GENERAL PROBLEMS IN BEEF PRODUCTION 



451 



compared favorably with the calves in capacity and condition at the 

 beginning of each test, tho not of quite such good type. 



Fattening calves, yearlings, and 2-year-olds 



Av. initial weight, Ibs 



Length of feeding period, months 



Av. daily gain, Ibs 



Av. total gain, Ibs 



Av. feed consumed per head: 



Shelled corn, Ibs 



Cottonseed meal, Ibs 



Clover hay, Ibs 



Corn silage, Ibs 



Feed per 100 Ibs. gain by steers: 



Shelled corn, Ibs 



Cottonseed meal, Ibs 



Clover hay, Ibs 



Corn silage, Ibs 



Feed cost per 100 Ibs. gain* 



Pork per bushel of corn fed to steers, Ibs. * . 

 *Av. of 3 trials. 



Calves 

 518 



9 



1.88 

 508 



3,026 



445 



857 

 1,950 



596 



88 

 168 

 385 



$7.74 

 ' 1.00 



Yearlings 

 888 

 6.5 

 2.22 

 431 



3,034 



480 



714 

 2,849 



704 

 111 

 165 

 660 

 $9.09 

 1.85 



2-year-olds 



1,067 

 6 



2.6 

 471 



3,212 



510 



760 

 2,700 



681 

 108 

 160 

 573 

 $9.37 

 2.50 



While it required only 6 months to make the 2-year-old steers fat 

 enough to sell as prime beeves, it took 9 months to finish the rapidly 

 growing calves equally well. Therefore, as the table shows, it required 

 nearly as much feed per head to finish the calves as the 2-year-olds. Tho 

 the daily gains increased with the age of the steers, the older cattle 

 required considerably more feed per 100 Ibs. gain, which made their 

 gains more expensive. Other trials by Grisdale at the Ottawa Experi- 

 mental Farms 4 have shown that the gains of 3-year-olds are still more 

 expensive than those of 2-year-olds. As is usual, the older steers in this 

 trial masticated the shelled corn less thoroly than the younger animals, 

 and hence the pigs following them made more pork for each bushel of 

 corn fed the steers. 



Calves usually cost more per 100 Ibs. as feeders than do yearlings or 

 2-year-olds, but when fat sell at about the same price per 100 Ibs. as the 

 older animals. This may entirely offset the cheaper gains made by them. 

 For example, in these Indiana trials the 2-year-olds returned the largest 

 and the calves the smallest profit per head. In addition, greater care 

 and skill are required to fatten calves, they do not stand severe weather 

 so well, and they must be fed a larger proportion of grain to roughage 

 than the more mature steers. Furthermore, most of the range steers sold 

 as feeders are not of sufficiently good beef type and conformation to be 

 finished as baby beeves. As is pointed out later, this requires well-bred 

 vigorous beef calves. (818-9) For these reasons, the great majority of 

 feeder steers are fattened when 2 years old, tho the tendency toward the 

 fattening of yearlings is increasing. On the other hand, in the corn belt 

 most farmers who raise their own steers on high-priced land find it most 



'Ottawa Expt. Farms Rpts., 1900-1904. 



