Fat includes not only the various fats and oils found in different 

 feed stuffs, but also waxes, resins, and coloring matters. It is some- 

 times termed ether-extract, because it represents that portion of the 

 plant soluble in ether. Fat found in grains and seeds is compara- 

 tively free from foreign substances (waxes, resins, etc.). 



Carbohydrates. — The fiber and extract matter have the same func- 

 tions in the process of nutrition, and collectively they are termed 

 carbohydrates. 



Nutritve Ratio. — -The numerical relation which the protein of a 

 feed bears to the carbohj'drates (and fat reduced to carbohydrates) 

 is termed its nutritive ratio. Fat is multiplied by 2.25 to convert it to 

 carbohydrates. If a ton of feed should contain 96 pounds of diges- 

 tible protein, and 928 pounds of digestible carbohydrates, it would 

 have 9.4 times as much carbohydrates as protein or i : 9.4, which is 

 its nutritive ratio. 



Digestibility. — Any feed stuff is valuable as a source of nourish- 

 ment only so far as its various parts can be digested and assimilated 

 That the concentrated feeds are much more digestible than the 

 coarse fodders may be shown by the following table : — 



Water, 



Ash, 



Protein, 



Fiber, 



Extract Matter, 



Fat. 



Total. 



100 lbs. Timothy Hay. 

 Compo- Per Cent Pounds 

 sition. Digestible. Digestible. 



15.0 — — 



4-3 — — 



6.3 

 28.4 

 43.60 



2.4 



48 



58 



63 

 6i 



3.02 

 16.47 

 27.46 



1.46 



100 lbs. Cottonseed Meal. 

 Compo- Per Cent Pounds 

 sition. Digestible. Digestible. 



7.0 — — 



6.5 - - 



45-1 

 6.1 



24.2 



I i.i 



88 



32 

 64 



93 



39-7 

 2.0 



15-5 

 10.^ 



TOO. 00 



— 48.41 100. o — 67.5 



The timothy hay has only 48.4 pounds of digestible matter, while 

 the cottonseed has 67.5 pounds. 



