144 



FEEDS AND FEEDING 



Altho corn silage is slightly the cheapest roughage, some dry rough- 

 age should be fed with it to dairy cows. (629, 648) Of the dry rough- 

 ages, clover hay is the cheapest. Let us then follow the general rule 

 of feeding 1 Ib. of dry roughage and 3 Ibs. of silage per 100 Ibs. live 

 weight. (167) To this allowance of roughage, we will add enough corn 

 to bring the total digestible nutrients up to the amount advised in the 

 standard, for corn is the concentrate which furnishes total digestible 

 nutrients most cheaply. Tabulating the results, we will have : 



First trial ration for 1,200-lb. cow yielding 30 Ibs. of 3.5 per ct. milk 



This ration, which cost 24.60 cents, meets the standard in total digest- 

 ible nutrients and dry matter but is decidedly deficient in protein. We 

 could narrow the nutritive ratio by feeding less silage and more clover 

 hay, but corn silage is the cheapest feed available. Therefore we should 

 substitute protein-rich concentrates for a part of the dent corn. 



If 1.5 Ibs. of cottonseed meal was substituted for the same weight of 

 corn, the ration would furnish about 2.3 Ibs. of digestible crude protein, 

 the minimum amount recommended in the standard. Ground corn and 

 cottonseed meal are, however, both heavy feeds, weighing about 1.5 Ibs. 

 per quart. (Appendix Table IX.) It is hence desirable to add some 

 bulky concentrate which is also high in protein. Wheat bran is a bulky, 

 protein-rich feed and at these prices is fairly economical. Moreover, it is 

 palatable and has a beneficial laxative effect. Thus it is an excellent 

 concentrate to feed with cottonseed meal, which is slightly constipating 

 in its action. Let us then substitute 1.25 Ibs. cottonseed meal and 1.5 

 Ibs. wheat bran for the same weight of corn, and again tabulate the 

 results : 



Second trial ration for 1,200-lb. cow yielding 30 Ibs. of 3.5 per ct. milk 



This ration, which costs 26.35 cents, supplies more than the minimum 

 amount of protein recommended by the standard, and is close enough to 



