526 FEEDING FARM ANIMALS 



should not be fed without admixture. The seeds of foxtail 

 (Alopecurus pratensis), more commonly called pigeon 

 grass, usually constitute a principal portion of the weed 

 seeds found in western grains. Experiments conducted at 

 the Wisconsin experiment station showed that this food 

 was not relished by swine when fed uncooked, that for such 

 feeding it should be both cooked and ground^ and that when 

 so fed along with 33 per cent of corn meal, it is a superior 

 food to the latter when fed alone. All kinds of weed seeds 

 should be ground for swine and also for cattle, otherwise 

 many of them will escape digestion. 



Stigar, such as is used in the human dietary, but of 

 lower grade, is oftentimes fed directly to live stock. When 

 so fed it is commonly mixed with the grain or meal fed to 

 them. Animals are very fond of it, and when fitting them 

 for exhibition it not only aids in quick fattening but also 

 improves the coat. Mixed with other food, it increases the 

 consumption of the same. For ordinary fattening, it has a 

 place when not too costly, but it is thought to exert a dele- 

 terious influence on the breeding powers of both males and 

 females when fed to them in any considerable quantities, in 

 prolonged feeding. 



Oil of various kinds has been tested in feeding differ- 

 ent classes of stock. At the Massachusetts experiment sta- 

 tion, it was found that very small quantities of some kinds 

 of oil, as corn and cottonseed oil, could be fed to calves on 

 milk with benefit, but when any considerable quantity was 

 fed, indigestion followed. None of these are so completely 

 satisfactory for feeding calves as ground flaxseed or oil 

 cake. It has also been ascertained that the fat in milk can- 

 not be permanently increased by feeding oil or tallow, even 

 when fed to the extent of affecting adversely the appetite 

 of the animals. 



Nuts, more especially acorns, in some areas furnish 

 considerable quantities of food for swine. The same is 

 true of beech nuts. These promote quick growth and rapid 

 fattening when plentiful in supply, but the latter produce 



