92 THE SCIENTIFIC FEEDING OF ANIMALS 



ish maize 26.8 grams, yellow La Plata maize 25.0 grams and Cinquan- 

 tino 12.5 grams. 



The most important parasitic fungus affecting Indian corn is Ustilago 

 maidis (corn smut). The minute spores of U. maidis are hardly recog- 

 nizable by the naked eye but may be detected by the black color which 

 they impart to the hands when affected shelled corn is handled, or by 

 the black scum that forms on the surface of water which has been poured 

 into a vessel full of infected grain. 



The digestibility of Indian corn is high, and it agrees well with all 

 animals, provided strict cleanliness is observed to prevent fermentation 

 or spoiling of leavings in the feeding troughs or mangers. Corn spoils 

 or becomes moldy very readily in the presence of moisture. 



Uses. Indian corn is not as pronounced an energy-producing food as 

 oats, but, like barley, has good fattening qualities. For this reason it is 

 not suited to replace entirely the more expensive oats as a horse feed. 

 The softer and more starchy varieties are not suited to replace oats to a 

 greater extent than one- fourth or one-half of the grain or oat ration, and 

 only then when the comparative prices of corn and oats warrant the sub- 

 situation. Furthermore, it is adapted only for slow working animals that 

 are able to masticate the grain well and that are not overfatigued. The 

 softer and more starchy varieties may be fed whole. The harder va- 

 rieties should be crushed and mixed with oats and chaffed feed. The 

 crushing should be sufficient merely to crack the shell, not to reduce the 

 grain to fine particles. 



Indian corn is an excellent feed for fattening cattle, sheep and swine. 

 While the effect of the oil in the grain when fed in large quantities im- 

 proves the meat product of cattle and sheep by lowering the melting 

 point of the tallow, its effect on the quality of the meat products of swine 

 is the opposite. It has a tendency to make the bacon oily and the meat 

 soft. These objections may be overcome by limiting the corn grain ration 

 to one-half. Corn is a less desirable feed for milk cows on account of 

 its softening effect upon the butter. 



The methods of preparing corn for the feeding of cattle, sheep and 

 swine are the same as those recommended for the other grains. Some- 

 times it is fed whole to horses and sheep after having been soaked in 

 salt water for 24 to 48 hours. 



In regions where Indian corn is extensively cultivated it is sometimes 

 ground with the cob to induce more thorough mastication. In countries 

 where the imported product is used the expense of transportation would 

 exclude this method of feeding. 



e. Millet and Rice 



Millet (Panicum miliaceum) and rice (Orysa sativa) are used as ani- 

 mal feeding stuffs in a limited way only. Rice is used chiefly when it is 

 low in price or when unfit for human consumption on account of a 

 slightly spoiled condition. 



