TYPES OF FARMING 61 



TABLE 7. STEERS ON FARMS ON APRIL 1, 1910 



1 Number of steers and bulls for each 100 cows and heifers born before 

 Jan. 1, 1909; most of these would be 2 years old or older. 



The West Central States raise nearly all their calves. 

 The age at which the steers are sold also shows an adjust- 

 ment to feed prices. The Western States keep their steers 

 to two or three years of age, as is shown by the fact that 

 they have twice as many of the older ones as of the year- 

 lings. 



48. Relation of transportation to sheep-production. 

 Sheep are more efficient users of feed than cattle, but not 

 so efficient as hogs. On an average, it takes about 3.5 

 pounds of grain and 5.1 pounds of hay to produce a pound 

 of sheep, 2 10 pounds of hay and 10 pounds of corn for a 

 pound of steer, and 5.6 pounds of corn for a pound of pork. 

 The hog has a still further advantage in that in butchering 

 it dresses off about one-fourth, while cattle and sheep dress 

 off about 35-50 per cent. 



Sheep will eat many products that cannot be well used 

 by other stock. They help to rid a farm of weeds. For 

 these reasons, a few sheep are kept as scavengers on many 

 farms where it would not pay to keep a large number. 



2 D. H. Doane, Sheep Feeding and Farm Management, p. 71. 



