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Bpicuous in the case of young growing pigs or in the case of breeding 

 stock, especially sows during the period of gestation. Corn may be fed 

 either whole or ground, results of experiments varying widely as to re- 

 lative merits of the two methods of feeding. Bulletin 106 of the Iowa Experi- 

 ment Station reports results of two years work upon different methods of feeding 

 corn, and the following extracts are taken from the conclusions published in the 

 bulletin : " The fastest and most profitable gains were secured by feeding dry ear 

 corn until the hogs were close to 200 pounds in weight. Then, if the hogs were 

 to be fed longer and the weather permitted, the most profitable gains were secured 

 by changing them to soaked shelled corn ... It proved useless to grind corn 

 for hogs of any age when the weather was warm enough to permit soaking. In 

 every case where grinding has shown a saving of corn, simply soaking twelve hours 

 in water has shown a still greater saving.'" 



Fed by itself, corn does not give very large gains with hogs. Figures compiled 

 from a large number of tests show an average of 10.25 pounds gain in weight from 

 a bushel of corn. Young pigs fed on corn alone often become dwarfed, over-fat, 

 and weak in bone. In such cases, the addition of bone meal, or even hardwood 

 ashes, to the corn ration, will effect a marked improvement. The greatest im- 

 provement, however, is effected by the use of foods rich in protein along with com. 

 Supplementing corn with foods rich in protein has been tested by many experiment 

 stations, and in every case the hogs have made greater and cheaper gains than when 

 corn was fed alone. Among the most effective feeds to supplement corn are the 

 by-products of packing houses, such as blood meal, meat meal, and tankage. These 

 products are all extremely rich in protein, and must be fed in small proportions to 

 be economical. Pea meal, linseed meal (ground oil cake), soy bean meal, wheat 

 middlings, barley, skim-milk, as well as alfalfa and other pasture crops, have all 

 been used with corn to excellent advantage. The richer the supplementary feed la 

 in protein, the sinaller the proportion it is necessary to use. 



Peas, or Canada Field Peas. —This grain is comparatively _ little 

 known in the United States, and is used to a smaller extent for pig feeding in 

 Canada than it was some years ago, mainly owing to the high price it commands 

 for other purposes. 



At the Utah Experiment Station, hogs fed upon ground peas and J)ran, equal 

 parts, made an average daily gain of 1.09 pounds and required 363 pounds of meal 

 for lOO pounds of gain; while hogs fed corn and bran made an average daily gain 

 of .63 pound and required 455 pounds for 100 pounds of gain. 



At the South Dakota Station the daily gain of pigs fed whole soaked peas 

 was 1.21 pounds, and for soaked corn meal 1.40 pounds; but the grain required for 

 100 pounds gain was 421 pounds for the pea group and 458 pounds for the 

 corn lot. 



The Ontario Agricultural College found that feeding pea meal alone was 

 injurious to pigs, the heavy, close nature of the meal making it indigestible. This 

 peculiarity of pea meal is generally recognized. Pea meal alone was less satis- 

 factory than corn meal alone, but when mixed with one-third of its weight of wheat 

 middlings it gave much better results than corn meal. 



Pea meal is very rich in protein and should make a good supplementary feed 

 with corn. 



Barley. — Barley is richer in bone and muscle-forming constituents than 

 com, having a higher percentage of ash and protein. In fattening constituents it 

 is scarcely equal to corn. 



