76 EXPERIMENTAL WORK IN FEEDING 



course attributed to the feed or method of feeding and may lead to con- 

 siderable inaccuracy. Feeding experiments should be repeated two or 

 three times with the same pens, and with different pens, if possible, in order 

 to be sure of the grounds on which conclusions are drawn. With the acqui- 

 sition of larger funds and of better equipment for poultry work, there is 

 coming a greater realization of the influence of the factors named, so that 

 the tendency at the present time is to repeat feeding trials and to use a 

 greater number of individuals in the pens compared. 



FUTURE FEEDING WORK 



From what has been said it is apparent that the most urgent need along 

 this line is the determination of digestion coefficients. The equipment for 

 such work is rather expensive and its execution will require considerable 

 patience and skill. The results first obtained may not be suitable for 

 immediate application to practical problems and will scarcely make 

 interesting reading for the majority of poultry men; but eventually they will 

 be of great value and will move poultry feeding further toward an exact 

 science than it is at the present time. In the meantime, feeding experi- 

 ments of the same general nature as those of previous years, will yield useful 

 results while many local feeding problems, particularly in regard to the 

 suitability of local products and new feeds for poultry, will constantly 

 arise and require solution. There is at present a tendency to feel that in 

 poultry feeding rations must contain many and rather expensive feed 

 stuffs even though they have to be shipped into that particular section of 

 the country. Probably this is true if maximum egg production or maxi- 

 mum gains are to be obtained, but with the present universally high 

 prices of feeds, it is questionable whether simpler and cheaper rations will 

 not produce eggs and flesh more economically. Feeding tests with this 

 end in view may well be undertaken. 



