CHAPTER XVIII 



BALANCED RATIONS, WHAT ARE THEY? 



In the last chapter it was stated that there are many mistakes 

 made by feeding all alike, because their needs are not all alike. 



The reason all breeds of fowls need different treatment in feeding 

 is one of temperament. The active breeds can digest more food with- 

 out injury to themselves than the heavy breeds. So if you feed any of 

 the small breeds corn in the ration they can use it to good advantage 

 in building up the tissues of the body that are used up in activity, 

 while foraging around almost aimlessly. If you feed corn to the large 

 breeds that are content to stay where they are put and spend no 

 energy in rambling around, they use the corn to lay on more fat and 

 flesh. Corn is a flesh and fat builder and in balancing a ration for 

 the different breeds we have to keep in mind what each article of food 

 is used for. Or rather what use the hen will put it to, according to 

 her build. 



What Is Protein? — Protein is the name given to all nutritive sub- 

 stances that contain nitrogen. It is a general name because protein 

 includes albuminoids, and these are found in the white of egg, in 

 milk, in the blood, etc.; casein (the curd) of milk; myosin, the basis 

 of lean meats, and muscle and the gluten of grains. More than that 

 it includes such things as a gelatine obtained from hoofs, gristle, 

 bones, extracts of all animal matter, fish and other things too numer- 

 ous to mention. 



What are Carbohydrates? — These are the starches obtainable from 

 grains, vegetables, the livers of animals, the sugars that are found in 

 all grains, fruits, milk and a cellulose from the fibre of plants. 



What Fats Are. — The fats include all grease from animal flesh, fat 

 of milk, fats of vegetable oils, yolks of eggs, and that which is found 

 in all grains and vegetables. 



What Are Minerals? — All grains, all vegetables, and one may say, 

 all animals, contain mineral substances in more or less quantities. It 

 is chiefly the mineral substance in the ground that all plants feed on; 

 the vegetable lives on the mineral. Therefore all foods contain some 

 minerals, but bones contain very little else. Please remember that 

 minerals are classed as phosphates of calcium, sodium, magnesium, 

 etc., and every living thing contains them. 



