KAISING AND FATTENING BEEF CALVES IN ALABAMA. 5 



prices of the feeds, those of corn silage and hay being estimated: 

 Cottonseed meal and cottonseed cake $26 a ton, corn silage S3 a ton, 

 and broom-sedge hay $5 a ton. 



METHOD OF CONDUCTING THE WORK. 



The herd was kept and fed under average farm conditions. 

 E. F. Allison, a farmer and stockman of Sumter County, Ala., agreed 

 to cooperate, and the feeding was all done upon his farm. Mr. Alli- 

 son furnished the cattle and the feed, while the work was planned 

 and the feeding carried on under the supervision of the authors of 

 this bulletin. E. R. Eudaly was stationed as assistant on the farm 

 and had personal supervision of the experiment. 



No barns or other artificial shelter were provided for the cows. 

 During the winter months they were in fields where trees, together 

 with the underbrush, afforded ample protection for mature animals. 

 The calves, however, were provided with excellent shelter daring 

 the winter. While being fattened they were inclosed in a small lot 

 in which was a good barn. The doors were always open so that they 

 could go in and out at will. They were fed twice each day in troughs 

 placed under the extending eaves of the barn. The calves were fed 

 in such amounts that the feed was all eaten within a short time after 

 it was put before them. An abundance of pure water and salt was 

 provided all the time. 



At the close of the test the calves which had been fattened were 

 sold and shipped to New Orleans. The experimental farm was 

 located 4 miles from Bellamy, Ala., the nearest railroad station, 

 and the animals were driven to that point to be loaded on the cars. 



THE EXPENSE OF RAISING THE CALVES TO WEANING TIME. 



As previously stated, the majority of the calves were born in 

 March and April. During the winter months the cows grazed the 

 old corn and stalk fields and some "switch" cane which grew along 

 the banks of a small stream. Beginning January 23, or immediately 

 after the first cows dropped calves, the cows were given some cotton- 

 seed cake each day. As the grass was slow to establish itself in the 

 spring of 1912 it was necessary to continue feeding the cows a small 

 amount of cake until May 7. During the period from January 23 to 

 May 7 the 80 cows consumed 6,390 pounds of cottonseed cake in 

 addition to the feed they secured from the winter range and the early 

 pastures. This was an average daily feed of a little less than 1 pound 

 of cake for each cow, as they were fed for a period of 104 days. The 

 cows were wintered in an unusually economical manner, and the 

 farmer who lives on an average Alabama farm must expect to use 

 more feed than was given to these cows, as the average farm at the 

 present time has only a small acreage of old corn and cotton fields. It 



