532 Feeds and Feeding. 



sale in vast quantities and at a low price. A corral or enclosure 

 is made of pickets, and into this the sheep are driven, to remain 

 until fattened. Sometimes there are sheds for shelter, usually 

 not. Often 20,000 to 30,000, divided into a few bunches, are fed 

 at a single point Wild hay is unloaded against the picket fence, 

 through which the sheep feed. The only labor in handling the 

 hay after unloading is for an attendant to keep it moved up close 

 to the fence. From one and a half to two bushels of corn fed in 

 troughs are required per day for 100 head of sheep. To this is 

 usually added a few pounds of oil meal. The feeding continues 

 about 100 days, the sheep gaining on an average about 15 pounds 

 per head duiing that time. The profit comes mainly from in- 

 creasing the original value of the sheep. The industry is an ir- 

 regular and uncertain one. If scab breaks out, as it is liable to 

 do, there is often a heavy loss to the feeder. Again, the profit 

 depends upon the price of corn, A^hich varies greatly from year 

 to year and cannot be foretold much in advance of the time for 

 feeding. Large numbers of Montana sheep are fed in much the 

 same manner in Minnesota on the screenings from mills and 

 elevators. This feed is proving excellent for the purpose. Be- 

 cause of bits of straw and chaff in the screenings fattening sheep 

 do not surfeit so ea.sily on screenings as on com, and they may 

 even be fed without giving any hay in addition. 



822. Cooke's report — Fattening on alfalfa hay and grain. — In 

 Bulletin 32 of the Colorado Station, Cooke gathers a large 

 amount of information concerning fattening Western sheep in 

 Colorado on grain and alfalfa hay grown by irrigation. Accord- 

 ing to this author more than 117,000 sheep and lambs fed in 

 Colorado were shipped to the Chicago market during the season 

 of 1895. It is estimated these sheep consumed 136,000 bushels 

 of wheat, 95,000 bushels of corn, 810 tons of other grain, and 

 more than 27,000 tons of alfalfa hay. The sheep and lambs used 

 were Cokrado-grown or from New Mexico or Idaho. New 

 Mexico and Colorado sheep are usually driven to the places 

 where fed. The location for feeding is selected because of the 

 abundance of alfalfa hay, together with an available supply of 

 grain. A summary of the system from the bulletin is as follows: 



