302 FARM ANIMALS 



tained from fowls to which the green material is 

 given. The presence of green feed in the ration 

 is most desirable and most effective in winter. Its 

 influence is then apparent in the production of 

 eggs. Since in summer fowls may obtain their 

 own green feed, if not strictly confined, it is neces- 

 sary to feed green feed only in winter and this may 

 be done in the form of cheap cabbage, roots and 

 other garden stuff or as above mentioned by alfalfa 

 and clover hay which may be ground and moistened 

 before feeding. 



Mineral Matter in the Feed. The actual lime 

 and salts which are required by growing chickens 

 in the formation of bones and by laying hens for 

 the production of egg shells may be best supplied 

 from ground bone. It must always be remembered 

 that the importance of animal feeds in poultry 

 feeding is much greater than in the case of other 

 farm animals. In the case of ground bone the 

 value of this material sometimes depends much 

 more on the amount of mineral matter which it 

 contains than on the protein. In New York tests 

 were made to determine the importance of sand in 

 feeding chickens, both in rations containing animal 

 feed and in those which did not contain animal 

 feed. In all cases it was found that chickens were 

 in better health and made more efficient use of 

 their feed when grit in some form was added to the 

 ration. Grit may be supplied in the form of 

 ground Florida rock phosphate or oyster shells, 

 but in general oyster shells are the most undesirable 

 manner in which mineral matter may be added to 

 the ration. The great objection to oyster shells is 

 that they seem to cause injury to the alimentary 

 tract of the fowls and this does not happen from 

 feeding ground rock, ground bone or sand. Even 



