42 POULTRY FOODS 



between the protein and the total of fats and carbo- 

 hydrates.) Consequently, prepared oats are better than 

 whole oats as food for young chicks and laying hens. 

 Either hulled oats or oatmeal is one of the best single- 

 grain rations for fowls. 



Oat Hulls. As 'a poultry food, oat hulls, apart from 

 their value as manure, which is small, are worth no 

 more than sawdust. Ground oat hulls are liberally used 

 as an adulterant to lessen the cost of other foods in 

 preparing poultry feeds, and the presence of much of 

 this adulterant may so reduce the value of the feed as 

 to make it useless. 



CORN 



Whole Corn. The structure of the corn kernel is 

 similar in a general way to that of the wheat grain. 

 Corn is the grain that is ordinarily the most attractive 

 to poultry. Some corn is almost a necessity for suc- 

 cessful poultry feeding, but an all-corn ration is 

 injurious because it is too fattening. Corn alone, how- 

 ever, will not fatten a fowl in the best way, nor will 

 it produce a good yield of eggs. Corn is rich in carbo- 

 hydrates and fats; it provides heat for the body, and 

 oil and fat for the feathers, for the yolk of the egg, and 

 for the flesh. Corn contains too little protein and ash 

 for successful egg production, and to produce the best 

 results is combined with other grains. A balanced 

 ration is formed by the use of corn and some other 

 grains and meat. 



Corn Bran. The outside of the grain, or the shell, 

 from which corn bran is made, is removed from corn 

 when it is made into food products for human beings. 

 This shell is hard and dry and has almost no food value, 

 being composed almost entirely of indigestible fiber and 

 a little ash, and is, therefore, of no use in poultry 

 rations. 



Gluten Meals and Feeds. Gluten, a by-product of corn- 

 starch manufacture, is sometimes sold as gluten meal, 

 and is a very important food for dairy cows. Good 



