FOODS AND FEEDING 
obtained. However, the beginner must have some 
sort of a foundation from which to start, and that 
is our idea in stating the various constituents, etc., 
of the feeds. The experienced poultryman attaches 
little value to any such information, except the 
merest generalities and general principles, because 
he knows that it is impossible to follow arbitrary 
rules and get the results the rules anticipate with 
the uniformity which would justify the use of such 
rules; he knows he had to learn by experiment and 
observation how much to feed and when and how 
to vary his rations. The inexperienced person 
should handle his fowls as frequently as conven- 
ient, and by examining the breast bone and 
between the thighs of the fowl one can, with a 
little practice, tell very well whether the fowl is 
too “lean” or too corpulent. 
Food stuffs contain, in greater or lesser de- 
gree, three elements which are essential in the feed- 
Composition ing of all live stock and fowls. They 
of Food Stuffs are protein carbohydrates (including 
fat), andash. The protein is that part of the food 
which makes flesh, blood, muscles, tendons, etc., 
and serves to replace wasted tissue and make 
growth or form some product, such as eggs. It 
is the most important element in feeding stuff—in 
fact, the commercial value of a food depends 
largely upon the amount of protein it contains. A 
ration deficient in protein never gives satisfaction, 
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