FOODS AND FEEDING 



obtained. However, the beginner must have some 

 sort of a foundation from which to start, and that 

 is our idea in stating the various constituents, etc., 

 of the feeds. The experienced poultryman attaches 

 little value to any such information, except the 

 merest generalities and general principles, because 

 he knows that it is impossible to follow arbitrary 

 rules and get the results the rules anticipate with 

 the uniformity which would justify the use of such 

 rules ; he knows he had to learn by experiment and 

 observation how much to feed and when and how 

 to vary his rations. The inexperienced person 

 should handle his fowls as frequently as conven- 

 ient, and by examining the breast bone and 

 between the thighs of the fowl one can, with a 

 little practice, tell very well whether the fowl is 

 too " lean " or too corpulent. 



Food stuffs contain, in greater or lesser de- 

 gree, three elements which are essential in the feed- 

 Composition ing of all live stock and fowls. They 

 of Food Stuffs are protein carbohydrates (including 

 fat) , and ash. The protein is that part of the food 



(which makes flesh, blood, muscles, tendons, etc., 

 and serves to replace wasted tissue and make 

 growth or form some product, such as eggs. It 

 is the most important element in feeding stuff in 

 fact, the commercial value of a food depends 

 largely upon the amount of protein it contains. A 

 ration deficient in protein never gives satisfaction, 



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