COST OF KEEPING FARM HORSES. 



U. S. Department of Agriculture are averages for each entire State. 

 The grain prices shown in Table 5 are influenced also by the relative 

 quantity of ground corn and oats used in the different States. 



It is evident that variation in feed prices had a marked influence 

 on the total feed cost per horse in each State group. Aside from this, 

 a study of individual farms shows that different feeding practices 

 also had a distinct bearing on the total feed cost per horse. On some 

 farms practically the same kinds of grain and roughage were fed 

 throughout the year, the quantities of each varying from month to 

 month according to the amount of work done by the horse. On 

 other farms, the grain fed was reduced, and pasture and cheap rough- 

 age, such as straw, fodder, etc., were substituted for hay when the 

 horses were not worked regularly. The fact that the cost of feed 

 was more than half of the total cost of keeping a horse should show 

 how important to every farmer is a careful consideration of this 

 subject. 



MONTHLY FEED COSTS ON SELECTED FARMS. 



In Table 6 are shown the variations in monthly feed costs on three 

 individual farms, one from each of the three States. It will be seen 

 that on each farm the greatest monthly feed costs were for March, 

 April, May, June, and July. For these months, this cost per horse 

 was $7.47 in Illinois, $7.60 in Ohio, and $8.92 in New York; for the 

 remaining seven months, the average monthly feed cost per horse 

 was $3 less in Illinois, $1.47 less in Ohio, and $2.24 less in New York. 



Table 6. — Variation in feed costs, by months, on three individual farms located, respec- 

 tively, in Illinois, Ohio, and New York. 



Month. 



Illinois. 



Ohio. 



$8.68 



S7.75 



7.65 



7.30 



7.34 



8.42 



6.66 



7.30 



7.00 



7.20 



4.70 



6.50 



4.58 



6.66 



4.32 



6.29 



4.67 



5.40 



4.40 



5.70 



4.40 



5.94 



4.23 



6.42 



5.72 



6.74 



New 

 York. 



March 



April 



May 



June 



July 



August 



September . . . 



October 



November ... 



December 



January 



February 



Average 



$7.94 

 7.68 

 10.39 

 10.68 

 7.93 

 7.76 

 7.53 

 6.23 

 6.22 

 6.56 

 6.56 

 5.92 



7.62 



On this particular Illinois farm the kinds of feed and the quantity 

 of each varied considerably according to the work done by the 

 horse. Especially is this true of the pasture which was used from 

 April to November, when the horses were idle. In this State during 

 December, January, and February corn fodder and straw were fed 

 extensively in the place of hay. 



On the Ohio farm, from March to August the feeds used were 

 corn, oats, bran, chop, and hay; from September to January corn 



