Live Stock Breeders' Association. 155 



In this case the feeds to be used should be essentially the same 

 as recommended for calves, with the difference that more field- 

 cured corn stover and straw, particularly oat straw, may be used 

 to advantage. But under no circumstances should cattle of this 

 sort be wintered on corn and corn fodder, or corn and millet, or 

 corn and timothy, or corn and sorghum, or corn and prairie hay. 

 A legume hay is absolutely essential to the most profitable results. 

 This is very clearly shown by a large number of experiments which 

 have been conducted at the Missouri Experiment Station, of which 

 the following will serve as a fair type : 



THE VALUE OF DIFFERENT ROUGHAGES IN WINTERING YEARLING 



CATTLE. 



Total gain 

 per lot. 



6 lbs. shelled corn; timothy hay Total 318 lbs. 



6 lbs. shelled corn; clover hay Total 641 lbs. 



6 lbs. shelled corn; millet hay Total 119 lbs. 



6 lbs. shelled corn; sorghum hay Total 166 lbs. 



6 lbs. shelled corn; one-half corn stover, one-half clover hay. Total ? . . . . 533 lbs. 



With steers of this sort, from four to six pounds of shelled 

 corn per day is as much as can profitably be fed under the circum- 

 stances, and this may be omitted entirely if corn silage made in 

 the proper manner be used instead of corn stover. In that case 

 about 15 to 25 pounds of silage and from one-half to two-thirds of 

 all the legume hay they will eat and access to corn stover or straw 

 will supply conditions most favorable for cheap and liberal gains. 



// Cattle are to be Fed the Following Summer — In this case it 

 is usually good policy to increase the grain the middle of February 

 or first of March, and have the animals in good strong thrifty con- 

 dition by the time grass comes. The presence of fat stored in 

 winter will not be deleterious to the gains made in summer on full 

 feed, and will materially shorten the summer feed required. No 

 change in the kind of feed to be used would be recommended. Ordi- 

 narily it is not advisable to undertake this heavier feeding earlier 

 than the latter part of February or the first of March, because it 

 is seldom profitable to attempt to make heavy gains during the un- 

 settled weather of late winter. By the middle or latter part of 

 March, however, or about the time the cattle will be normally well 

 started on half feed, weather conditions are very favorable for 

 cheap and rapid gains. When grass comes the animals may be con- 

 tinued on half feed through May and June, or may be even reduced 

 somewhat below half feed. Or, the grain ration may be gradually 

 increased until they are on full feed, depending entirely upon the 

 state of the market, upon whether it is important to get them fin- 



