EXERCISES 31 



Cooking and Soaking. — All modern investigators are ^ 

 agreed that uncooked foods are better for farm animals. 

 For adding variety and palatability to the ration and im- 

 proving the finish of animals being fitted for show, without 

 regard to economy, cooked feeds are fed with good results. 



Soaking feeds often improves them by rendering them 

 more easily masticated and carried along the digestive 

 tract. The mouths of grass-fed beef cattle often become 

 sore from eating hard, dry corn. For them the corn may 

 be improved by soaking for twelve hours before feeding. 

 Barley is also improved for pigs by soaking it for the 

 same length of time. 



Care of Wet Feeds, — Slop or moistened feeds should not 

 be allowed to stand long in dirty barrels, vats, or other 

 receptacles. Under such conditions souring takes place 

 and feeds become unpalatable. Disastrous results to ani- 

 mals may follow a neglect to keep receptacles clean. 



EXERCISES 



1. Would you feed ground corn to pigs ? Why? 



2. Does it pay to give feeds special preparation? 



3. For what purposes should feed receive special preparation ? 

 How should it be prepared? 



4. Which is to be preferred as a feed, pound for pound, grass 

 or dry hay? 



HOME PROJECT 



By feeding two lots of pigs, one on whole corn and the other 

 on ground corn, and slop, and keeping accurate records, com- 

 pare these two methods of feeding corn. All other conditions 

 must be the same. 



