374 



A STUDY OF FARM ANIMALS 



FATTENING SHEEP 



Rations for fattening lambs. Lambs are fattened on 

 various feeds, but the most popular ration in the corn-pro- 

 ducing sections is one of corn with legumes. At the Illinois 

 station Prof. Coffey fed various combinations of clover and 

 corn to fattening lambs. He secured his best gains in a 

 98-day experiment, with western lambs averaging 65 pounds, 

 feeding daily 1.3 Ib. shelled corn and 1.3 Ib. clover hay. To 

 make 100 pounds of gain with this ration required 432 

 pounds of corn and 449 pounds of clover. The average 

 daily gain was 0.295 pound. At the Purdue station lambs 

 fed daily 1.54 pound corn silage, 0.64 pound clover hay and 

 1.10 pound concentrates, consisting of 7 parts shelled corn 



Figure 167. Western lambs in an eastern feed lot. Photograph from the 

 National Stockman and Farmer. 



and 1 part cottonseed meal, made an average daily gain of 0.28 

 pound from Oct. 28 to Jan. 26.* To make 100 pounds of 

 gain it required 393 pounds of concentrates, 228 pounds of 

 clover hay, and 548 pounds of silage. In a comparison of 

 corn, alfalfa, and pea silage with barley, alfalfa and silage 

 fed lambs at the Wyoming station, there was an average 

 daily gain of 0.25 pound for the corn lot and 0.23 pound for 

 the barley-fed lot, with the cost in favor of the former, f In 



*Bulletin 221, Sept. 1918, Purdue University Agricultural Experiment Station. 

 tBulletin 109 Wyoming Station, November, 1915. 



