FEEDING OF BEEF COWS IN THE CORN BELT. 7 



mately the same as that for the first group, or 10.7 cents daily. On 

 the 207 farms of the third group the cheap roughages replaced to a 

 great extent the more expensive feeds. Although these farmers 

 were the heaviest feeders, this ration cost per cow 2.5 cents a day 

 less than that for the second group, and 2.8 cents less than that for 

 the first group. This means a saving of $4 or more in the winter 

 feed bill for each cow. 



Table II. — Relative percentage of different feeds where varying quantities of 

 cheap roughage are fed and effect of these rations on cost of keeping a coio 

 and of producing a calf. 



Relative quantity of cheap 

 roughage. 



No cheap roughage . . 



1 to 39 per cent 



40 to 79 per cent 



80 per cent and over . 



Num- 



Total 



ber of 



feed 



farms. 



units. 



14 



1,950 



229 



2, 250 



207 



2,350 



28 



2,150 



Cheap 

 rough- 



Per ct. 

 



24 



89 





Fod- 

 ders 





Daily 



Winter 



Hay. 



Grain. 



feed 

 cost 



feed 

 cost 





silage. 





per 



cow. 



per 

 cow. 



Per ct. 



Per a. 



Per ct. 



Cents. 





54 



35 



11 



11.0 



S18.00 



47 



23 



> 6 



10.7 



17.70 



28 



10 



4 



8.2 



13.80 



6 



2 



3 



5.5 



9.00 



Cost of 



calf at 

 wean- 

 ing 

 time. 



S39. 00 

 39.00 

 34.00 

 30.00 



a By "corn fodder "is meant the entire plant cut and shocked. In many localities itisknownas " shock 

 corn." 



The calf crop was practically the same in all three groups, 87.1 in 

 the first and 85.5 each in the two others. The calves in the third 

 group cost $34 at weaning time, as against approximately $39 for 

 those in the first and the second group. Of the calves sold at this 

 time, 1,150 in the third group show a profit of about 75 cents each ; 

 while 1,050 in the two other groups show a loss of approximately $4 

 per head. The calves in the first two groups were produced at a loss 

 largely because their dams were not fed as economically as were those 

 of the third group. 



In the fourth group — 28 farms — over 80 per cent of the ration was 

 made up of cheap roughage. The cows in this group were carried 

 through the winter at an average cost of $9 per head, or for 5.5 cents 

 a day. This is only one-half the cost of wintering the cows in the 

 first two groups, and nearly $5 less than the cost for the third group. 

 The calf crop in this group averaged only 78.3 per cent. However, a 

 study of the records indicates that this poor calf crop was not due 

 necessarily to the ration. Fifteen of the farms were in Iowa and 

 Missouri, and on these the average calf crop was 91.7 per cent. The 

 remaining 13 farms were in Kansas and Nebraska, where the percent- 

 age of calves produced is normally much lower, partly because the 

 cows are not as well cared for and partly because there is more trouble 

 with contagious abortion. The average calf crop for these 13 farms 

 was only 67 per cent, which accounts for the low percentage for the 

 group as a whole. In spite of this low percentage, the calves in this 

 group were produced at an average cost of only $30 per head. Of 



