EAISING AND FATTENING BEEF CALVES IN ALABAMA. 9 



The only purchased feed used in the fattening period was cotton- 

 seed meal. The other two feeds, corn silage and broom-sedge hay, 

 were made on the farm, the silage being valued at $3 a ton and the 

 cheap hay at $5 a ton. Before a farmer spends $26 for a ton of 

 cottonseed meal he should know whether or not he will get his 

 money back in the shape of profit on the cattle. On this particular 

 farm the two feeds, corn silage and hay, were produced at home, 

 and the object was to find a profitable market for them. While the 

 cottonseed meal cost $26 a ton, it was fed to the calves and sold, 

 by means of them, for $78.64 a ton. The corn silage was valued at 

 only $3 a ton, but it was sold by means of the calves for $12.74 a 

 ton in this particular test. An abnormally high price was realized 

 on the hay because only a small amount was used. 



The authors do not claim that such favorable results can always 

 be secured, but these results, taken together with those previously 

 secured during the progress of the beef investigational work in 

 Alabama, show that the farmer can usually well afford to buy certain 

 commercial feeds for his animals, and it is usually to his advantage 

 to feed the home-grown feeds to live stock rather than sell them on 

 the market. 



RAISING AND FATTENING PERIODS TAKEN TOGETHER. 



The following gives a brief outline of the whole life of the calves; 

 this comprises both the raising and the finishing periods, and includes 

 a fuU statement of the total expense of both the cows and the calves: 



Total summary. 



Number of cows in herd 80 



Number of breeding bulls in herd 2 



Number of calves raised 64 



To pasture rent for whole herd |250. 00 



To taxes on $2,380 invested in herd 4. 60 



To interest at 6 per cent on $2,380 invested in herd 142. 80 



To 6,390 pounds of cottonseed cake fed to breeding cows during January, 



February, March, and April 83. 07 



To 4,750 pounds of cottonseed cake fed calves in November and December. 61. 75 



To 3,425 pounds of cottonseed meal fed calves from Dec. 21 to Jan. 16 44. 53 



To 24,035 pounds of silage fed calves from Dec. 21 to Jan. 16 36. 05 



To 16,600 pounds of cottonseed meal fed calves from Jan. 17 to Apr. 1 215. 80 



To 89,545 pounds of corn silage fed calves from Jan. 17 to Apr. 1 134. 32 



To 10,377 pounds of broom-sedge hay fed calves from Jan. 17 to Apr. 1 25. 94 



To labor devoted to cattle during the year 58. 50 



To 10 per cent depreciation of the value of the breeding cattle 238. 00 



Total expenses of herd 1, 295. 36 



Average cost of each calf when 1 year old $20. 24 



Average weight of each calf when 1 year old pounds. . 560 



