THE FATTENING ANIMAL 



193 



maintenance 65*2 lbs., or 9*3 lbs. per day. The re- 

 sults obtained by calculation thus nearly approximate 

 to the facts observed, and the difference appears to 

 indicate that a small portion of the maintenance food 

 had, in the case in question, become available for 

 production. 



The three animals v^ith which the farmer is chiefly 

 concerned have very different powers of consuming 

 food, and yield different rates of increase. Lawes and 

 Gilbert, forty years ago, reckoned that, on an average 

 of the whole fattening period, an ox will produce 

 100 lbs. of live weight from the consumption of 

 250 lbs. oilcake, 600 lbs. clover hay, and 3,500 lbs. 

 •swedes. Sheep will produce the same increase by 

 the consumption of 250 lbs. oilcake, 300 lbs. clover 

 hay, and 4,000 lbs. swedes. Pigs will require about 

 500 lbs. of barley meal to yield a similar result. 

 Taking these data, the rate of food consumed, and of 

 increase yielded, will be approximately as follows : — 



COMPARISON OF FATTENING OXEN, SHEEP, AND PIGS. 



Dry matter of solid excrement and urine exclusive of litter. 



13 



