266 Sheep-Farming 



mixing these, but none of them should be fed in 

 any quantity alone. By giving a wide variety of 

 foods, it is not possible to secure the most economical 

 gain, though there is no doubt but that the most 

 rapid gains are made by these means. 



Sustaining the appetite. — The chief secret of 

 successfully feeding show animals is to make them 

 relish their food. If their appetites fail, at once 

 make a change. The substitution of one variety 

 of meal for another will generally give the desired 

 stimulus to a sickly appetite. Oftentimes it may be 

 advisable to also reduce the ration until they will 

 eat it again with a relish. 



Feeding during summer. — It is difficult to feed 

 successfully during the hot season; yet it can be 

 done and the sheep kept on full rations. The sheep 

 that I prepared for show during the summer of 1891 

 were housed during the hot period. They were 

 first fed at sunrise, and at that time they would 

 eat greedily ; at nine in the morning they were again 

 fed, and their appetites were closely watched and 

 encouraged at times by an extra handful. At 

 twelve o'clock they were allowed a few roots, cab- 

 bages, or freshly cut clover. These were cooling and 

 they ate them heartily. As the heat decreased by 

 four o'clock, they were then given a small grain ra- 

 tion, followed by roots, cabbage, or clover. After 

 resting until seven o'clock, they were fed as much 

 grain and roots as they would relish. The doors of 



