Cattle Feeding Experiment. 21 



Lot 5. 



1905 



Jan. 21 To 10 steers, 9,260 Ibs., at 4 cents net, Lin- 

 coln $370 40 



To 33,427 Ibs. corn at 70 cents per cwt 227 62 



To 3,603 Ibs. oil-meal at $28 per ton 50 44 



To 14,745 Ibs. sorghum hay at $3.50 per ton 25 80 



To interest on $370.40, 6 mo. at 6 per cent 11 11 



To profit on 10 steers, pork produced included. . 19 22 



1905 



July 8 By 10 steers, 13,120 Ibs., at $5.03 $660 24 



By 887 Ibs. pork at 5 cents 4435 



$704 59 $704 59 

 (Profit per steer, $192.) 



CONCLUSIONS FROM THIS EXPERIMENT. 



1. When the ration consisted of corn and prairie hay, the 

 amount of grain required for each pound of gain was less- 

 ened live per cent by adding oil-meal to the grain ration. 



The cost of producing a pound of gain was not lessened 

 by the addition of oil-meal, but a better finish was secured, 

 which caused the cattle to sell for 15 cents more per hundred, 

 making a profit of $1.09 per head where a loss of $1.13 re- 

 sulted from feeding corn and prairie hay only. 



The cattle returned a value of $35 per ton for the oil-meal 

 fed, with corn worth 39 cents per bushel. 



2. Alfalfa is much superior to prairie hay when the grain 

 consists of corn alone. It also proved to be a cheaper source 

 of protein than oil-meal. The returns on the cattle fed al- 

 falfa hay, were the alfalfa figured at $11.14 per ton, would 

 have been as great as the returns on prairie hay at $6 per ton, 

 with corn as the grain ration at 39 cents per bushel. In com- 

 parison with prairie hay at $6 when oil-meal worth $28 per 

 ton was a part of the grain ration, the alfalfa returned a 

 value of $8.28 per ton. 



3. Bright, well-cured corn-stover fed with an equal weight 

 of alfalfa, the grain consisting of corn alone, gave slightly 

 larger gains than corn and alfalfa, and proved the most eco- 

 nomical ration in the experiment. The addition of corn- 

 stover may have improved to some extent the corn and alfalfa 



