CHAPTER III 



PREPARATION OF THE FEEDING-STUFFS 



i . /^"^ REEN or coarse fodder from long-stemmed 

 vJ plants is usually chopped to prevent loss by 

 scattering about, to make chewing easier, and by 

 admixture with other foods to secure a thorough 

 mastication. The pieces of chopped material 

 should be of such a length that they have to be 

 chewed before being swallowed. Cattle, as a rule, 

 ought to get chopped straw in pieces of i-ij inches, 

 horses and sheep j-i inch ; green fodder and hay 

 are best cut longer than this. There is no advan- 

 tage in chopping the materials any shorter than 

 this ; on the contrary there is danger of colic if the 

 pieces are too small. Short chaff is not digested 

 any better than long, for in comparative experi- 

 ments with wheat and barley straw, it was found 

 that even in the form of powder they were not 

 more completely digested by oxen. 



Mangels, turnips, and potatoes, which even 

 uncut are readily eaten, are usually sliced in 

 order to mix them more thoroughly with other 



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