CATTLE-FEEDING IN NEW YORK. 303 



AN EXPERIMENT. 



I will give an experiment of my own, many years ago, in feeding a 

 lot of forty bead of small two-and-a-half and three-and-a-half year old 

 steers. They had been raised by various parties in an adjoining county, 

 and few of them had made a respectable growth for their age, but were 

 all in a healthy state, and, as we thought, good selections to experiment 

 upon and determine how long it takes to change the habit of unthrifty 

 animals and put all the secretory vessels into active work, so that full 

 rations may be digested and assimilated. An animal that has had 

 scanty nutrition usually possesses a small capacity for digestion, and it is 

 » slow process to change this stunted habit to one of thrift. The 

 average weight of this lot was only 850 pounds, although some two- 

 thirds of them were three and a half years old. They cost only $2 

 per hundred, or $17 per head. We put them in comfortable quarters 

 on the 3d of December. After making all reasonable allowance for 

 their condition, we thought the price would permit the trial of an ex- 

 periment without loss, but we discovered in the end that the estimate 

 was a very close one. We began by feeding a daily ration of 2 pounds 

 oil-meal, 2 pounds bran, and 2 pounds corn-meal per head, mixed with 

 2 bushels of short-cut straw, and all well cooked together. This was 

 given in two feeds, morning and evening, with about 3 pounds of hay 

 at noon. This was found to be a full ration at first, and after cooking 

 came to them in a most savory condition. They soon took it with greedi- 

 ness. Those steers that had previously enjoyed shelter began to show 

 a marked improvement over the others in three weeks, but at the end 

 of thirty days the lot, on weighing, were found to have gained only an 

 average of 10 pounds in weight. The gain in weight does not, however, 

 represent the whole of the real gain. A lean animal gradually loses a 

 proportion of the water in the fluids of its system before it begins to 

 increase in weight when fed upon grain. This loss of sap is replaced 

 with fatty matter. Lean flesh holds 50 per cent, more water than fat 

 meat. So lean animals, when puti>p to feed upon grain, may be making 

 good progress for a time without any increase in weight. But when 

 animals are fed properly they are always in a condition to lay on fat 

 in due proportion. Ten of these steers had gained in thirty days 25 

 pounds each, and ten had gained nothing in weight. The next thirty 

 days the ration was increased 2 pounds of bran and 2 pounds of corn- 

 meal per day. The increase in the ration was made to correspond with 

 the increasing wants of the steers. This additional 4 pounds of grain 

 could now be digested and assimilated. The next thirty days showed a 

 marked improvement in most of the lot, but especially in those that had 

 gained most in the first period. Ten had gained li pounds per day, 20 

 had gained f pound per day, and 10 only i pound per day; an average 

 of only 25 pounds per head. The ration for the next thirty days was 

 increased by 2 pounds of corn-meal and 2 pounds to the noon ration of 

 hay, and, besides, one gallon of cheap molasses was used in the water for 

 wetting the straw, &c., for the steamed ration. This was but a small 

 amount of sweet to be diffused through 90 bushels, but it added so de- 

 cidedly to its flavor as to become at once apparent. The steers had now 

 nearly all of them got into a thriving condition, and during this period 

 of thirty days the gain was much more rapid. The best ten gained 2| 

 pounds each per day; twenty gained 1| pounds, and ten only f pound; 

 an average of il^ pounds each for the lot. The first ninety days had 

 only produced an average gain per head of 76^ pounds. 



