CATTLE ON GRASS 109 



lessen the gains during this period. In changing from 

 dry lot to pasture there are some questions arising that 

 should receive attention. For example, "Is it better 

 practice to turn fattening cattle to grass early or late 

 in the spring?" The answer to this will depend upon 

 the character of the grass and condition of the cattle. 

 If there is a good quantity of old bluegrass left from 

 the preceding season it is good practice to turn cattle 

 to grass early, whereas, if all the grass is a fresh growth, 

 severe scouring will likely follow such practice. Where 

 pastures are eaten close the preceding fall, the grass 

 should be allowed to get a good stand and get some 

 substance before the cattle are turned on them. 



HOW TO TURN ON GRASS 



If at all practicable, it is wise to turn cattle to grass 

 for only an hour the first day during the middle of the 

 day after the cattle have filled on their regular feed. On 

 the following day the cattle can be left on grass for a 

 longer time and on each succeeding day until they are 

 allowed to spend their entire time on the fields. This 

 method occasions considerable trouble and is unneces- 

 sary unless the cattle are quite fleshy. By many it 

 is believed, and this belief is shared by the writer, that 

 rather more pasturage for the season is secured by let- 

 ting the grass get a good start in the spring. 



Corn may be nearly all, or in some instances all, the 

 concentrate used. This will depend upon the age of 

 the cattle, the kind of pasture, and how soon it is desired 

 to finish the cattle. The younger the cattle, the more 

 advisable is it to feed some concentrate rich in protein 

 as a supplement to corn. Both oil meal and cottonseed 

 meal are extensively used for this purpose. If it is de- 

 sirable to finish older cattle in the shortest possible time, 

 those feeds may be fed to advantage. If the pasture 

 is made up quite largely of clover or alfalfa there is less 

 need of these feeds than where cattle are run on blue- 

 grass. The prevailing impression among cattle feeders 



