72 Western Live-stock Management 



beef is not often produced in the West because it requires 

 grain in addition to trie hay. 



Steers fed on hay alone consume from thirty-five to 

 forty-five pounds daily providing the hay is good, and 

 make a daily gain of one to one-and-one-half pounds. 

 The feeding period is not as long as in the East, usually 

 three to five months. Counting hay at $6.00 a ton, the 

 cost of one pound of gain is from 8 to 12 cents, and for a 

 good profit there is required a margin of about one cent a 

 pound for 120 days' feed. By margin is meant the differ- 

 ence between the buying and selling price a pound or 100 

 pounds. For example, let us assume that a steer is bought 

 for $4.50 a hundred pounds and sold after an increase of 

 200 pounds for $5.50 a hundred. Assuming the cost of 

 the gain to be 8 cents a pound, the profit must be in the 

 increased value of each pound of the whole carcass. 

 The fattening process makes the carcass better and hence 

 more valuable, leaving out the gain in weight. Under the 

 conditions named, if the steer weighed 1000 pounds at 

 the start, the original cost at $4:. 50 would be $45.00. 

 The 200 pounds of gain would cost 8 cents a pound, bring- 

 ing the total cost of the steer up to $G1. He now weighs 

 1200 and if sold at the original price of $4.50 a hundred 

 weight would bring $54.00, making a loss of $7.00. But 

 because of the better beef he will make, he sells for $5.50 

 a hundred weight, thus bringing $60.00, and a profit of 

 $5.00. The margin required to make a profit varies with a 

 number of factors. High cost of feed, of course, increases 

 the margin required. Small steers also require slightly 

 more margin than large ones. 



When steers are low in price, more margin is required 

 than when they are high, providing the price of feed re- 

 mains the same. For example, if the cost of a pound of 



