122 



AGRIGULTnRA.L EXPERIMENT STATION. 



material more nitrogenous than the corn meal or bran. Cotton-seed 

 meal, linseed meal, pea meal and gluten meal are some of the foods, 

 any one of which would serve to amend the ration. Let us calcu- 

 late the ration with three pounds of cotton-seed meal put in the 

 place of two of the four pounds of corn meal. 



Digestible Material in Amended Ration. 











^ .• 







^ 













-2 













ci 









kS 











c 







o 







<D » 



<a 







._ 





bO ^ 



o 





03 



^ 



m 



y -^ 



rs 





























o 



Oi 



£& 



2.75 

 2.92 



o 



Ensilage, 40 lbs 



5.10 

 5.13 



.436 

 .345 



.20 

 .10 



1.63 



Timothy hay, 10 lbs 



1.76 





1.57 

 2.20 

 1.18 



.163 

 1.07 

 .235 



.08 

 .35 

 .05 



1.28 

 .66 



.84 



.03 



Cotton seed meal 3 lbs 





Wheat bran, 2 lbs 



.06 







Total 



15.18 



2.249 



.78 



8.45 



3.48 







Even now our ration is not strictly in accordance with the stand- 

 ard, but it is probably as nitrogenous as is advisable. In fact, the 

 practical tests of the German feeding standards which have been 

 made within the past few years, show that a ration maj' be very 

 efficient when it differs from them considerably. These standards 

 furnish a good working basis, however, not onlj' for practical feed- 

 ing experiments, but also for scientific investigation in matters per- 

 taining to the feeding of farm animals. Fixed standards for the 

 guidance of cattle feeders may certainly be made useful, and whether 

 the German formulas are approximately correct or not, ihey surel}' 

 are a long step in the direction of practice based upon scientific 

 principles. It is because of the prominent place the so-called Ger- 

 man rations have in the current discussions concerning the feeding 

 of live stock, and because these rations furnish valuable suggestions 

 to stock growers and dairymen, that they are given here and their 

 use explained. The farmer who understands the purpose and mean- 

 ing of these rations, and the general principles upon wliich tliey are 

 based, is prepared to quickly grasp and apply the better knowledge 

 to which they may lead. 



