240 CARE OF BEEF CATTLE 



not overeat on the meal. The amount of the meal should 

 be decreased after the steers have been fed for a period of 

 about loo days, and in some cases it may be taken out of 

 the ration entirely. For roughage, well-cured clover hay 

 is excellent. Where it can be obtained at a reasonable 

 figure alfalfa is probably the best roughage for fattening 

 cattle. However, care should be exercised in feeding it, 

 or bloat may result. This is especially true when the 

 alfalfa is damp or wet. Timothy hay is an expensive 

 roughage. Besides being high in price it does not produce 

 the gains that are obtained from the alfalfa or clover; 

 Corn silage should be fed to beef cattle because it reduces 

 the amount of grain needed and keeps the animals healthy. 

 Steers will consume about 15 to 20 pounds of silage and 

 from 6 to 8 pounds of alfalfa or clover, daily, per 1000 

 pounds of live weight. As steers grow fat, the amount of 

 roughage may be lowered and the amount of grain in- 

 creased. A suitable day's ration for the 1000-pound steer 

 consists of 12 to 15 pounds of shelled corn, 2 to 3 pounds 

 of cottonseed meal, 6 to 8 pounds of alfalfa or clover hay, 

 and 15 to 20 pounds of corn silage. Steers should average 

 from 2^ to 3 pounds of gain per day on such a ration. 



Hogs Following Steers. — The steer feeder always has 

 hogs following the steers to pick up the waste com. The 

 best way to feed corn to steers is on the ear, with hogs 

 following. A great many steer feeders are content if the 

 steers pay only for the cost of feeding. They make the 

 profit on the hogs which follow the cattle in the feed lot. 

 Active, vigorous pigs weighing from 100 to 150 pounds 

 are the best for this purpose. However, the pigs should 

 have some feed besides what they pick up after the cattle. 

 The number of pigs per steer varies with the condition of 



