98 SCIENTIFIC FEEDING OF ANIMALS 



following foods are to be noted — straw and chaff 

 of cereals, pulped mangels and potatoes, distillery 

 refuse, molasses ; whilst cereal grains, bran, malt 

 coombs, brewers' grains, oil cakes, flesh and fish 

 by-products, are rich in this substance. Only one- 

 third to one-half of the phosphoric acid and lime 

 can be taken from vegetable foods by animals, so 

 that two to three times as much material must be 

 given as can be stored in the body. Further in- 

 formation on this subject, will be given in Part III. 



If the amount of lime and phosphoric acid in the 

 food is not sufficient, it can be increased by the 

 addition of phosphate of lime. In many cases 

 there is only a lack of lime, so that chalk, which is 

 cheaper, can be used, instead of the phosphate. 

 Sometimes, especially when mangels are much used, 

 the bones for some unknown reason become brittle, 

 in spite of the addition of lime and phosphoric acid. 

 Those food-stuffs, such as cereal grains and oil 

 cakes, which are rich in lecithine (p. 8) are 

 particularly beneficial for the growth of bone. It 

 is not improbable that a deficiency of lecithine in 

 the food has also something to do with diseases of 

 the bones. 



(y) Iron. — Lack of iron compounds in the food 

 causes anaemia, a disease, however, very seldom 

 met with in domestic animals. It has been noticed 

 in sheep and in pregnant animals, but ordinary 

 foods contain more iron than an animal requires. 



