458 FEEDS AND FEEDING 



716. Feeding limited amounts of corn. When it seems problematical 

 whether it will be more profitable to feed no corn except that in the 

 silage, or on the other hand, to feed a liberal allowance of corn, a middle 

 course may be taken and a limited amount of corn grain may be supplied 

 the cattle. This method has been tested in a number of trials, in which 

 various amounts of corn grain have been fed. The following table 

 summarizes the results of 9 trials in each of which one lot of 970-lb. steers 

 has been full-fed on shelled com in addition to corn silage, legume or 

 mixed hay, with a small allowance of cottonseed or linseed meal, while 

 another lot has been fed about half as much corn grain thruout the 

 feeding period, which averaged 131 days in length. 



Full feed of corn versus half allowance for fattening steers 



Average ration Daily Feed for 100 Ibs. gain 



gain Corn Supple- Hay Silage 



ment 



Lbs. Lbs. Lbs. Lbs. Lbs. 



Lot /, full feed of corn* 

 Shelled corn, 13.4 Ibs. 

 Supplement, 2.6 Ibs. 

 Corn silage, 30.3 Ibs. 



Hay, 2.4 Ibs 2.64 510 101 97 1,178 



Lot II, half feed of corn* 

 Shelled corn, 6.7 Ibs. 

 Supplement, 2.6 Ibs. 

 Corn silage, 42.2 Ibs. 

 Hay, 2.6 Ibs 2.32 298 117 125 1,887 



*Average of 5 trials by Skinner, King, and colleagues (Ind. Buls. 206, 220, 240, 249, 255); 2 by Dunn, 

 Pew, and Eward (Iowa Bui. 182); 1 by Allison, Mo. Station (Information to the authors); and 1 by Boh- 

 stedt, Ohio Station (Information to the authors). 



In these trials the steers fed only a half allowance of shelled corn made 

 the very satisfactory gain of 2.32 Ibs. a head daily at a feed cost of 86 

 cents less per 100 Ibs. gain than those full fed on shelled corn, and sold 

 for only 43 cents less per cwt. However, this difference in selling price 

 and the difference in the amount of pork produced by the pigs following 

 the steers was great enough to offset the cheaper gains, and the full-fed 

 steers returned a greater profit on the average. 



When it seems desirable to limit the amount of corn grain fed fattening 

 cattle, it is best during the first part of the period to feed them only 

 silage and hay, with enough linseed or cottonseed meal to balance the 

 ration. They will make excellent gains on such a ration for some time, 

 and then about 40 to 60 days before they are to be sold, they should be 

 started on corn grain and finished on a full feed of grain. This will 

 produce more rapid gains and a better finish than if no additional corn 

 grain is fed at all. Trials at the Indiana and Missouri Stations 12 show 

 that this method takes less corn than where a half allowance of corn is 

 fed thruout the entire feeding period and yet produces fully as large 



12 Skinner, King, and colleagues, 4 trials, Ind. Buls. 206, 220, 240, 249, 255: 

 Allison, Mo. Station, 1 trial, information to the authors. 



