FARM ANIMALS 261 



pulp, alfalfa, and wheat screenings. It must be 

 always remembered in compounding rations that 

 the margin of profit is small even under the best 

 conditions and may be easily destroyed entirely 

 unless the feeding value of the ration and the 

 market price of the different feeds be carefully 

 borne in mind. Thus, in the region where alfalfa 

 and sugar beet pulp may be conveniently obtained 

 eight pounds 01 alfalfa and seventeen pounds of 

 beet pulp will produce a pound of gain. The same 

 amount of mutton will be made by sheep for every 

 six pounds of alfalfa and four pounds of wheat 

 screenings eaten. Even in a region where the 

 price of the latter is high, it is possible to produce 

 gains in lambs for less than four cents a pound 

 with rations of alfalfa, sugar beet pulp and wheat 

 screenings. 



In the corn belt, corn should naturally con- 

 stitute one-half or more of the grain rations, since 

 this may be produced the most cheaply of all 

 grain feeds and is exceedingly effective in mixing 

 with peas, wheat or barley. In the Southwest, 

 corn may be partly or wholly replaced by Kafir 

 corn and in the South by sweet potatoes or other 

 starchy roots. It is always best, however, to 

 feed a certain amount of highly nitrogenous grain 

 such as barley, wheat or peas and this mixture 

 constitutes the mainstay of the sheep raisers among 

 the Canadians, where corn is not produced ex- 

 tensively and has a relatively higher market price. 



Water. It is important to provide a clean and 

 sufficient water supply for sheep at all times and 

 especially during the fattening period. Sheep 

 will gain more rapidly when they have constant 

 access to water than when they are watered only 

 once per day. The cost of gain is also less with 



