FINISHING CATTLE ON PASTURE 177 



the pasture be grass, then 90 per cent of corn and lO 

 of oilcake will give better results considerably than corn 

 alone. There will be less of a tendency to scours when 

 the oilcake is fed, and experiments have shown also that 

 more increase is made when oilcake is added to the corn. 

 A\ hen fed in the nut form, the oilcake is not blown away 

 by the wind as when fed as meal. Cottonseed meal or 

 gluten meal may be given in place of oil meal, also wheat 

 bran. In some instances the corn is prepared by soaking 

 it usually for 12 hours, but it should not be soaked long 

 enough to become sour, nor should it be fed so freely 

 that any will be left unconsumed in the feed boxes, or it 

 will sour. It is most conveniently soaked in a tight box 

 on the wagon which conveys it to the place of feeding. 

 When swine are not present, the corn should be thus 

 soaked or ground. 



In the absence of corn, barley meal, or rye meal, 

 wheat meal or pea meal may be fed when the condi- 

 tions favor such feeding. A limited amount of wheat bran 

 or half the amount of oilcake will improve the ration. 

 Oats, as part of the grain fed, are excellent for such 

 feeding, but usually the price at that season forbids 

 their use. 



The amount of grain or meal that should be fed at 

 such a time will vary with the character of the pas- 

 ture. But little light has been thrown upon this ques- 

 tion as the outcome of experiment. In some instances, 

 as much as 20 pounds are fed daily to cattle weighing 

 1,200 to 1,500 pounds. These amounts are unneces- 

 sarily large, even when whole corn is fed and swine 

 follow the cattle. Grass is certainly a cheaper fattener 

 than grain, hence grain should be fed chiefly because 

 of the influence it has on the quality of the meat. As 

 the outcome of experiment it will probably be found 

 that feeding less than i pound daily for each lOO pounds 

 of live weight will prove more profitable than feeding 

 larger amounts unless when corn is very cheap. 



