152 Missouri Agricultural Report. 



place for them. During a severe storm it will of course be advis- 

 able to confine them to prevent the weaker ones from being forced 

 to remain outside, but in general, sunlight and fresh air, with an 

 opportunity to get away from the odors of the barn or shed and 

 find a sunny slope protected from the wind, will go a long way to- 

 ward keeping the appetite whetted to the utmost and keeping the 

 cattle in the most thrifty condition possible. In ordinary weather 

 the cattle themselves are the best judges of when they Should re- 

 pair to the barn or shed and when to remain outside. 



It goes without saying that young animals require more shel- 

 ter than older ones, other things being equal. It is more strikingly 

 true that poorly nourished animals require more protection from 

 cold than do those that are well nourished. The truth is that the 

 confining of cattle in a warm barn when they are on full feed is 

 detrimental to their rate of gain and to the economy with which 

 they will gain.* To expose thin and poorly nourished animals to 

 cold and storms is exceedingly unprofitable as well as cruel. 



The comparatively small cost of suitable sheds makes it en- 

 tirely feasible to build more than one on the farm and to make the 

 prime consideration of their location the convenience to the feed. 

 At best it is both troublesome and expensive to handle coarse fod- 

 der. The nearer, therefore, the animals are to this supply, the 

 more convenient and in all respects the more satisfactory it is. A 

 practice all too common is the confining of stock in muddy lots near 

 the house all winter and hauling in all of the feed from even the 

 most remote parts of the farm, then being at the expense of haul- 

 ing the manure back. This is an awkward and expensive arrange- 

 ment that may be corrected at comparatively little expense, by 

 building one or more additional sheds. 



The proper preservation of the manure and the convenience 

 with which it may be handled and applied to the parts of the farm 

 needing it, must have full consideration in the location and arrange- 

 ment of sheds, feed lots and yards. 



The Silo on the Beef Farm — One of the most common and yet 

 fundamental errors is the assumption that the silo is profitable 

 only to the dairy farmer. The truth is, the silo is quite as import- 

 ant for the beef man. Particularly is this true of the man who is 

 wintering cattle in accordance with system here outlined. 



With silage, the grain may be omitted, the corn silage, if prop- 

 erly made containing enough grain. What we have found to be an 

 exceedingly profitable ration is corn silage and a legume hay and 



•For the results of experiments bearing on this point, see Missouri PJxperlment Station 

 Bulletin No. 76, pp. 54-61. 



