CHAPTER IV 



THE BREEDING HERD 



Since beef cattle are usually run on pasture or range 

 until ready to go into the feed lot, with only a little hay 

 for winter and no grain, the problems of beef raising re- 

 solve themselves very largely into problems of care and 

 management. It is commonly said that beef cattle are 

 "fed" but very little, meaning of course that little hay or 

 grain is given, and the animals instead are allowed to de- 

 pend largely on pasture or range for their living. The 

 popular press criticizes the cattle-men for these practices, 

 and is fond of telling how much better cattle could be 

 produced by the proper use of more hay and grain. This 

 is all true, but the problem of producing better cattle is 

 secondary to the problem of producing them cheaper so 

 as to leave a greater profit for the man who raises them. 

 With dairy cattle and hogs, the best feeding is nearly 

 always the cheapest. The feeder who obtains the best 

 gains with these animals finds that economy largely takes 

 care of itself. With beef cattle, however, the case is en- 

 tirely different. They consume more feed for what they 

 produce than any other kind of live-stock. The only 

 reason that beef is not very much more expensive than 

 other kinds of meat is the fact that cattle can and do 

 consume feeds which have little or no value for other kinds 

 of stock and that they require the minimum amount of 

 labor and attention. A beef steer requires as much food 



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