STOCK FEEDING SUGGESTIONS. 41 



rower than the German ration and perhaps cannot be continu- 

 ously fed dairy cows with safety. Authorities quite generally 

 agree that a one thousand pound cow, of average capacity for 

 producing milk, should have about 2.5 pounds of digestible pro- 

 tein per day and it would be questionable whether a Maine farm- 

 er, who is obliged to buy commercial fertilizers, could profit- 

 ably feed any less to a cow of that size. At the present low 

 prices of cotton-seed and gluten meals one can afford to feed the 

 maximum amount of protein for the sake of increasing the value 

 of the manure. Both of the above feeds contain fertilizing 

 materials enough to amount to more than their cost when val- 

 ued according to the valuations given to commercial fertilizers. 



EXPLANATION OF TABLES. 



Below are given tables which furnish the necessary data for 

 making up rations. In table I the pounds of digestible nutri- 

 ents in one hundred pounds of the coarse fodders and concen- 

 trated feeds common to this State will be found. In table II 

 some convenient mixtures of grain are given, together with 

 their percentages of digestible nutrients and nutritive ratios. 

 Those with very narrow nutritive ratios are designed for feeding 

 with such coarse fodders as timothy hay, corn silage and corn 

 stover; while those with the wider nutritive ratio are for feeding 

 with leguminous coarse fodders like clover hay, peas and oats, 

 soy beans, etc. Table III gives the German feeding standards. 



HOW TO USE THE TABLES. 



The manner of using the tables can best be explained by an 

 example. Suppose one wishes to make up a ration for dairy 

 cows of 1,000 pounds live weight. For coarse fodders he has 

 English hay and southern corn silage. By consulting table 

 III, he finds a cow of that size needs 2.5 pounds of digestible 

 protein, 12.5 pounds of digestible carbohydrates and 0.4 pounds 

 of digestible fat per day. The cow will readily eat 35 pounds of 

 silage and 10 pounds of hay. In table I he can find the per- 

 centages of digestible nutrients for southern corn silage and 

 mixed hay. Those given for silage he multiplies by 35 and 

 those given for hay by 10, which gives for 



