1000 Kew Yokk State Daieymen's Association 



she regurgitates and masticates it. Grain fed by itself goes into 

 the first stomach and stays there; it is heavy, and when regurgi- 

 tated, a portion of it does not come back to be masticated, A per- 

 centage in that way passes on undigested and is wasted. I do not 

 believe in giving the cow any feed unless I am sure she is going to 

 digest it and make milk out of it. There is really no use of pass- 

 ing raw material through a cow and getting nothing in return. At 

 St. Louis we practiced cutting the alfalfa hay and feeding it 

 with the grain. Every time we fed the cow we placed two pounds 

 of alfalfa hay cut in cpiarter-inch lengths in the bottom of a 

 galvanized i)ail. We spread the grain on top and passed a little 

 jet of steam on the hay, moistening it enough so the grain would 

 adhere to the stems. Warm water would have done just as well. 

 The alfalfa served the same purpose as bran would have sers^ed ; 

 gave bulk to it and helped the cow digest every particle of it. 

 We did not need to feed so much grain, we made a saving, and 

 did not overtax the cow's stomach. That is a safe way to feed. 

 When you feed so much bulk with the grain there is never any 

 danger of the cow eating too much. They feed a great deal of 

 straw in the old countries in that way and it has real value. If 

 you do not feed cut roughage you should feed the grain with the 

 silage. 



Mk. IMcI^erxey: Considering the cost of feed, is it profitable 

 to feed so much of it ? 



Prof. Van Pelt : That is merely a business proposition. If 

 a man has a factory with a capacity of 200 automobiles a day 

 it is a question of whether it is profitable for him to pass through 

 that factory enough raw material at the present prices of steel, 

 wood and the different materials, to make 200 machines, or 

 whether it would Ijc more profitable for him to put through 

 enough material, considering the prices, to make 100. Xow we 

 all know what manufacturers do; they work to the limit of their 

 factory, taking care of course not to break up the nuichinery or 

 burn out the castings. I think that is what we ought to do on 

 American dairy farms. 



Mr. Beaupre: Is there any value in feeding straw and corn 

 stover ? 



