SHEEP 365 



utes after the grain is eaten. The sheep themselves become wonder- 

 fully punctual and regular in their habits. When properly managed, 

 the feeding begins at precisely the same time and proceeds in regu- 

 lar order each day. This procedure becomes so well understood by 

 the sheep that they always expect their ration promptly on time, and 

 they will take their place at the gate admitting them to the feed 

 yard in regular order by lots. For instance, lot one at its feeding 

 time will be waiting for admittance while lot two in the pen adjoin- 

 ing five minutes before feeding time will be lying contentedly 

 and taking no notice of what is going on outside ; a few minutes later, 

 however, they will be crowded at the gate and eagerly waiting their 

 turn. When the feeder is a quarter of an hour late, every animal in 

 the lot seems to recognize and resent his tardiness. 



Attention to these and numerous other minor details have a 

 great deal to do with the profits resulting from extensive feeding 

 operations. The loss from indigestion and other troubles frequently 

 reaches 4 or 5 per cent under negligent methods, but in careful, ju- 

 dicious handling this can be reduced to less than 1 per cent. 



Restricting the amount of grain to a very limited quantity at 

 the beginning is absolutely essential to the best results in fatten- 

 ing western sheep ; a lighter grain feed should then be used in pref- 

 erence to one that is more concentrated, and during the finishing 

 stages a heavier and richer grain ration will be productive of good 

 results. 



Feeding Three Times a Day. On one of the largest and most 

 successful feeding ranches in the West, near Jansen, Nebr., 2,500 

 head, in lots of about 300 each, were being fattened on a grain 

 ration consisting of l 1 /^ pounds of shelled corn and one-eighth of a 

 pound of oil meal per head daily at the time of the writer's visit there 

 in February. They were being fed grain three times daily in sepa- 

 rate feeding yards adjoining their other quarters, according to the 

 system previously described in this bulletin. The manager of the 

 sheep at this farm recommends feeding three times a day, although 

 it is not common to feed more than twice. Those who have practiced 

 feeding three times a day claim as an advantage for this method 

 that larger quantities of grain may be consumed with less danger of 

 injury than by feeding only twice. One feeder who has recently in- 

 troduced this method stated that he was able to safely feed 300 

 pounds more grain per day to 2,500 head of sheep. A striking illus- 

 tration in favor of careful methods is furnished in the following rec- 

 ord: Three lots, ranging from 500 to 1,500 each, all selected from 

 the same large bunch shipped in from the range together, went into 

 the hands of different feeders. One, the largest lot, made an aver- 

 age gain of 20 pounds in five months, another, 13, and the third, 9. 

 They went to market at about the same time and sold for $4.55, 

 $4.40, and $4.35, respectively. The difference in gain and value of 

 the sheep on the market when finished was enough to return a lib- 

 eral profit on the best lot, while it was with difficulty that the others 

 wore able to balance accounts. These differences prevail in other lo- 

 calities and demonstrate the advantage and increased profit that 



