CHAPTER IX 

 FOODS 



Composition of Cattle Foods. Nature of Carbohydrates, Fat, 

 Proteins, Fibre, Ash. Processes of Digestion in the Animal 

 Body. Digestibility. Character of various Concentrated 

 Foods, Cereals, Roots, Straw, and Hay. Valuation of 

 Feeding Stuffs. 



We have already discussed the constituents of plants ; 

 these constituents in their turn make up the foods, and 

 have to be considered from a fresh point of view in 

 dealing with the nutrition of animals. As a rule, the 

 composition of any given cattle food is expressed as 

 follows : — Decorticated cotton-seed cake contains — 



Moisture . . . . = 8-2 per cent. 



Fat . . . . . = II-9 „ 



Proteins or Albuminoids . . = 46-2 „ 



Carbohydrates (by difference) . = 21-2 „ 

 Fibre . . . .= 5-5.. 

 Ash (containing sand=i-5 per cent.) = 7-0 „ 



The fat really represents the material which is soluble 

 in ether; when dealing with oilcakes and similar ripe 

 foods it will consist almost wholly of pure fat, but in the 

 case of green fodders various other materials, e.g. chloro- 

 phyll, are dissolved by the ether in the process of 

 analysis and counted as fat. Crude fat would be a more 

 correct title. The proteins (albuminoids of the older 



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