PART I 

 DRY LOT VS. PASTURE FOR FINISHING YEARLINGS 



The feeder, who in the fall of the year buys calves with a 

 view to finishing them for market in such condition that they will 

 sell as prime yearlings, should realize that he is entering into a 

 feeding proposition that will require from nine to 12 months for 

 its completion. In order to make the greatest financial success from 

 the venture, he should select calves showing pronounced beef type, 

 quality, early maturity, large capacity for feed and the "milk fat" 

 which has been secured by having suckled the dam until placed in 

 the feed lot. The calves should, if possible, be taught to eat 

 grain before weaning in order that there may be no loss in weight 

 or condition when required to depend entirely upon themselves for 

 sustenance. These two factors are only under the control of the 

 man who finishes calves of his own raising and who should logically 

 follow the production of yearling beef in the corn belt. For him 

 who makes a business of feeding cattle rather than producing them, 

 the western ranges must furnish the material for the feed lot, 

 which means that the calves will necessarily have lost much of the 

 "bloom" carried at weaning time and also be entirely unaccustomed 

 to the feeds used for production, of beef in the corn belt, both of 

 which will result in a longer feeding period where prime yearling 

 beef is produced. 



When calves are first placed in the feed lot they should be 

 given the most palatable feed that can be obtained until they have 

 learned to eat. Most excellent results in starting them can be 

 secured from a grain mixture of shelled corn, bran and oats mixed 

 in equal proportions by weight, adding one part of linseed meal to 

 10 parts of the grain mixture. For roughage, good, bright clover 

 or alfalfa hay and corn silage are most useful. After they have 

 learned to eat grain, the expensive feeds such as bran and oats may 

 be dropped from the ration and the more concentrated feeds such 

 as corn, cotton-seed or linseed meal increased according to appetite, 

 and fed in connection with good roughage during the winter. This 

 method of treatment will result in an increase of approximately two 

 pounds per head daily for six months as shown in bulletins No. 129 

 and No. 136. When high grade calves are given a full feed during 

 this period on such rations, they will sell from 25 cents to 50 cents 

 per hundred below the prices paid for fat cattle of equal quality and 

 type on the central markets and will require from three to four 

 months of full feeding to make them prime. At this time there 



