90 LIVESTOCK ON THE FARM 



certain conditions it may prove, by means of external factors, 

 to be much more valuable. These factors, however, may as 

 a rule be provided by proper mixing. 



Cooking will, however, destroy disease germs as in milk or 

 weed seeds in grain. If ground grain, especially if it is not 

 ground fine enough, is cooked, it will mix better with water 

 and make a more uniform slop and thus be better. But with 

 proper grinding (fine grinding), and with the proper mixture 

 of grains and water, cooking becomes almost a valueless 

 operation and the added expense need not be incurred on the 

 average farm. 



In a cold country in winter, water should frequently be 

 warmed to make it more palatable and to reduce the drain 

 on the animal heat needed to warm it to the temperature of 

 the body. With a few feeds, also, like potatoes and pump- 

 kins fed to hogs, cooking is of advantage. These are carbo- 

 hydrate feeds adapted to fattening animals. Hogs, however, 

 do not need very much water, and such feeds are very rich 

 in water. By cooking them, therefore, some of this water is 

 driven off. If a little ground feed is added it reduces the 

 water content still more, and also makes a better variety. 

 Cooking such feeds will also make the starch more digestible. 



Soaking Feeds. Soaking feeds in water from one feeding 

 time to the next or even longer is sometimes advocated. This 

 practice may be considered in much the same light as cooking. 

 It adds water and softens the grain to some extent but under 

 some conditions this practice becomes decidedly harmful. 



Soaked grain is usually fed wet or in the form of a slop. 

 When thus fed to pigs it is frequently swallowed whole. A 

 pig may not masticate its slop but simply gulp it down. If 

 the soaked grain is swallowed whole it will be of no value to 

 the animal. It goes through undigested. If grain is not 

 ground fine enough, soaking may help out. 



