CARE OF DOMESTIC ANIMALS 497 



highest profit as litter, although in some instances it will be 

 more profitable when cleaning out the feed boxes to give 

 such refuse to animals that are being carried through the 

 winter on a less palatable fodder ration. Hay rejected by 

 work horses, cows or cattle that are being fattened, may 

 thus be utilized by store cattle fed in sheds or otherwise. 



The rejected portions of corn stalks or of the sorghums 

 do not furnish suitable litter when fed in the unprepared 

 form, that is, when fed as they grew. Because of their 

 stiffness and shape, they are not well suited for bedding, 

 and there is the further objection that they add much to 

 the labor in handling the manure. The objections to such 

 litter may be in a great measure, and in some instances 

 entirely overcome, by shredding or cutting up the stalks 

 before they are fed. 



Prominent among the refuse from manufacturing es- 

 tablishments used as litter, are sawdust, shavings and spent 

 tan bark. The supply of these is more or less limited. Saw- 

 dust has the merit of being clean and easily handled and 

 will absorb three times its weight of liquid, but it is low 

 in fertilizing ingredients, decays slowly and promotes fire- 

 fang in manure heaps when present in the same, unless the 

 contents are speedily applied to the land. Shavings do not 

 fork readily and decay slowly. Spent tan bark is quite 

 low in fertilizing constituents and may generally be better 

 applied as a mulch. 



Leaves furnish suitable litter and rank considerably 

 higher than straw in absorbing liquid, but they are not 

 equal to straw as fertilizers. Moreover, the labor of gather- 

 ing and storing them is considerable. The profit from 

 using them, therefore, as litter, is sometimes to be ques- 

 tioned, unless where cheaper sources of the same are not 

 obtainable, or when they are necessary for the absorption 

 of urine, much of which would otherwise be lost. 



Loam may answer for bedding in the absence of other 

 materials, and may be used in conjunction with them, as 

 when used in stables to absorb the liquids. Humus soils are 



