairy breed. The first animals of this breed were brought to the United States in 1795.