292 FEEDING ANIMALS. 



GERMAN FEEDING STANDARD CATTLE RATIONS. 



We gave tables of analyses and the feeding value of the 

 larger share of foods used for cattle and other farm ani- 

 mals, on pages 153-158. To know the best combinations of 

 foods for growing and fattening cattle is the first requisite 

 of successful feeding, and we shall extend this discussion to 

 the mention of the most important points. The German 

 experiment stations have experimented with cattle of vari- 

 ous ages and under various conditions, and have given 

 formulas for average feeding standards, in which they state 

 the quantities and proportions of the digestible food ele- 

 ments required for cattle at different ages, and fed for dif- 

 ferent purposes. We are indebted to Prof. S. W. Johnson's 

 report of the Connecticut experiment station for the tables 

 translated from the German of Dr. Wolff. We believe 

 Prof. Johnson was the first to bring these experiments defi- 

 nitely before American cattle-feeders. We do not, however, 

 think these feeding standards can be regarded as anything 

 more than approximative only as showing what has been 

 found to work well in practice on a small scale, and as 

 exhibiting the practical principles on which rations may be 

 compounded. These feeding standards, used in connection 

 with our extensive tables of analyses of different foods, will 

 enable any one to make up feeding rations for himself. 

 But we would caution the reader against supposing these 

 to show the only practical standard of the proportion of 

 elements in rations. We shall see that great variations are 

 made from this standard in large and successful feeding 

 operations. 



