212 COMMERCIAL POULTRY RAISING 



because of the limited supply. It consists of the hull, germ and 

 portions of the starch cells — the residue from the process of 

 making hulled corn or hominy. It is similar to gluten and may 

 be used in about the same way. 



Ground oats, as the name suggests, is simply the whole oats 

 ground fine. The fiber is not reduced in any way, though it is 

 rendered more palatable. In buying ground oats care should be 

 taken that there is not an excess of hulls, since unreliable manu- 

 facturers sometimes use a very light or poor grade of oats for this 

 feed. Ground oats are useful in all mashes, but because of the 

 high percentage of fiber, they must be used judiciously. For ex- 

 ample, it would be a mistake to compound a mash having large 

 quantities of mealed alfalfa, ground oats and bran, because all 

 three have large percentages of fiber, whereas the fiber content 

 in poultry feeds should be kept as low as possible. 



Ground barley, sometimes called barley meal, has pretty- much 

 the same value as the whole grain. Like ground oats, it must be 

 used carefully because of the hulls. It is not a common feed in 

 this country. Dried brewers' grains, a by-product of barley 

 from the breweries, is a valuable addition to the mash, rich in 

 fat and protein, and used about the same as corn meal and wheat 

 middlings. It is more widely used as a dairy feed than for 

 poultry. 



Buckwheat bran and middlings, which are the by-products of 

 buckwheat flour, are not particularly desirable as a poultry- feed 

 because of the large percentage of indigestible matter. The 

 middlings are sometimes used in fattening poultry for slaughter, 

 especially where white flesh is desired. 



Cottonseed meal, a by-product from the manufacture of cotton- 

 seed oil from cotton seed, is thought by some to be a substitute 

 for meat scrap. Fowls do not take kindly to it, however, and the 

 general opinion among poultry feeders is that it is not a desirable 

 feed. The consensus of opinion is that cottonseed meal should 

 be used with extreme caution, or not at all. 



Oil meal, or linseed meal, a by-product of the manufacture 

 of linseed oil from flaxseed, is rich in protein and fat, and a valu- 



