558 SUCCESSFUL FARMING 



in horses taking place on Monday morning result directly from carelessness 

 in over-feeding. Work horses should not be watered when overheated, 

 but a horse accustomed to drinking water from which the chill has been 

 removed will usually suffer no injury if allowed to rest a short time before 

 watering. The usual and common practice is to allow the horse all the 

 water he cares to drink before feeding in preference to heavy watering 

 after feeding. 



Assist Animals at Time of Giving Birth to Their Young. — There is 

 probably no time when breeding animals require assistance and watching 

 as much as at the time of giving birth to their young. It is well to watch 

 the animals at this time and provide them with comfortable quarters and 

 the proper feed. It is a good practice to allow only a limited ration at 

 this time. The system will be in a much better condition to give birth to 

 the young than where full allowance of feed is supplied. If the animal 

 has difficulty in giving birth to its young, assistance should be given, which 

 in case of horses and cattle, can best be secured by calling in a competent 

 veterinarian. 



MANAGEMENT OF LIVESTOCK 

 The management of livestock increases in importance with the rise 

 in the value of livestock and the increase in the cost of feeds, labor and, 

 building materials. The three most important factors to be kept in mind 

 in the economical production of livestock is to keep down the cost of shelter, 

 labor and feed. The buildings or housing facilities for all classes of farm 

 animals should be adequate, yet not expensive. If they can be made con- 

 venient and comfortable, that is all that is necessary. Too many farmers 

 insist on making their buildings too warm. This is seen in many cases 

 where large basement barns are built that become extremely hot during 

 the winter. Such barns favor the development of livestock diseases, rather 

 than keeping the animals in a healthy condition. Farm animals will 

 thrive much better and be healthier if they are put in open sheds that offer 

 protection from cold winds, rain and sleet. This is especially true in case 

 of cattle and sheep. Hogs and horses can also be kept in open sheds the 

 same as cattle and sheep if they are given plenty of bedding and are kept 

 dry. The sleeping quarters for all farm animals should be kept well bedded. 

 Open Sheds. — A number of experiments have been conducted to com- 

 pare open sheds and warm barns for cattle and sheep. In nearly every 

 case it has been found that beef cattle fed in open sheds made greater daily 

 gains, consumed less feed per pound of gain, and were in healthier and 

 thriftier condition than those kept in warm barns. The housing of cattle 

 and sheep in open sheds is a saving to the farmer, as it does not require as 

 much capital to construct a shed as it does to construct the usual expensive 

 barn. It is also a saving of labor, as the cattle are not tied like they are 

 in the barn. Open sheds should be built to face the south so the interior 

 will not be exposed to the severe north winds. They should be built high 

 enough so that the manure can be taken out by driving into the shed with 



